Tarzan the Untamed · Chapters
Chapters explained
Chapter companions for Tarzan the Untamed by Edgar Rice Burroughs.
Chapter 1
I: Murder and Pillage
Tarzan returns to his farm to find it destroyed and his wife Jane murdered by German askaris under Hauptmann Fritz Schneider. He buries her and his loyal Waziri warriors, then swears a relentless oath of vengeance against the Germans. Stripping away his civilized veneer, he reverts to his savage jungle instincts and sets out on the trail of the killers, determined to exact a brutal revenge.
Chapter 2
II: The Lion's Cave
Tarzan continues his pursuit of Hauptmann Schneider, the German officer he holds responsible for his wife's murder. After a rainstorm obliterates the trail, he shelters in a cave that leads to a secluded gulch. He captures Schneider and forces him on a brutal three-day march, finally bringing him to the same gulch where a starving lion awaits. Tarzan reveals his identity as Lord Greystoke and forces Schneider to descend into the gulch, where the lion nearly catches him as he scrambles into a tree for safety.
Chapter 3
In the German Lines
Tarzan, still driven by revenge for his wife's death, struggles with his renunciation of humanity as he finds himself unable to ignore the plight of the British fighting Germans in Africa. He decides to aid the British, first checking on the German officer Schneider he left trapped with a starving lion, then killing a hyena and feeding the lion. After scouting the German lines, he meets British Colonel Capell and offers his unique jungle skills to help, revealing hidden machine gun emplacements and proposing a plan to clear a trench using his knowledge of the jungle and its inhabitants.
Chapter 4
When the Lion Fed
Tarzan awakens, hunts and kills six wild boars, skins them, and is approached by a lioness. He captures a lion alive by using pigskin bags to cover its head and paws, then tames it and leads it through the jungle. He evades a German patrol and returns to Colonel Capell's camp, where he explains the nature of the Mangani (great apes) and their unsuitability as sentinels.
Chapter 5
The Golden Locket
Bertha Kircher, a German spy, is trapped under her dead horse and threatened by Numa the lion. Tarzan intervenes, driving the lion away and freeing her. The chapter also reveals Tarzan's ongoing mission to capture the German spy and his discovery that Hauptmann Fritz Schneider, the murderer of his wife, still lives.
Chapter 6
VI: Vengeance and Mercy
Tarzan tracks Bertha Kircher to Wilhelmstal after she steals his locket and boards a train. He confronts Hauptmann Fritz Schneider, the man who killed his mate, and engages in a brutal fight. Despite his desire for vengeance, Tarzan ultimately kills Schneider with a knife but spares Bertha, recognizing her courage and refusing to stoop to the level of a 'beast.' He retrieves his locket and the papers, then disappears into the night.
Chapter 7
When Blood Told
Tarzan, disgusted by his failure to kill Bertha Kircher and haunted by the memory of his murdered mate, decides to leave the British forces and return to the primitive jungle. He crosses a barren, desolate plateau, struggling with hunger and thirst, and discovers the bleached skeleton of an ancient armored warrior in a canyon.
Chapter 8
VIII: Tarzan and the Great Apes
Tarzan spends three days resting and recuperating before setting out to explore the valley and search for the great apes. He encounters a band of German native deserters led by Usanga, who are holding Bertha Kircher captive. After initially hesitating to intervene because she is a German, Tarzan decides to terrorize the group by killing one of their number and displaying his head, causing fear and confusion among the deserters.
Chapter 9
Dropped from the Sky
Tarzan builds a boma for Bertha Kircher, intending to leave her to survive alone in the jungle. She fears abandonment and death, but Tarzan insists she must learn to fend for herself. He introduces her to the ape tribe, including Go-lat, and instructs the apes not to harm her. Bertha struggles with terror but shows courage, and Tarzan leaves her at the hut to go hunting.
Chapter 10
X: In the Hands of Savages
Tarzan, while hunting for game to feed Bertha Kircher, is captured by the Wamabo savages after a branch breaks beneath him. He is taken to the hut where Lieutenant Harold Percy Smith-Oldwick is also held prisoner. As the Wamabo prepare a cannibal feast, Bertha Kircher, guided by the ape Zu-tag, leads a group of apes to rescue Tarzan and the Englishman. Tarzan uses boiling water to rout the warriors, and the group escapes into the jungle. Tarzan is conflicted, feeling indebted to Bertha Kircher, whom he hates.
Chapter 11
XI: Finding the Airplane
Tarzan returns from a hunt with a deer, observing Lieutenant Smith-Oldwick and Bertha Kircher from the trees. He reflects on his longing to return to his childhood home and the burden of escorting the two back to civilization. Tarzan detects a panther (Sheeta) stalking them, warns them, and engages the panther in a fierce battle to protect them. The chapter explores Tarzan's conflicted feelings toward Bertha, whom he believes to be a German spy, and Smith-Oldwick's struggle with his own feelings for her.
Chapter 12
Usanga's Reward
Tarzan rescues Bertha Kircher from Usanga, who attempts to fly away with her in an airplane. Tarzan climbs a rope to the plane, frees Bertha, and together they subdue Usanga. Afterward, Tarzan guides the pair to safety and bids them farewell, choosing to remain in the jungle despite their invitation to return to civilization.
Chapter 13
XIV: The Black Lion
Tarzan discovers a magnificent black lion trapped in a pit by the Wamabo tribe. Moved by admiration and pity, he feeds the starving beast and then devises a plan to free it by removing the stakes that imprison it. After successfully liberating Numa, Tarzan disappears into the jungle, leaving the lion to escape.
Chapter 14
Mysterious Footprints
After the plane crash-lands in a gorge, Tarzan finds the survivors and forms an unlikely friendship with Numa, the lion he freed. While tracking Numa's path to water, Tarzan discovers mysterious human footprints—shod with sandals, not made by natives—hinting at unknown inhabitants in the region. The group sets up camp in a cave for the night.
Chapter 15
The Night Attack
Tarzan, Bertha Kircher, and Lieutenant Smith-Oldwick are surrounded by a pack of lions in the gorge. Tarzan reveals that a man is among the lions, controlling them. After being knocked unconscious, Tarzan awakens to find Numa of the pit defending him from two other lions. Together, Tarzan and Numa defeat the attackers. Tarzan then discovers that Bertha and Smith-Oldwick have been taken captive, and he follows their tracks southward into a hidden valley.
Chapter 16
XVII: The Walled City
Tarzan discovers a walled city in an unexplored part of Africa and devises a plan to enter it to rescue Bertha Kircher. He races a black-maned lion across a moonlit clearing, scaling the wall via vines. Inside, he encounters a strange, possibly insane man who commands lions, but Tarzan escapes into the trees. He then finds the trail of Bertha and Smith-Oldwick leading to the city's gate.
Chapter 17
Among the Maniacs
Bertha Kircher and Lieutenant Smith-Oldwick are captured by a tribe of mentally deranged people after being dragged from a cave where lions attacked them. They are taken through a strange forest to a city inhabited by maniacs, where they witness horrific acts of violence and madness. Smith-Oldwick, wounded by a lion and further injured by a captor, confesses his love for Bertha, who promises to try to love him but remains uncertain. Believing Tarzan dead, they face a hopeless situation, with Bertha asking Smith-Oldwick to save a bullet for her.
Chapter 18
The Queen's Story
Bertha Kircher is taken to the palace and meets an old woman, Xanila, who has been a queen among the Xujans for sixty years. Xanila explains the dangers of the women, the impossibility of escape, and the legend of a Spanish giant who once entered the valley. Bertha is bathed and dressed in revealing native garments, then summoned to the king. In an anteroom, Prince Metak sees her, becomes violently mad, attacks her guards, and a chaotic fight ensues.
Chapter 19
Came Tarzan
Tarzan infiltrates a strange city, evades a lion, and fights a guardsman on a rooftop. Meanwhile, Lieutenant Thompson reports finding Smith-Oldwick's plane and a mysterious city to Colonel Capell and General Smuts, who plan a rescue mission. Tarzan tracks the scent of Bertha Kircher and Smith-Oldwick through the city streets, observing bizarre behavior among the inhabitants.
Chapter 20
In the Alcove
Tarzan escapes onto the rooftops of the mad city and attempts to flee through the streets, but is confronted by a warrior. Meanwhile, Lieutenant Smith-Oldwick, wounded and weak, navigates a courtyard filled with lions, climbs a tree to safety, and enters a room where he encounters a mentally deficient woman. When a jealous official discovers them embracing, Smith-Oldwick kills the man in self-defense.
Chapter 21
Out of the Niche
Tarzan and Smith-Oldwick, hiding in a secret niche, observe a mad girl and her lover being served by a slave named Otobu. Tarzan communicates with Otobu in his native tongue, convincing him to help. They emerge, subdue the couple, and discover the corpse of the girl's lover's father hidden under a couch. After a brief confrontation, the prisoners escape when Tarzan and Smith-Oldwick investigate a pounding at the door. The chapter ends with Tarzan carrying Smith-Oldwick onto the roof to continue their search for Bertha Kircher.
Chapter 22
The Flight from Xuja
Tarzan, Smith-Oldwick, Bertha Kircher, and Otobu fight their way out of the mad city of Xuja, overcoming guards and lions with the help of Numa. They escape through the gate into the forest, where Tarzan calls to Numa and leads the group through the dark, dangerous wilderness, carrying the exhausted aviator when necessary.
Chapter 23
XXIV: The Tommies
Tarzan, Bertha Kircher, Lieutenant Smith-Oldwick, and Otobu are rescued by a British expedition. Bertha is revealed to be the Honorable Patricia Canby, a British intelligence agent, not a German spy. Tarzan declines to return to civilization, choosing to continue westward. The group later takes refuge in a gorge from pursuing Xujans and their lions, defending themselves in a narrow rock crevice.
