Part 10 (1/2)

”Ay, it do seem a game,” said the man, chuckling, and showing some ugly yellow teeth.

As they reached about half-way up, they caught sight of one of the ravens, shooting high above the top of the cliff, and instead of darting away at their approach, it only made a circle round, and then descended like an arrow.

”Tackling on him,” cried Ram Jennings.

”Ay, and there goes the other,” cried Nick. ”Come on, master, or they'll finish him off before you can get there. Real wild, they birds is, because he's meddling with their b.o.o.blins. 'Bout half-fledged, that's what they be.”

”Make haste, then,” cried Ralph; and as they hurried on as fast as the steep ascent would allow, they saw the ravens rise and stoop, again and again. Then only one reappeared, and a few moments later, neither.

”We shall be too late,” cried Ralph excitedly. ”They must have killed him, and are now tearing his eyes out.”

”And sarve him right,” cried Nick savagely. ”What does he do on our cliff, a-maddling wi' our birds?”

”But it would be such a pity not to take him alive, Nick,” panted Ralph breathlessly.

”How were you going to catch him alive?” growled the man. ”Wouldn't catch us going down to fight un, and you wouldn't like to crawl down there.”

”Get a rope with a loop, noose him, and drag him up,” cried Ralph.

”Eh? Hear him, Ram? Who'd ha' thought of that? Comes o' larning, that does, and going away to school. You'd never ha' thought on it, lad.”

”Nay, I shouldn't ha' thought o' that,” said Ram heavily; ”but I've been thinking o' somethin' else.”

”What?” said Ralph, as they were mounting the last fifty feet of the steep slope.

”As like enough he's nipped they two birds, and we'd best look out, or he'll come sudden-like over the edge there, and run for it.”

”Forward, then, quick!” cried Ralph; and pressing on, he threw himself on his breast, and crawled the last few feet, so as to thrust his head over the edge and gaze down, to see the so-called wolf's cub sheathe his sword, and prepare to get the young ravens out of their nesting recess in the face of the cliff.

CHAPTER SEVEN.

THE YOUNG ENEMIES.

Eden recovered his presence of mind on the instant, and looking coolly up at Nick Garth, who had shouted at him so insolently, he replied haughtily: ”What is it to you, sir? Be off!”

Then, entirely ignoring Ralph, who was looking down, breathless with rage and exertion, he carefully withdrew the egg from the nest, in spite of the pecking of the young ravens, and transferred it to the lining of his cap.

After this he took off his kerchief, and began to twist it up tightly to make an apology for a line with which to tie together the young ravens'

legs.

The two men on either side of Ralph looked at him, as if wondering what he would say.

”Now, then, it's of no use to peck: out you come, my fine fellows.

Quiet, or I'll wring your necks.”

As Mark spoke, his right hand was in the nest, feeling about so as to get four legs together in his grasp, but this took some little time, and a great deal of fluttering and squealing accompanied the act. But as he worked, Mark thought hard, and of something else beside ravens. How was he to get out of this unpleasant fix, being as he was quite at his enemy's mercy? But all the same, with a.s.sumed nonchalance, he drew out the fluttering ravens, loosened his hold of the shrub with his left hand, and trusted to his powers of retaining his balance, in spite of the birds' struggles, while in the coolest way possible he transferred the legs from his right hand to his left, and proceeded to tie them tightly.

”There you are,” he said. ”I think that's safe.”