Part 21 (1/2)
”Now, Williarave, who had agreed to be stationed at the corner so that he es went round to the other side, fired his round
Ready and Williaes were seen to drop amidst the yells of their companions Juno handed up the other ed, and Mrs Seagrave, having desired Caroline to take care of her little brother, and Toood, came out, turned the key of the door upon the the h the air, and it ell that they could fire fro their persons, or they would have had but little chance The yells increased, and the savages now began to attack on every quarter; the aining the top of the palisades, but, as soon as their heads appeared above, they were fired at with so true an aim that they dropped down dead outside This co lost a great many men, drew off from the assault, and the parties within the stockade had tiained much in this bout, at all events,” said Ready; ”it ell fought on our side, and Williaht up to it”
”Do you think they will go away now?” said Mrs Seagrave
”Oh, no, madam, not yet; they will try us every way before they leave us You see these are very brave unpowder is, or they would have been more astonished”
”I should think so too,” replied Mr Seagrave; ”the first ties hear the report of firearreat consternation”
”Yes, sir; but such has not been the case with these people, and therefore I reckon it is not the first tiht with Europeans”
”Are they all gone, Ready?” said William, who had come down from the plank to his mother
”No; I see the round in a circle, and, I suppose,speeches”
”Well, I' me a little water”
Juno went to the water-tub to comply with Williareat consternation
”Oh, Massa! oh, Missy! no water; water all gone!”
”Water all gone!” cried Ready and all of them in a breath
”Yes; not one little drop in the cask”
”I filled it up to the top!” exclairavely; ”the tub did not leak, that I am sure of; how can this have happened?”
”Missy, I tink I kno,” said Juno; ”you remember you send Massa Tommy, the two or three days ash, to fetch water from the well in little bucket You kno soon be coood boy he was, and how you tell Massa Seagrave when he come to dinner Now, Missy, I quite certain Massa Too to well, but fetch water from tub all the while, and so he eht, Juno,” replied Mrs Seagrave ”What shall we do?”
”I go speak Massa To to the house
”This is a very aard thing, Mr Seagrave,” observed Ready gravely
Mr Seagrave shook his head
The fact was, that they all perceived the danger of their position: if the savages did not leave the island, they would perish of thirst or have to surrender; and in the latter case, all their lives would most certainly be sacrificed
Juno now returned: her suspicions were but too true To the water, had taken out the spigot of the cask, and drawn it all off
”Well,” observed Mr Seagrave, ”it is the will of Heaven that all our careful arrangeainst this attack should be defeated by the idleness of a child, and we must submit”
”Very true, sir,” replied Ready; ”all our hopes now are that the savages may be tired out, and leave the island”
”If I had but a little for the children, I should not care,” observed Mrs Seagrave; ”but to see those poor things suffer - is there not a drop left, Juno, anywhere?”
Juno shook her head
Mrs Seagrave said she would go and examine, and went away into the house accompanied by Juno
”This is a very bad business, Ready,” observed Mr Seagrave ”What would we give for a shower of rain now, that we ns of it, sir,” replied Ready; ”we must, however, put our confidence in One ill not forsake us”
”I wish the savages would coain,” observed William; ”for the sooner they come, the sooner the affair will be decided”
”I doubt if they will to-day; at night-time I think it very probable We must make preparations for it”
”Why, what can we do, Ready?”
”In the first place, sir, by nailing planks from cocoa-nut tree to cocoa-nut tree above the present stockade, we her, and more difficult to climb over Some of them were nearly in, this tie a space to watch over and defend; and then we , that we ive the where we are, but they cannot well drive their spears through, so it is no great matter We must make the fire in the centre of the stockade, and have plenty of tar in it, to ht it until after we are attacked We shall then see where they are trying for an entrance, and where to aiood, Ready,” said Mr Seagrave; ”if it had not been for this unfortunate want of water, I really should be sanguine of beating therave, I have no doubt; but who knohat theforth?”
”True, Ready Do you see the savages now?”
”No, sir; they have left the spot where they were in consultation I suppose they are busy with their wounded and their dead”
As Ready had supposed, no further attack was rave, were very busy ements; they nailed the planks on the trunks of the trees above the stockade, so as to her, and ale fire in a tar-barrel full of cocoa-nut leaves mixed ood and tar, so as to burn fiercely Dinner or supper they had none, for there was nothing but salt pork and beef and live turtle, and, by Ready's advice, they did not eat, as it would only increase their desire to drink
The poor children suffered much; and little Albert wailed and cried for ”water, water” Ready re was so o out of it; they could do no good, and poor Mrs Seagrave had a difficult and most painful task to keep the children quiet under such severe privation, for the weather was still very war of the children was very soon after dusk drowned by the yells of the savages, who, as Ready had prognosticated, now advanced to the night attack
Every part of the stockade was at once assailed, and their attempts now made were to climb into it; a few spears were occasionally thrown, but it was evident that the object was to obtain an entrance by dint of numbers It ell that Ready had taken the precaution of nailing the deal planks above the original stockade, or there is little doubt but that the savages would have gained their object; as it was, before the flaave thees had clirave, as they were on the top of the stockade
When the fire burnt brightly, the savages outside were reat et over The attack continued more than an hour, when at last, satisfied that they could not succeed, the savages oncewith them, as before, their dead and wounded
”I trust that they will now re-erave
”I only wish theyI have been thinking, Mr Seagrave, that wea look-out You see, sir, that cocoa-nut tree,” continued Ready, pointing to one of those to which the palisades were fastened, ”isspike-nails into the trunk at about a foot apart, we ht ascend it with ease, and it would command a view of the whole bay; we then could knohat the enemy were about”
”Yes, that is very true; but will not anyone be very much exposed if he climbs up?”