The Forrest City times. [volume] (Forrest City, Ark.) 1871-1919, 1898-12-09

"'Ay, ay. sir says |. wondering who
we were to find. but knowing nv bet
ters too well to ask questions, and be-
ing only too glad to get out of that hell
Of smoke and flames.
THE aptain--leastwise he was only
lieutenant then-snatched up broad
service cutlass, and we started at cog
trot into the thicker part of the town,
81 can tell you it was no bloomin'
picnic, even at the start. The streets
were narrow and quite bewilderinp
and the further we got from our men
the worse did ii become. On every side
we saw scowling yellow faces peeping
at US from the windows and roofs of the
tall houses. You see, we had not yet
occupied the place. and it was full of sbe
defeated Egyptians and worse scum,
always so plentiful in these foreign
cities. just by way of change, every
now and then we heard the ping of q
bullet as it few past our ears, and ali
the time we knew it would be Just as
easy to force a rat out of his hole as to
try and discover the rascals who ared
at us, hidden away as they were in the
large, rambling, half-ruined buildings
by which we were surrounded.
II may as we'll tell you now what /
didn't know till afterward and that in
when Maj. Fortescue, who was gentle
man holding some official position III
Alexandria. heard there was likely to
be trouble. he sent his daughter Lucy,
with her maid and native servant.
round to her aunt at Port Said by boat,
and when the row really came he calm
ly put off to British ship lying in the
harbor, thinking that all was safe.
But women are only skittish crea-
lures after all. so when the ship she
was on was stopped at Rosetta, Miss
Lucy foolishly resolved to return ovei-
land to her father. This was. of course,
the very worse thing she could have
done, and the result was that Lieut..
Grahame met the native servant, who
was looking for the major to tell him
that the girl had returned to the house
and was hiding there in great danger,
When we had run on for about ten
minutes we came across an ugly crowd
of armed riffraff. who seemed inclined
to dispute the road with us. Stand
clear! yelled the cap'n, as he dragged
me into an open doorway. Only just in
time, for had l been a minute later
should have certainly lost the number
of my mess there and then. as perfect
storm of bullets hissed by me. We
slammed the door to. and luckily the
fastenings were still good. as we could
hear the mob hammering against it nd
endeavoring to blow the lock open.
"'Quick; up here again shouted the
cap'n, leading the way up some crazy
stone steps on to the fat roof There
was kind of hatchway over the stairs,
and this we managed to clap on in half
tick. AS luck would have II we also
found pile of loose masonry, which
had fallen from the dome Of a temple
place next door.
when l had shoveled about half a
ton of this rubbish on to the hatch, J
thinks it time to have a spell and take
our bearings. looks round. but
couldn't see the cap'n nowhere.
Just then I heard his voice yelling
and shouting curses in most awful
manner, and running in the direction OF
the sound found him waving his armr
and stamping about as If he was balmy
on the crumpet.
Look at the fiends!' he roared
dancing with rage. Now. Lucy. I'm
coming. dearest!'
"And believe he would have jumped
over the parapet, a sheer drop of 60
feet. if | hadn't clinched his coat with
both hands.
There across the narrow street we
saw two English females crouched on
the opposite roof. The lower part Of
the building was in flames, and in the
street below crowd of yellow mongrels
were shouting and brandishing their
guns.
"Now, If there is one thing more'n
another that Tom Saunders pats his
self on the back about it is that he never
loses his head. The roof he was stand
ing on had a Flagstaff in the middle,
and in moment like it came to me that
this spar was to be the salvation of
them two girls.
Help me pull the stick down, Gra-
bamel" / shouted. forgetting his rank
in the furry of the moment. He catched
on my meaning at once, and we both
tugged away for dear life. / can't say
now whether the staff was rotten or
how it came about, but all know is that
in brace of shakes we had the spar
down and stretched between the two
roofs. The next minute my boots were
off, and was across before the chaps be-
low had time to think what was ado
ing of.
Mrs. Grahame-I mean Miss Lucy.
as she was then-like true woman,
wanted to stand argufying with her
maid as TO who l should take first, but
l cut their tackle short by seizing the
young lady in my arms and starting off
She was true blue and didn't screech,
but nestled in my arms. bless her heart,
as II she was baby.
81 know 1 must be getting old. for
whenever think of that time now cold
beads of perspiration stand out on my
face, and | can feel my heart beating