Sentence:  Gabriel, though one of the quietest and most gentle men on earth, <WSD>rose to the occasion</WSD>, with martial promptness and vigour. "That's my fist. . . . Now — the first man in the parish that I hear prophesying bad of our mistress, why" (here the fist was raised and let fall as Thor might have done with his hammer in assaying it) — "he'll smell and taste that." 
Meaning of the word marked with <WSD> tags:  To show resolve or effectiveness in dealing with a difficulty.