The Chesterfield advertiser. [volume] (Chesterfield C.H., S.C.) 1884-1978, 1922-03-09
CHAPTER XIV.
Applied Hydraulics


They've skipped" reported To
Daddy. as / climbed down from the
earth sacks, land that shows us the
quality Of the humanity stuff we have
to deal with. Bullerton will never get
that bunch to rush us In the open."
That's something gained, anyway"
safd the old man; land ever u'r b,,
heipe But II they amt goin' to take
1t standin' up, we got to look out for
lntin doin's; the snake-in-the-gra grass
kisd Charley Bullerton amt zoin' to
quit none 80 easy"
Nevertheless, for an hour or more
1t looked as If the Jumpers had quit
In due time the cooking fire in the lit.
tie gtade burned out, and no one
came TO rekindle 1t. Around and about
the solemn silence of the mountain
wilderness ringed us in, and 1t was
hard to realize that the siege had NOT
been abandoned-though we knew well
enough It hadn't
we put In the time as best we could
tinkering up our defenses and irving
10 provide for all the CONTINGENCIES
For one thing, Daddy found biz
auger and used 1t to bore loopholes at
various places through the wall nv
means OF which we could command the
approaches to the shaft-house on two
Oh the three exposed sides. Eastward
~ tne blacksmith shop intervened be-
tween US and the boiler shed-it was
Quilt as lean-to against that side of
the shaft-house-and In that direction
we were necessarily blind. The fourth
side. as l have sakl, faced an abrupt
ciiH or the mountain, a rocky wall
rising to maybe twice the height of
the buildings and almost overhsnr.
ing them. At its summit this cliff
tapered Off into a steep upward sIone
bare Of timber; hence we were com.
paratiVeiy secure from attack in that
quarter.
AS to provisioning we were NOT so
badly off. Daddy Hiram, well used in
MS long experience as q prospector to
ngur1ng upon the longevity of "rrlh.
stakes" estimated that, what with the
canned stuff, part Of sack of flour
and another Of cOrnmeal, we could live
TOT week. though the cooking was
gong 10 be rather inconvenient. For
nre we should have to resort to the
1orge In the blacksmith shop, and the
shop was nothing but an open-cracked
sned, as l have described It, entirely
indefensible II the raiders should con.
clude to rush It.
In the fulness Of time the period NJ
suspense came to an end, and we were
given audible proof that Bullerton had
hnally made his "dispositions," as an
army man would say. The announce
ment came In the form Of a rifle bullet
ripping through the roof Of the shaft
house as If the stout iron roofing had
been so much paper.
THE fun's a-beginnin'," said Daddy.
and the words were hardly out Of his
mouth before another bullet came. this
time from the opposite direction, and
1t, also. tore through the roof.
Got us surrounded" Daddy grim
aced, when third shot came from still
another point Of the compass: and
within the next fifteen minutes Butler
TONS demonstration was made COM
plete. The shots, fred one at a time
and at intervals Of minute or so.
came from all three Of the exposed
sides Of the building, and the time
elapsing between the ripping crashes
on the roof and the crack of the guns
told us that the marksmen were all
well beyond the range Of our Win
chesters, even If we could have seen
them-which we couldn't.
Bullerton had evidently given his
men orders to aim at the roof, for 1t
was only stray bullet now and then
that came through the walls. After q
time the purpose Of the bombardment
became obvious. Bullerton seemed to
have absorbed the idea that he could
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