1897 August The Beasts Of Tarzan

DATE:  August 8, 1897

EVENT:  Tarzan was put ashore on Jungle Island. The ape-man made contact with the apes of  Akut.     

SOURCE:  "The following day, the hatch was removed from Tarzan's cell, and as he looked      up he saw Paulvitch's head framed in the shade of light above him." ERB-The Beasts Of  Tarzan.

CHAT:  It is here that ERB informs us, "The two  years that had elapsed since Tarzan had  come out of the savage forest with his rescued mate had witnessed a slight diminution of the 

mighty powers that had made him the invincible lord of  the jungle." ERB-The Beasts Of  Tarzan.

    We also discover that the ape-man has taken up boxing and/or other forms of martial arts. He most probably learned them while in Algeria with the French Foreign Legion. "With a low snarl, the beast now hurled himself at Tarzan, but the ape-man had found, among other things in the haunts of civilized man, certain methods of scientific warfare that are unknown to the jungle folk.

    Whereas, a few years since, he would have met the brute rush with brute force, he now sidestepped his antagonist’s headlong charge, and as the brute hurtled past him swung a mighty right to the pit of the ape’s stomach. With a howl of mingled rage and anguish the great anthropoid bent double and sank to the ground, though almost instantly he was again struggling to his feet." ERB-The Beasts Of Tarzan.

J. Alen St. John

DATE:  August 11, 1897, through August 14, 1897

EVENT:  Jane was locked up for several days and saw no one except the ship's cook Seven Anderssen.

SOURCE:  "He went on the deck then, locking the cabin door upon his prisoner, and for several  days she did not see him." ERB-The Beasts Of Tarzan.

CHAT:  Although ERB gives us the vague description of 'several days' in this passage we 

know in reality it was only three actual days. The events describe Jane seeing Tarzan put  

ashore on Jungle Island, and then ERB tells us three days later the Kincaid came to anchor in the mouth of the Ugambi River.

J. Alen St. John

DATE:  August 11, 1897

EVENT:  Three days from Jungle Island, where Tarzan had been marooned, the Kincaid came to anchor in the mouth of the Ugambi River.

SOURCE:  "Three days from the spot where Tarzan had been marooned the Kincaid came to anchor in the mouth of a great river, and presently Rokoff came to Jane Clayton's cabin."  ERB-The Beasts Of Tarzan.

Kincade

DATE: noonday August 11, 1897

EVENT:  After being physically attacked by Rokoff Jane is saved by the Swede cook, Sven Anderssen, with her noonday meal.

SOURCE:  "Outside the door, Sven Anderssen paused with the noonday meal he had been carrying to Lady Greystoke." ERB-The Beasts Of Tarzan. 

CHAT: The question here is, where is the location of the Ugambi River? Is the name Ugambi a real river, or is it coded to protect Tarzan's identity? ERB described the Ugambi 'as a great river that flowed into the ocean', 'broad', 'broad stream', large watercourse', and 'has tributaries'. Despite this description of a large broad watercourse, I was looking for a Ugambi River in Africa. Therefore, the name is either fictitious or Ugambi is the river's Waziri name, thus not printed by that name on white men's maps. Since ERB's given name, Ugambi River, could not be found I studied the other great rivers of Africa that flowed into the sea. Through a list of deductions based on ERB's provided information, the most logical location for the Ugambi on European maps would be the Belgian Congo. The reason I believe this is because of three statements ERB makes.

(1) "After long thought Tarzan decided to continue toward the northeast in the general

direction of German East Africa until he came upon some natives he could question," ERB-The Beasts Of Tarzan.

(2) "From the direction of Anderssen's flight with Jane and the child Tarzan was convinced  that the man had purposed attempting the tremendous feat of crossing the continent to 

Zanzibar; but whether Rokoff would dare so dangerous a journey or not was the question." 

ERB-The Beasts Of Tarzan.    

(3) "Tarzan questioned the fellow closely, and learned that Rokoff and his safari were in terror-stricken retreat in the direction of the far East Coast." ERB-The Beasts Of Tarzan. If you 

study a map of Africa you will quickly discover the Belgian Congo lies directly west of  German East Africa and Zanzibar. If the events in The Beasts Of Tarzan occur in the Belgian Congo the native Ugambi River is what we know as the Congo River. If you follow the main course of the Congo it runs into Lake Tanganyika which is just west of  Zanzibar. This is the same route Henry M. Stanley followed in 1874-1877 except from east to west.  In this 1872 chronology. I will continue using ERB's Ugambi River which is not listed on real-life maps, with the location being in Portuguese Angola.

Zdenek Burian

DATE:  evening of August 11, 1897

EVENT:  When the Swede brought Jane's supper he informed her he would help her escape that night.

SOURCE:  "She saw no more of Rokoff that day, nor of any other until Sven came with her evening meal." ERB-The Beasts Of Tarzan.

J. Alen St. John

DATE: midnight August 12, 1897

EVENT:  The Swede helped Jane and the baby, who she can't see for darkness, escape the Kincaid.

SOURCE:  "She swore a dozen times that she would not leave the Kincaid without her baby, and yet she remained clothed long past her usual hour of retiring, and her blankets were neatly rolled and bound with stout cord when about midnight there came a stealthy scratching upon the panels of her door." ERB-The Beasts Of Tarzan. "Anderssen rowed on as though quite sure of his ground, and when after an hour the moon broke through the clouds there was revealed upon their left the mouth of a tributary running into the Ugambi. Up this narrow channel, the Swede turned the prow of the small boat." ERB-The Beasts Of Tarzan. "Even though the moon was full, the surface of the small river was quite dark." ERB-The Beasts Of Tarzan.

CHAT:  It is here that ERB provides us with an excellent dating tool. The author informs us in the above three passages that 'the moon was full'. If we are on the right track our chronology should agree with ERB's description. I checked with the U.S. Naval Observatory Astronomical Applications Department's Phases Of The Moon and there is indeed a full moon which occurred on August 12, 1897.

https://aa.usno.navy.mil/calculated/moon/phases?date=1896-10-14&nump=50&format=p&submit=Get+Data

The Beasts Of Tarzan

DATE:  three o'clock A.M. August 12, 1897

EVENT:  The Swede, Jane, and the baby reach a Mosulas village where they sleep.

SOURCE:  "It must have been three o'clock in the morning that Andersen brought the boat's nose to the shore before a clearing where could be dimly seen in the waning moonlight a cluster of native huts encircled by a thorn boma," ERB-The Beasts Of Tarzan.

J. Alen St. John

DATE:  morning August 12, 1897

EVENT:  Upon awakening in the light of day Jane discovered the baby was not little Jack. She fainted from shock. After she collected herself Jane, the baby, Sven, and six Mosula barriers fled upstream.

SOURCE:  "After warding off the attack Tarzan learns Rokoff attacked the natives three moons ago." ERB-Tarzan Of The Apes.

Frank Frazetta

DATE:  August 12, 1897, through October 9, 1897

EVENT:  For many days the Swede, Jane, and the baby fled. 

SOURCE:  "The days and nights of torture that the young woman suffered were so merged into one long, unbroken nightmare of hideousness that soon lost all track of time. Whether they had been wandering for days or years she could not tell." ERB-The Beasts Of Tarzan.

    For some time their progress inland was extremely slow. Word came to them from time to time through natives passing from the coast on hunting excursions that Rokoff had not yet guessed the direction of their flight." ERB-The Beasts Of Tarzan. 

    "They had commenced to make a little better progress when word reached them that Rokoff was but a few marches behind them, and that he had, at last, discovered the direction of their flight." ERB-The Beasts Of Tarzan.

The Beasts Of Tarzan

DATE:  August 13, 1897

EVENT:  Jane and company flee from Chief Kaviri's village. 

SOURCE:  "After several hours of questioning and cross-questioning the ape-man learned that another party had preceded the Russian by several days - three whites - a man, a woman, and a little man-child. with several Mosulas." ERB-The Beasts Of Tarzan.

The Beasts Of Tarzan

DATE:  August 13, 1897

EVENT:  Upon reaching the first native village along the bank of the Ugambi, Rokoff attacks it, and forces natives to paddle his boat. 

SOURCE:  "After warding off the attack Tarzan learns Rokoff attacked the natives three moons ago." ERB-Tarzan Of The Apes.

Joe Jusko

DATE:  August 13, 1897, through August 17, 1897

EVENT:  Tarzan weaved a bark sailcloth. 

SOURCE:  "The next few days Tarzan devoted to the weaving of a barkcloth sail with which to equip the canoe, for he despaired of being able to teach the apes to wield the paddles, though he did manage to get several of them to embark in the frail craft which he and Mugambi paddled about inside the reef where the water was quite smooth" ERB-The Beasts Of  Tarzan. These dates are working dates only and are not provided by ERB.

Joe Jusko

DATE:  August 17, 1897, through September 9, 1897

EVENT:  Tarzan got the apes used to riding on the water. 

SOURCE:  These are working dates only and are not provided by ERB.

Thomas Yeates

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

James Michael Moody is a lifelong fan and collector of Edger Rice Burroughs. Over the past forty-five years, Moody has contributed over two hundred articles to various ERB-related fanzines. He also manages an unauthorized Tarzan blog titled Greystoke Chronologist: James Michael Moody. There, the researcher chronologies the Tarzan books starting in May 1872 (known as the pushback theory) instead of the more accepted date, May 1888.

James Michael Moody also authorizes the action-packed Sci-Fi fantasy adventure Unium series. Pioneers On Unium, published December 31, 2019, Exiled On Unium, published August 25, 2022, and Swordsman On Unium, published on July 15, 2024.

1897 July The Beasts Of Tarzan

DATE:  July 28, 1897    

EVENT:  Once in London, the Greystokes unpack and settle their personal and business affairs.

SOURCE:  This is not a provided date by ERB. but is instead a working date based on the passage that The Beasts Of Tarzan occurs two years after The Return Of Tarzan. "The two years that had elapsed since Tarzan had come out of the savage forest with his rescued mate had witnessed a slight diminution of the mighty powers that had made him the invincible lord of the jungle." ERB-The Beasts Of Tarzan.

CHAT:  The Return Of Tarzan ends on July 28, 1895, and The Beasts Of Tarzan begins on July 28, 1897. "Tarzan had recently brought his wife and infant son to London to escape the discomforts and dangers of the rainy season upon their vast estate in Uziri—the land of the savage Waziri warriors whose broad African domains the ape-man had once ruled." ERB-The  Beasts Of Tarzan.

The Beasts Of Tarzan

DATE:  July 29, 1897

EVENT:  Once the family is settled Tarzan visits D'Arnot in Paris. There he discovers Rokoff has escaped.

SOURCE: "He had run across the channel for a brief visit with his old friend, but the news of the Russian's escape had already cast a shadow upon his outing, so that though he had but just arrived he was already contemplating an immediate return to London." ERB-The Beasts Of Tarzan.

CHAT:  In chapter one of The Beasts Of Tarzan, ERB, the author, informs us; "A roadster picked Tarzan up at the station and took him home." Just after that description ERB, the author, writes "A closed taxicab drew up at the corner of the street. Carl jumped into the taxicab but they had trouble getting it started. The nursemaid landed on the 'running board.' It is impossible for the cars, as described, to exist in an 1872 chronology. These automobile descriptions, I quickly confess, much better fits an 1888 chronology. But... as I have pointed out during the discussion about cars in Tarzan Of The Apes, ERB, the author, is deliberately trying to protect Tarzan's true identity. He therefore advanced the Greystokes sailing date by sixteen years. Thus, the car descriptions are merely a modernization ploy to throw a tracker off course. The jungle lord probably did get met at the station by a car, but not a roadster. It was most likely the French car he had in Wisconsin. The closed taxi of the time was a horse-drawn carriage. Now we have the same old question. How much of ERB's storyline is changed if the jungle lord's roadster is changed to Tarzan's car, and the auto taxi is changed to a horse-drawn taxi? The answer is none that amounts to anything. The only change is a purposeful description of modernization. If The Beasts Of Tarzan occurs in 1912 Jack and Korak can not be the same person. Which is the lesser of two evils?

1897 London

DATE:  9:45  July 29, 1897 

EVENT:  Jack Clayton is abducted and that night Tarzan and Jane are baited onto the Kincaid. 

SOURCE:  "It was nine-forty-five that night that Tarzan entered the squalid 'pub' on the waterfront in Dover." ERB-The Beasts Of Tarzan.

CHAT: "For over twenty years, from infancy to manhood, the ape-man had roamed his savage jungle haunts without human companionship of any nature." ERB-The Beasts Of Tarzan. Edgar Rice Burroughs must have forgotten about the events of Jungle Tales Of Tarzan on this one.

Zdenek Burian

DATE:  July 29, 1897, through August 8, 1897

EVENT:  For weeks the Kincaid sailed, only stopping to coal.

SOURCE: "For weeks that seemed months to the two prisoners the little steamer forged on they knew not where. Once the Kincaid stopped to coal, only immediately to take up the seemingly interminable voyage." ERB-The Beasts Of Tarzan.

CHAT: The key here is 'for weeks'. This naturally means more than one but ERB leaves blank exactly how many. The author does tell us that the Kincaid stops only once to get coal, so this tells us the ship is on a direct route to its destination. Since we have established the fact that it takes two weeks to travel from London to Tarzan's jungle home in Portuguese Angola. Until research turns up something better I will use two weeks as a working date.

J. Alen St. John

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

James Michael Moody is a lifelong fan and collector of Edger Rice Burroughs. Over the past forty-five years, Moody has contributed over two hundred articles to various ERB-related fanzines. He also manages an unauthorized Tarzan blog titled Greystoke Chronologist: James Michael Moody. There, the researcher chronologies the Tarzan books starting in May 1872 (known as the pushback theory) instead of the more accepted date, May 1888.

James Michael Moody also authorizes the action-packed Sci-Fi fantasy adventure Unium series. Pioneers On Unium, published December 31, 2019, Exiled On Unium, published August 25, 2022, and Swordsman On Unium, published on July 15, 2024.

1896 Off Stage Births

DATE:  July 28, 1895                                                                                                                    EVENT:  Tarzan and the Porter party set sail from Greystoke cabin. The events of The Return Of Tarzan end.                                                                                                                            SOURCE:  The sailing date is not provided by ERB, but is my working date. In ERB-APA #73 I show how I came to this conclusion.                                               

John Buscima

DATE:  April 28, 1896                                                                                                                  EVENT:  John Clayton lll/Jack/Korak is born offstage.                                                                  SOURCE:  Tarzan and Jane get married on July 27, 1895. ERB does not provide this data, but it is my working date based on several factors. 

1. The first and foremost is to allow enough time for all of the events of The Son Of Tarzan to occur in a time frame exactly as ERB described them. For this to happen all dates need to occur as rapidly as possible.
2. ERB never provides or hints at Jack Clayton/Korak's birth date. His story occurrences do, however. 
3. Any number of dates will theoretically fit ERB's description. The main thing is not to choose a date that differs from the author's presented information.
4. To form a working date I theorized Jane becomes pregnant early after marriage.
5. Nine months later on May 28, 1896, she delivered a healthy son which they named John Clayton lll in family tradition. The family called him Jack.
6. Despite this conservative approach, no one particular date could be deduced. In other words, Jack/Korak could have been born on several days in April or May and still be compliant with ERB's provided info. So, how does a researcher produce a birth date that is acceptable to readers with such a vague description?
7. I decided to follow in the footsteps of the author himself. In my articles Edgar Rice Burroughs: The Narrator, Beyond The Narrator, Comparing Narrator Notes, and Edgar Rice Burroughs: Master Trickster  I showed it was ERB's constant habit to insert true life family names, dates, and places into his fiction stories. Following his example when I come across a cornerstone date that is not provided, I refer to the Burroughs family genealogy.
8. A researcher can find the Burroughs Genealogy Notes in an insert in Memoirs Of A War Bride, written by ERB's mother Mary Evaline Burroughs. The family history was handwritten in Chicago on June 23, 1914. 
9. Checking to see if any noteworthy occasions occurred in April or May, we discover George Rice married Elizabeth Blake on April 16,1829. Until a more researched date for Jack Clayton/Korak birthdate is revealed I will use April 16, 1896, as a working date.

Tarzan, Jane & Jack

DATE:  August 16, 1896

EVENT:  Jeanne Jacot/Meriem born offstage.                                                                              SOURCE:  The seven-year-old Meriem was kidnapped on or around August 18, 1903. Although ERB doesn't provide her birth date you can subtract seven from 1903 and you come up on or around August 18, 1896. Most importantly, it is important to use the earliest date possible because of the time needed for all of The Son Of Tarzan events to occur as described by ERB.  

Chat: This is a significant undated event and to form a chronology, we must produce an acceptable calendar working date to continue. Since we have no ERB-provided date to work with, we must provide one that fans will accept. 

    I formed a working chronology based as closely as humanly possible on the descriptions provided by ERB in the book series. My research concluded that Jeanne Jacot/Meriem's birth date occurred on or around August 18, 1896. Despite this conservative approach, no one particular date could be deduced. In other words, Jeanne Jacot/Meriem could have been born on multiple days in August and still be compliant with ERB's provided info. So, how does a researcher provide a birth date that is acceptable to readers with such a vague description?

    I decided to follow in the footsteps of the author himself. In my articles Edgar Rice Burroughs: The Narrator, Beyond The Narrator, Comparing Narrator Notes, and Edgar Rice Burroughs: Master Trickster  I showed it was ERB's constant habit to insert true life family names, dates, and places into his fiction stories. Following his example when I come across a cornerstone date that is not provided, I refer to the Burroughs family genealogy.

    A researcher can find the Burroughs Genealogy Notes in an insert in Memoirs Of A War Bride, written by ERB's mother Mary Evaline Burroughs. The family history was handwritten in Chicago on June 23, 1914. Checking to see if any noteworthy occasions occurred in the middle of August we discover Mary Coleman, the daughter of John McCulloch Coleman was born on August 16, 1816. Until a more researched date for Meriem's birthdate is revealed I will use August 16, 1896, as a working date.

J. Allen St. John

DATE:  October 29, 1896, through  December 29, 1896  

EVENT:  Tarzan and family leave Uziri and arrive in England and the events of The Beasts Of Tarzan begin. 

SOURCE:  This is a working date only and is not provided by ERB. The date was based around the Uziri rainy season and provided in ERB-APA #77.

CHAT:  Sailing ships in the late 19th century were primarily made of wood and powered by wind. Their speed varied depending on wind conditions, hull design, and cargo load.

    The route from Luanda to Dover follows the west coast of Africa, then across the Atlantic Ocean to the south of Ireland, and finally up the English Channel to Dover. The prevailing winds of the Atlantic Ocean during this time are generally westerly, which would favor the eastward journey.

    Sailing ships in the 19th century typically averaged around 8-10 knots (nautical miles per hour} in favorable conditions. Assuming an average speed of 10 knots, the journey from Luanda to Dover would take approximately 45-50 days. However this is just a rough estimate and the actual time could be longer or shorter depending on wind conditions, currents, and other factors. The ship may have made stopovers in other ports along the way, which would also affect the total journey time.

    Given the uncertainties involved, it is difficult to provide a precise answer on the exact arrival date in Dover. However, based on the information available, we can estimate that the journey would have taken approximately 45-50 days, with a possible range of 40-50 days. The arrival date could be earlier or later depending on various factors, including weather conditions, and stopovers. To be conservative, this chronology will use two months (60 days) as a working date, allowing adjustability.

Greystokes Arrive In England

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

James Michael Moody is a lifelong fan and collector of Edger Rice Burroughs. Over the past forty-five years, Moody has contributed over two hundred articles to various ERB-related fanzines. He also manages an unauthorized Tarzan blog titled Greystoke Chronologist: James Michael Moody. There, the researcher chronologies the Tarzan books starting in May 1872 (known as the pushback theory) instead of the more accepted date, May 1888.

James Michael Moody also authorizes the action-packed Sci-Fi fantasy adventure Unium series. Pioneers On Unium, published December 31, 2019, Exiled On Unium, published August 25, 2022, and Swordsman On Unium, published on July 15, 2024.

1895 July The Return Of Tarzan

Date:  toward the evening of July 23, 1895

Event:  Tarzan, Jane, and the Waziri arrive at William Cecil Clayton's rude shelter in time to watch him die.

Source:  "Toward evening he arose again for a brief moment." ERB-The Return Of Tarzan. 

Chat: Just before Clayton dies, he utters a statement that hints the incidents in Northern Wisconsin occurred a little cover over a year ago. "I only wish to do now the thing I should have done over a year." ERB- The Return Of Tarzan. In the timeline, it is a year and a day which agrees with William Cecil Clayton's dying statement. 

Joe Kubert

Date:  the next morning July 24,1895

Event: Tarzan and company set out for the Greystoke cabin taking William Cecil Clayton's body to be buried beside John and Alice.                    

Source: "It had been the ape man's suggestion that Clayton is buried beside the former Lord Greystike near the edge of the jungle against the cabin that the  older man had built." ERB-The Return Of Tarzan. 

Joe Kubert

Date:  July 24, 1895

Event:  Tarzan and company run into Jane's father, Professor Archimedes Q. P Porter.

Source:  "They had proceeded some three miles of the five that had separated them from Tarzan's own beach when the Waziri who were ahead stopped suddenly," ERB-The Return Of Tarzan.

The Return Of Tarzan

Date:  July 24, 1895

Event: Tarzan and company reach the cabin to discover Lieutenant Paul D'Arnot and the others. Monsieur Thuran (Nickolas Rokoff) and Lord Tennington were out hunting.

Source: "A short time later the strange party came to the clearing in which stood the ape-man's cabin."  ERB-The Return Of Tarzan.                          

Chat: This is the second time French sailors have been on Portuguese Angolan soil to rescue the Porters. "D'Arnot's ship had been cruising along the coast, on patrol duty, when at the lieutenant's suggestion they had anchored off the little landlocked harbor to have another look at the cabin and the jungle in which many of the officers and men had taken part in exciting adventures two years before." ERB-The Return Of Tarzan. This passage clearly informs us The Return Of Tarzan covers a span of two years.

Russ Manning

Date:  July 24, 1895

Event:  Monsieur Thuran (Nickolas Rokoff) and Lord Tennington return and Nickolas Roloff is arrested by Captain Dufranne. Tarzan recaptures Lieutenant Gernois' secret papers.

Source:  "A half hour later Rockoff and Tennington emerged from the jungle." ERB-The Return Of Tarzan.

Russ Manning

Date:  sunset July 24, 1895

Event:  William Cecil Clayton is buried.

Source:  "At sunset, they buried William Cecil Clayton beside the jungle graves of his aunt, the former Lord and Lady Greystoke." ERB-The Return Of Tarzan.

Chat:  Notice that Edgar Rice Burroughs, the author, specifically points out that William Cecil Clayton is buried on Alice's graveside and not John's. Ever wonder if that is a hint Tarzan is buried beside his father in the far distant future?

Joe Kubert

Date:  July 26, 1895

Event:  Tarzan returned with the second load of gold.

Source:  "The next day he returned to camp with the balance of his ingots," ERB-The Return Of  Tarzan.

Russ Manning

Date:  July 27, 1895

Event:  Tarzan and Jane, Lord Tennington, and Hazel Strong were married in a double wedding by Jane's father Professor Archimedes Q. Porter who was an ordained Presbyterian minister.

Source:  "So the entire party assembled within the little cabin and above the door to witness the second ceremony that Professor Porter was to solemnize within three days." ERB-The Return Of Tarzan.

Russ Manning

Date:  July 28, 1895

Event:  The French steam cruiser sailed for civilization.

Source:  "The next day they sailed." ERB-The Return Of Tarzan.

Russ Manning

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

James Michael Moody is a lifelong fan and collector of Edger Rice Burroughs. Over the past forty-five years, Moody has contributed over two hundred articles to various ERB-related fanzines. He also manages an unauthorized Tarzan blog titled Greystoke Chronologist: James Michael Moody. There, the researcher chronologies the Tarzan books starting in May 1872 (known as the pushback theory) instead of the more accepted date, May 1888.

James Michael Moody also authorizes the action-packed Sci-Fi fantasy adventure Unium series. Pioneers On Unium, published December 31, 2019, Exiled On Unium, published August 25, 2022, and Swordsman On Unium, published on July 15, 2024.