Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1904-03-10


rock, give me a gun. l will hide among
the trees, and l promise that some of them
shall die tonight before they find me. For
the honor of the regiment, sahb, do not
refuse this thing. All 1 ask is, if your
honor escapes, that you will write TO
Kurnal I-shpence-sahib, and tell him the
last act of Mir Jan, naik in troop
There was an intense pathoS in the mans
words. He made this self-sacrificing offer
with an utter absence of any motive save
the old tradition of duty to the colors.
Here was Anstruther- sahib, of the Bel
gaum Rissala, in dire peril. Very well,
then Corporal Mir Jan, late OIL the 10Th
Bengal Lancers, must dare all to save him.
jerks was profoundly moved. He re-
flected how best to utilize the services of
this willing volunteer without exposing him
to certain death in the manner suggested.
The native misinterpreted his silence.
Il am not budmash,s sahb,' he eX-
claimed proudly. Il only killed a man be-
cause
Listen, Mir Jan. You cannot well mend
| what you have said The Dyaks, you are
| sure, will not come before morning.
'They have carried the wounded to the
| boats and are making the ladders. Such
was their talk when I left them
''Will they not miss your"
They will miss the mussak,i sahib. 1t
was the last full one
Mir Jan, do as / bid, and you shall see
Delhi again. Have you ever used a Lee
Metford?"
understand the Martini
Il will give you a rifle, with plenty of
ammunition. Do you go inside the cave,
| there, and"
Mir Jan was startled
Where the ghost is, sahb?" he said.
| Ghost! That is tale for children.
| There is ghost; only few bones of
man murdered by these scoundrels long
ago. Have you any food?
Some rice. sahb; sufficient for day,
| or two at pinch.
Good! We win get water from the
well. When the fighting begins at dawn
fire at every man you see from the back
of the cave. On no account come out.
Then they can never reach you if you
keep full magazine. Wait here"
Il thought you were never coming,
protested Iris when jerks reached the
ledge. Il have been quite creepy. l am
sure there is some one down there. And,
please, may | have another drink?"
The sailor had left the crowbar beneath.
He secured rifle, "a spare clip and
dozen packets of cartridges, meanwhile
briefly explaining to Iris the turn taken
by events SO far Mir Jan was con-
cerned. She was naturally delighted and
forgot her fears in the excitement caused
by the appearance of so useful an ally.
She drank his health in a trimming
beaker of water.
She heard her lover rejoin Mir Jan and
saw the two step out into the moonlight
whilst jerks explained the action of the
LeeMetfOrd. Fortunately Iris
much recovered from the fatigue and pri-
walton of the earlier hours. Her senses
were Sharpened to pitch little dreamed
of by stay-at-hame young ladies of her age.
and she deemed it her province to act as
sentry whilst the two men conferred Hence,
she was the first to detect, or, rather. to
become conscious of, the stealthy crawl Of
several Dyal along the bottom of the c.
from Turtle Leach. They advanced in In
diam file, moving with the utmost care and
crouchng IN the murky shadows like so
many wild beasts stalking their prey.
Robert" she screamed. The Dyaks!
On your lefti'
But Iris was rapidly gaming some knowl
edge of strategy. Before she shrieked her
warning grasped d rifle. Holding it at
the 'ready'-about the level of her waist
and depressing the muzze sufficiently, Sc
began firing down the side of the rock as
fast as she could handle lever and trigger.
Two of the nickel bullets struck proJec-
ton and splashed the leading savages with
molten metal.
Unfortunately the Lee-Metford beneath
was unloaded being in Mir Jams possession
for purposes of instruction jerks whipped
out his revolver.
unUillingness to face a goblin could not
withstan the combined impetus OF the
sa hib's order and the onward rush OF the
enemy. He darted headlong for the en-
jerks shooting blindly as he, too,
ran for the ladder, emptied the re
volyer lust as his left hand clutched
rung Three Dyaks were 50 close that IL
would be folly to attempt to climb. He
threw the weapon into the face of the fore
most man. effectually stopping his onward
progress, for the darkness made 1t lmpos-
sible to dodge the missile.
The sailor turned to dive into the cave
and secure the rifle from Mir Jan, when
his shin caught the heavy crowbar resting
against the rock. The pain of the blow lent
emphasis 10 the swing with which the I'M
plenent descended upon some portion OF a
Dyak anatomy. jerks never knew where
he hit the second assailant, but the place
cracked ike an eggsbell-
He had not time to recover the bar for
another blow he gave the point in the
eullet of a gentleman who was about TO
make a vicious sweep at him with parans
The downfall of this worthy caused his
immediate successor to stumble, and jerks
saw his opportunity. With the agility OF
cat he jumped up the ladder Once started,
| he had to go on. He afterward confessed
to an unpleasant sensation of pins and
needles along his back during that brlef
| acrobatic display; but he reached the ledge
| without further injury, save an agonizing
| twinge when the unprotected quick of his
| damaged finger was srnarty raped against
| the rock.
These things happened with the speed of
| thought Within forty seconds of Iris shrili
| cry the sailor breast high with the
| ledge and calling to her:
| IAN right. old girl. Keep it up!
| The cheerful confidence of his words had
| wonderful effect on her. Iris, like every
| good woman, had the maternal instinct
| strong within her-the instinct that inspires
| alike the mild-eyed Sister of Charity and
| the tigress fighting for her cubs. When
! jerks was down below there. in imminent
| danger of being cut to pieces, the gentle,
! loyable girl. who would not willingly hurt
| the humblest of Gods creatures, became
| terrible. majestic in her frenZied purpose.
| Robert must be saved If a Maxim were
planted on the rock she would unhesitating
| " have turned the lever and sprayed the
| Dyaks with bullets.
| But here he was close to her. unhurt and
, calmly jubilant. was his way when a
| stiff fight went well. He was by her side
| now. firing and aiming too. for the Dyaks
| broke cover recklessly in running for shell
| ter and may do fair work by moon
| light, many a hunter of wild duck can
| testify by the rheumatism in his bones.
| She had strength enough left to place the
| rifle out of harms way before she broke
| down and sobbed, not tearfully but in
! paroxysm of reaction. Soon all was quiet
| beneath, save for the labored efforts OF
| some wounded men to get far away from
| that accursed rock. jerks was able to
| turn to Iris. He endeavored to allay her
| agitation, and succeeded somewhat, for
tears came. and she chung TO him. 1t was
! useless 10 reproach him The whole Incl
dent unforeseen: she was herself a