The Irish standard., 1896-07-11

49, ~ ~ N s-tS%HIT
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son was quicker, grappE ng stni1n and
hurting him back against the wall with;
such force that he lay stunned by tho
blow. ] had had high respect Tor the,
fsherman's muscles, but never had i.
credited them with the ability to put
forth such power as was evidenced by
the crash OF the burly stranger against
the wall.
Again the defense had gained an ad-
vantage, but the odds were still against
it. Three able-bodied ASSISTANTS re-
manned, and all Of them now gave proof
that they were armed; for, while john
son was putting his man outssof the
fight. the leader and the young fellow
opposite me had drawn daggers, al
though they had been unable to use
them in aid Of their ally, 80 speedily
had he been worsted. dare say they
had revolvers as well, but preferred
cold steel for the work they expected
ITO do. Even on that lonely knoll q
dusillade of pistol-shots might have at
tracted attention from the people Of the
knot of houses half q mile away 4
Know that tile blades had amost wicked
look, and that the sweat ga ttllaiskered on
my forehead as I watched them and
wondered which of them mjgkf be des-
tined for me-. I was frightenAds thor-
oughly frightened; such courage as
- <hn.e rlo Hf
weapons, and, could I have fed, not
q moment would l have tarried:s But
there was no escape; was forced to re-
main and to see the end, which. though
1T involved the defeat of the enemy,
had no hand in bringing about.
.sWell-laid plans once disarranged are
generally worse than none At All. The
programme of the assailnnts, no doubt,
had been prepared most carefully.
After posting one of their number on
THE landward side of the knoll, the only
direction from which, in their ignorance
of the line of communications with John
sons cottage, they would reasona bly,
look for interference, they had adj
hanced, and forced an enttance~toa ttgs3
house. Once within, their prey was so
completely in their grasp that, dare
say, they felt able to go about their J! ! !:
business with 'cold-blooded delibera-
ton. 1 do not fatter myself with the
belief that my presence Disturbed them e. =
in the least. But, while the arra'gn-
ment of Lamar may have been intense
ly satisfying as prelude to their ven,
geance, it was sad blunder; for. It
gave johnson time to reach the scene
and to change the whole aspect OF the
affair. : 80
Had they pressed the attack as soon
as their comrade was overthroWn, it is
altogether likely that one sof, them
might have reached Lamar; but, UNI
luckily for them, they failed to seize the
opportunity in the second or two of it's
existence. Their hesitation, brief as it
was, meant defeat; for no sooner.h had
his mar fallen than johnson drew e
brace of revolvers from his pockets, and
when the strangers started forward
they looked into the muzzles of the
pistols. Lamar, too, thus protected,
had pulled out a key and was unlocking
a drawer of the table; and presently he
added another gly-looking weapens to
the array trained upon the foe
.Sorry there amt none for you. doc
tor" / heard johnson remark, "but
guess we can attend to our friends
now" a1eg;
For q moment thought that two OF
,+s,,7>
though the last conner qu;.iled at the
first sight of the firearms; but even for
them the odds were now too great.
They dared not even risk trying to
reach their own pistols. They probably
had no stomach for such a combat as
was now offered them. Reluctantly,
etep by step, they retreated toward the
door Then, suddenly, with an oath,
the leader wheeled about, and, gnash-
ing his teeth in baffled rage, strobe from
the room. 5ga z
"EIere, you two" cried johnson,
''carry off your wounded"
Idoubt if they understood his words,
hut his gesture as he pointed to the
man lying unconscious on the floor was
plain enough. Sullenly they picked up
their colnrade and bore him. into the
open air. The fisherman followed them
to the door, and watched them hurry
away toward the stream on the north
side of the little hill. d.. ss5..5
"Come in boat, eh?' said be.
''That's it; you can hear the oars. TIL
Net they've something to do with that:
schooner lying off there in THE bay.
Well, Mr. Lamar, they're of, and i
guess they've had enough, thank We, for!
one evenin'.'' ..s.,,z, ~,
''It was fortunate they chose to do
their talking first and their business
afterward,' said l. But think were
quit of them for some time to come;
The abuse that tall chip showered on
you was unpleasant, but it was mighty
valuable, as figure it. out i III
.sDid you comprehend" Lamar
asked. a.
$40, except that he was cursing you
rs energetically as he could
He seemed relieved at the answer.
SLOW are you feeling?" said |.
s.That's not the sort Of entertainment
that does you any good. It must not
he repeated
yet it has profted me-, he an
severed. II am stronger, better.
..Is,1+ vo,,.l, nav for *. II am afraid.