Part 57 (1/2)

Sir Ferdinand and the police had been decoyed away previously nearly 100Our town and treasure were thus left undefended for forty-eight hours, while a daring criled unsuspected with all classes We have always regarded the present system--facetiously called police protection--as a farce This latter fiasco will probably confire We, unlike a contemporary, have no morbid sympathy with crime--embroidered or otherwise; our wishes, as loyal subjects, are confined to a short shrift and a high gallows for all who dare to obstruct the Queen's highway'

'That's easy to understand, barrin' a word here and there,' says father, taking his pipe out of hisit down; 'that's the way they used to talk to us in the old days Dashed if I don't think it's the best way after all You knohere you are The rest's flummery All on us as takes to the cross does it with our eyes open, and deserves all we gets'

'I'overnor; but why didn't these moral ideas occur to you, for instance, and others earlier in life?'

'Why?' says father, getting up and glaring with his eyes, 'because I was a blind, ignorant dog when I was young, as had never been taught nothing, and knowed nothing, not soto Crib), 'for he knohat his business is, and I didn't I was thrashed and starved, locked up in a gaol, chained and flogged after that, and half the ti, and couldn't know more than one of thein the yard when he's roped, and falls backards and breaks his neck if he ain't watched Whose business was it to have learned htly say, but it seeaolme Was that justice? Any man's sense 'll tell hiot one the same road!'

We none of us felt in the huot into one of his tantrums, and when he did he was fit to be tied; only I'd not have took the contract for so Whatever it was that had happened to him in the old times when he was a Government man he didn't talk about Only every now and then he'd let out just as he did now, as if nothing could ever set hiainst them, as he called the swells and the Govern and honest He'd been at it a good many years, one way and another, and any one that knew hiot into was all along of a Mr Knightley, who lived a good way down to the south, and it was one of the worst things we ever were mixed up in After the Turon races and all that shi+ne, sos had been made hotter for us than ever since we first turned out Go where ould, we found the police always quick on our trail, and we had two or three very close shaves of it It looked as if our luck was dead out, and we began to think our chance of getting across the border to Queensland, and clear out of the colony that way, looked worse every day

Dad kept foraging about to get inforal and Billy the Boy all over the country to find out hoas things were turning out so contrary

Sir Ferdinand was always on the ot the office from some one who knew the ropes better than he did

Last of all we dropped on to it

There was one of the goldfields cohtley, a very keen, cool hand; he was a great sporting entleman took it into his head to put on extra steaold by us in the escort robbery, and not forgotten it; so it see his best to fit us ever since Just at first he wasn't able for et information about us and our beat, whenever we left the Hollow, and he put two and two together, and very nearly dropped on us, as I said before, two or three times We heard, too, that he should say he'd never rest till he had Starlight and the Marstons, and that if he could get picked police he'd bring us in within aof this sort in a general way; but one of dad's telegraphs sent word in that Mr Knightley had a couple of thousand pounds worth of gold froed at his private residence for a few days till he could get the escort to call for it; that there was only hireat scholar he was, named Schiller, in the house

Moran and Daly knew about this, and they were dead on for sticking up the place and getting hold of the gold Besides that, we felt savage about his trying to run us in Of course, it was his duty and that of all eneral way But he wasn't an officer of police, and we thought he was going outside of his line

So when all came to all, we made up our minds to learn him a lesson to stick to his oork; besides, a thousand ounces of gold was no foolish touch, and we could kill two birds with one stone Moran, Daly, and Joe Wall were to be in it besides We didn't like working with theainst it But we knew they'd tackle it by the of it

We were to ether

Just about ten o'clock we closed in on the place, and left Billy the Boy and Warrigal with the horses, while we sneaked up We couldn't get near, though, without his knowing it, for he always had a lot of sporting dogs--pointers, retrievers, kangaroo dogs, no end They kicked up a deuce of a row, and barked and howled enough to raise the dead, before we got within a quarter of a uard then, and before long the bullets began to fly pretty thick a us, and we had to take cover to return fire and keep as dark as we could No doubt this Dr Schiller loaded the guns and handed them to him, else he couldn't have made such play as he did

We blazed away too, and as there was no stable at the back we surrounded the house and tried hard to find an opening Devil a chance there seemed to be; none of us dared show So sure as we did we could hear one of those Winchester rifle bullets sing through the air, almost on the top of us We all had a close shavetoo fast

Foraway, and we didn't seeet any nearer the place At last we drew lots which should try and get up close to the place, so as to make a rush while we poured in our broadside and open a door to let us in

The lot fell upon Patsey Daly 'Good-bye, all,' he said 'I'him, and that's God's truth Anyhow I'll try for that barrel there; and if I get behind it I can fire froe and make him come out'

He et behind this barrel, where he was safe fro as he kept well behind it Then he peppered away, right and left

On the left of the verandah there was a door stood partly open, and after a bit a htley alore, showed hiers and falls Patsey shows hi to htley, atching hie), lets drive at him, cool and steady, and poor Patsey drops like a cock, and never raised his head again He was shot through the body He lingered a bit; but in less than an hour he was a dead ot in for a hot thing, and that we should have to drop it like Moran's ht was one of thosemore and more deter, where he could see to fire at a topclose by where the doctor and Mr Knightley had been potting at us

He had the repeating rifle he'd won froo afterwards, and he couldso lively that they began to be hard pressed inside, and had to fire aice as much ammunition as they otherould It always beat me how they contrived to defend so many points at once We tried back and front, doors and enty times we tried a rush, but they were always ready--so it seemed--and their fire was too hot for us to stand up to, unless anted to lose every secondwas very close Nearly every one of us had a scratch--Starlight rather the worst, as he was more in the front and showed hi pretty free, but he tied a handkerchief over it and went on as if nothing had happened, only I could see that his face had that set look he only got now and then, and his eyes began to show out a fierce light

At last we began to see that the return fire was slacking off, while ours was as brisk as ever

'Hurrah!' says Starlight, 'I believe they'll give in soon If they had any cartridges they would have had every e Here goes for a battering-ra which had been fetched in for a sleeper or so a run back, brought it with all its weight against the front door In it went like a sheet of bark; we al, dark hall It see was so silent and quiet