Part 18 (1/2)

”Ladies, eh!” said the Hun, ”ladies! I never saw anything but _women_.

Let's have a look at them, boys.”

This speech was drunkenly approved, and the men pressed forward. Jack stood firm, his face was white, but his eyes flamed.

”Stand off! There are good men who will die for those ladies, and it will go hard but bad men shall die first.”

The Hun disregarded the warning.

”I'll have a look into--”

”h.e.l.l!” said the slow-of-wrath Jack, and his fist went straight from the shoulder and smote the Hun on the point of the jaw. It was a terrible blow, dealt with all the force of a trained athlete, and inspired by every impulse which a man holds dear; and the half-drunken brute fell like a stricken ox. Catching the club from the falling man, Jack made a sudden lunge forward at the face of the nearest foe.

”Now, Jim!” he shouted, as the full fever of battle seized him. His forward lunge had placed another miner _hors de combat_, and Jarvis sprang forward and secured the wounded man's bludgeon.

”Back to back, Jack, and mind your guard!”

The odds were eighteen to two against the young men, but they did not heed them. Back to back they stood, and the heavy clubs were like feathers in their strong hands. Their skill at ”single stick” was of immense advantage, for it built a wall of defence around them. The crazy-drunk miners rushed upon them with the fierceness of wild beasts; they crowded in so close as to interfere with their own freedom of movement; they sought to overpower the two men by weight of numbers and by showers of blows. Jack and Jim were kept busy guarding their own heads, and it was only occasionally that they could give an aggressive blow. When these opportunities came, they were accepted with fierce delight, and a miner fell with a broken head at every blow. Two fell in front of Jack and three went down under Jarvis's club. The battle had now lasted several minutes, and the strain on the young men was telling on their wind; they struck as hard and parried as well as at first, but they were breathing rapidly. The young men cheered each other with joyous words; they felt no need of aid.

”Beats football hollow!” panted Jarvis.

”Go in, old man! you're a dandy full-back!” came between strokes from Jack.

Let us leave the boys for a minute and see what the girls are doing.

When Jarvis got out of the carriage, he said:--

”Lars, if there is trouble here, you drive on as soon as you can get your horses clear. Never mind us; we'll walk home. Get the ladies to Four Oaks as soon as possible.”

When the battle began, the miners left the horses to attack the men.

This gave a clear road, and Lars was ready to drive on, but the girls were not in the carriage. They had sprung out in the excitement of the first sound of blows; and now stood watching with glowing eyes and white faces the prowess of their champions. For minutes they watched the conflict with fear and pride combined. When seven or eight minutes had pa.s.sed and the champions had not slain all their enemies, some degree of terror arose in the minds of the young ladies,--terror lest their knights be overpowered by numbers or become exhausted by slaying,--and they looked about for aid. Lars, remembering what Jarvis had said, urged the ladies to get into the carriage and be driven out of danger. They repelled his advice with scorn. Jane said:--”I won't stir a step until the men can go with us!”

Jessie said never a word, but she darted forward toward the fighting men, stooped, picked up a fallen club, and was back in an instant.

Mounting quickly to the box, she said:--”I can hold the horses. Don't you think you can help the men, Lars?”

”I'd like to try, miss,” and the coachman's coat was off in a trice and the club in his hand. He was none too soon!

Jane, who had mounted the box with Jessie, cried, ”Look out, Jack!”

just as a heavy stone crashed against the back of his head. Some brute in the crowd had sent it with all his force. The stone broke through the Derby hat and opened a wide gash in Jack's scalp, and sent him to the ground with a thousand stars glittering before his eyes. Jane gave a sob and covered her eyes. Jessie swayed as though she would fall, but she never took her eyes from the fallen man; her lips moved, but she said nothing; and her face was ghastly white. Jarvis heard the dull thud against Jack's head and knew that he was falling. Whirling swiftly, he stopped a savage blow that was aimed at the stricken man, and with a back-handed cut laid the striker low.

”All right, Jack; keep down till the stars are gone.” He stood with one st.u.r.dy leg on each side of Jack's body and his big club made a charmed circle about him. It was not more than twenty seconds before the wheels were out of Jack's head and he was on his feet again, though not quite steady.

Jack's fall had given courage to the gang, and they made a furious attack upon Jarvis, who was now alone and not a little impeded by the friend at his feet. As Jack struggled to his legs, a furious blow directed at him was parried by Jarvis's left arm,--his right being busy guarding his own head. The blow was a fearful one; it broke the small bone in the forearm, beat down the guard, and came with terrible force upon poor Jack's left shoulder, disabling it for a minute. At the same time Jarvis received a nasty blow across the face from an unexpected quarter. He was staggered by it, but he did not fall. Jack's right arm was good and very angry; a savage jab with his club into the face of the man who had struck Jarvis laid him low, and Jack grinned with satisfaction.

Things were going hard with the young men. They had, indeed, disqualified nine of the enemy; but there were still eight or ten more, and through hard work and harder knocks they had lost more than half their own fighting strength. At this rate they would be used up completely while there were still three or four of the enemy on foot.

This was when they needed aid, and aid came.

No sooner had Lars found himself at liberty and with a club in his hands than he began to use it with telling effect. He attacked the outer circle, striking every head he could reach, and such was his sprightliness that four men fell headlong before the others became aware of this attack from the rear. This diversion came at the right moment, and proved effective. There were now but six of the enemy in fighting condition, and these six were more demoralized by the sudden and unknown element of a rear attack than by the loss of their thirteen comrades.