Evening star., 1914-11-08
Continued from page 4

fallen on its back, and the sun beat down
on it mercilessly Wild Bob swore when he
sawit, steadily, doggedly, cursing everything
from the Captain who had done the murder
upward to General Vasquez and the Mexi-
can flag. Then he seemed to be pondering
something, and rendered apprehenslve by
the continued lull. Off at the mill they
could hear the sound of axes, and the tear
ing of timbers, and it was the Indian who
suggested the meaning.
They make from the big timbers, Sefor
Roberto, ram with which the door to bat
ter down From other timbers they make
the roof so that they not shot may be as
they come Madre de Diosi We live not
long
SDon't, eh, my )ose2' replied the adven-
turer And then, Bet peso you've guessed
it; but we'll try to fool em
He dived down the old stone steps and
returned with box of dynamite He made
another trip and brought up discarded,
rusted old powder canisters that had been
abandoned in the rubbish of the tower when
the Mexican ownership ceased. He brought
up nails, and scraps of iron, and Did use
less ammunition, and calmly sat there in
the shade of the parapet and manufactured
huge things in the nature of hand grenades,- =
hand grenades for the hand Of a giant. so
cumbersome were they. and so primitive.
He whistled as he worked, did this strange
white man, SO the Indian asserted. and now
and then paused to listen, or to peer out
through screens he had hastily thrust into
the embrasures.
FOR knowledge he had not long to wait,
inasmuch as by four o'clock in the after
noon the enemies engine was perfected, and
the firing renewed.
4They saw that Vasquez himself had
come to superintend the operations, and
for long time grim faced and determined,
the American lay with rifle in his hand
watching him, and needless of the Others.
I'll get him if ever he gets careless and
comes twenty yards this way he said over
and over to that poor, faithful old man who
lay in the shade of the wall, twisting and
biting his lips to suppress his groans. Then
if we go out, Jose, we'll at least know we
took him along. That's something And
after that he swore very terribly, so the
Indian said, so much so that he, lying there
expecting nothing but death, prayed for the
soul Of Wild Bob and the intercession Of Our
Lady.
FINALLY the dreaded implement of war
came into sight from round the corner OF
building. 1t was great framework of tim
bers mounted on the running gear of a
wagon, OCHes.ll WHICH llcll SIdihGI,
it forward. Cumbersome it appeared, and
unwieldy: but it seemed that beneath such
a shelter men might break the rocks from
round the doors and gain admission. After
that life would be measured by seconds.
"The advcnturer sat down and laughed,
and rolled from side to side in great glee.
The Indian stopped mumbling prayers,
thinking that his revered master had gone
mad from the heat, and crawled painfully
down the steps for fresh supply of water
from the barrels. When he returned he
started back alarmed; for beneath the
magazine they could hear the creaking,
straining wheels, the cheers of the men fore
ing it, and now there burst terrific fusil-
1ade sweeping the air above them and spat-
tering against the stones outside The
seiior was lighting a very short fuse in one
of his grenades with fingers that did not
tremble, and still laughing as if at some i'm
pending joke.
"'Look! Look, Jose! Watch below!' he
said, and obediently the latter peeked down.
ward.
"The moving barricade with its stormins
party had crept up the little hill on which
the tower stood, and already those beneath
were shouting derisive taunts at the white
man above >,
17HFN a swift shadow leaned into heinp