Tarzan and the Golden Lion · Chapters
Chapters explained
Chapter companions for Tarzan and the Golden Lion by Edgar Rice Burroughs.
Chapter 1
The Golden Lion
Tarzan, Jane, and Korak return from Pal-ul-don, adopting a lion cub named Jad-bal-ja and a nursing bitch named Za. They stop at a village to obtain milk for the cub, and upon nearing home, they discover that the Waziri have restored their estate.
Chapter 2
II: The Training of Jad-Bal-Ja
Tarzan, Jane, and Korak return home with the golden lion cub Jad-bal-ja and the dog Za. They are warmly welcomed by Muviro and the Waziri, who have restored the estate. Tarzan trains the lion cub in obedience, teaching it to fetch, kill a dummy, and control its instincts. A wager is made between Tarzan and Korak about the lion's loyalty when faced with live prey, and Tarzan demonstrates his unique method of training based on trust and understanding.
Chapter 3
A Meeting of Mystery
In a London chophouse, Flora Hawkes meets with her confederates—Esteban Miranda, Carl Kraski, Adolph Bluber, John Peebles, and Dick Throck—to finalize plans for an expedition to Africa in search of hidden gold. Tensions flare over trust and money, with Flora insisting on retaining control of the map and directions until the group proves it has at least two thousand pounds. Esteban's jealous passion for Flora surfaces, threatening the fragile alliance.
Chapter 4
What the Footprints Told
Tarzan reflects on the training and nature of his golden lion, Jad-bal-ja, as rumors of ivory-raiding and slave-running reach him. Financial strain from the war prompts him to plan another expedition to Opar for gold, despite Jane's fears. Leaving Korak and Jad-bal-ja behind, Tarzan sets out with fifty Waziri. During the march, he discovers a dead deer killed by a manufactured arrow, then finds the body of a slain ape, Gobu. Tracking the killer, he encounters a band of Mangani who mistakenly believe Tarzan himself killed Gobu, raising questions about a mysterious impersonator.
Chapter 5
The Fatal Drops
Tarzan confronts the intruders in his domain, while Flora Hawkes recognizes him and plots with Kraski to drug his coffee. Meanwhile, back at the farm, Jane receives news of her father's illness and departs for London, and Jad-bal-ja escapes into the forest.
Chapter 6
Death Steals Behind
Manu observes Tarzan and his men retrieving stone blocks from a kopje near Opar, noting Tarzan's uncharacteristic harshness. Meanwhile, a watcher on Opar's outer wall spots a party of strangers descending into the valley. Cadj, the High Priest, leads priests to investigate, concealing the news from La. Manu later informs La that Tarzan is alive and nearby, and that Cadj has gone with many men to kill him. La, realizing the danger, rushes to act.
Chapter 7
VII: “You Must Sacrifice Him”
Tarzan awakens imprisoned in the dark pit beneath Opar, recognizing the familiar odors and the distant scream that identify his location. Above, La, the High Priestess, struggles with her dilemma: her love for Tarzan and her promise of friendship conflict with the demands of her people and the treacherous High Priest Cadj, who plots to sacrifice Tarzan. Cadj and his followers track Tarzan's camp, find him unconscious, and prepare to kill him, but Dooth warns La that the only way to save herself is to personally sacrifice Tarzan on the altar.
Chapter 8
VIII: Mystery of the Past
Tarzan is freed from his Opar prison by a woman claiming to be sent by La, who leads him through underground passages into the mountains. They discover a strange village of suspended huts inhabited by a primitive, bestial tribe. Tarzan senses they are being stalked by an unknown creature, and he carries La into the trees to evade it. From above, they observe the village and its inhabitants, who are unlike any Tarzan has seen before.
Chapter 9
The Shaft of Death
Tarzan enters a Gomangani village where a Bolgani (gorilla-man) is demanding women and children as tribute for Numa, the Emperor. After the Bolgani kills a child, Tarzan kills him with a spear. He then leaves La in the village, promising to return after finding a way out of the valley, while the villagers debate whether to protect her or betray her to the Bolgani.
Chapter 10
Mad Treachery
The conspirators discover that Tarzan has recovered from their drugging, killed Esteban Miranda (who was impersonating him), and reclaimed the gold with his Waziri. Faced with total loss, Kraski proposes a new scheme to raid Arab slave traders for ivory, using Owaza's knowledge and the promise of freedom to turn the slaves against their masters.
Chapter 11
XI: Strange Incense Burns
Tarzan, having left La in a Gomangani village, returns to find the village deserted and La taken by the Bolgani. He learns from a hidden woman that the Bolgani captured the villagers and La after discovering the body of one of their own. Despite the danger, Tarzan resolves to rescue La, driven by loyalty and gratitude for her past sacrifices. He reconnoiters the Bolgani's palace, a bizarre and richly ornamented structure guarded by gorilla-men, and plans to enter under cover of darkness to find La.
Chapter 12
The Golden Ingots
Esteban Miranda, impersonating Tarzan, struggles to maintain his deception among the Waziri. After a humiliating encounter with a rhinoceros reveals his cowardice, he orders the Waziri to bury the gold and then dismisses them, claiming he will punish the intruders alone. He then returns to his own camp, where he is met with suspicion and indifference. Secretly, he has moved the golden ingots to a new hiding place, planning to retrieve them later with Flora Hawkes.
Chapter 13
A Strange, Flat Tower
Tarzan discovers a white old man in the east tower of the Palace of Diamonds, who reveals La is imprisoned in a flat-topped tower. Despite the old man's warnings of hopelessness, Tarzan resolves to rescue her. He crosses the roof to the tower, but is discovered by a Gomangani guard. The guard leads him to a chamber where La is on trial before the Bolgani and a chained lion, with the old man present, suggesting betrayal. Tarzan plans to incite the Gomangani guards to revolt.
Chapter 14
The Chamber of Horrors
Tarzan, La, and a small group of Gomangani defend the throne room against the Bolgani. With the help of Jad-bal-ja, the golden lion, they turn the tide, forcing the Bolgani to surrender. Tarzan plans to free the Gomangani and restore La to power in Opar.
Chapter 15
The Map of Blood
Jane Clayton learns of Tarzan's memory loss and sets out with fifty Waziri to find him, leaving Korak behind. Meanwhile, the conspirators' camp unravels as Luvini plots to betray the whites after the attack on the Arabs. Flora Hawkes learns of the betrayal from a native boy and warns Kraski, Bluber, Peebles, and Throck. They decide to flee into the jungle during the chaos of the battle, abandoning their original plan.
Chapter 16
The Diamond Hoard
Tarzan is rescued from sacrifice by Jad-bal-ja, who kills the High Priest Cadj. La is restored to her throne, and Tarzan negotiates a new order for the Valley of the Palace of Diamonds, appointing an old man as king over the Gomangani and offering the surviving Bolgani a place as La's bodyguard in Opar.
Chapter 17
The Spoor of Revenge
Tarzan returns from Opar with a sack of diamonds and Jad-bal-ja, the golden lion. He discovers the spoor of his Waziri and Jane, but upon meeting Usula learns that Jane has been killed by Luvini. Vowing revenge, he sends the Waziri home and sets out to find Luvini. Meanwhile, the conspirators—Peebles, Throck, Kraski, and Bluber—are lost and terrified in the jungle, attacked by pygmies. Tarzan and Jad-bal-ja rescue them, and Tarzan questions them about Luvini. Kraski claims ignorance of Jane's fate and says Luvini deserted them. Tarzan agrees to guide them toward the coast, offering protection for the night.
Chapter 18
A Barbed Shaft Kills
Tarzan, searching for Luvini and the missing diamonds, confronts Peebles, Throck, and Bluber, who blame Kraski for the theft. After searching them and finding nothing, Tarzan tracks Kraski to a hut where he finds the Russian dead and the diamonds gone. He follows the spoor of a man and a woman, discovering that Esteban Miranda, now believing himself to be Tarzan, has the diamonds and has abandoned Flora Hawkes in the jungle.
Chapter 19
The Dead Return
Tarzan reunites with Jane, revealing that Esteban Miranda had been impersonating him. Jane had been deceived by the impostor, but Tarzan's arrival exposes the truth. Tarzan sends Jad-bal-ja to capture Esteban, who is later presumed dead after being mauled and swept into a river. The Waziri discover that the gold they buried has been stolen, likely by Owaza and Esteban. Flora Hawkes repents and is allowed to stay with Tarzan and Jane. The chapter ends with the group heading home, meeting the Waziri, and Tarzan learning of Esteban's cowardly behavior.
Chapter 20
An Escape and a Capture
Esteban Miranda flees in terror from the true Tarzan, losing the leopard skin map but retaining a bag of diamonds. He escapes by river on a fallen tree, only to be captured by Obebe the cannibal chief, who mistakes him for Tarzan. Meanwhile, Owaza retrieves the hidden gold and is lured by a neighboring chief to sell it to a mysterious white man.
