“The Irishman was drawing back to hurl that death and ruin-dealing rock when the boss fired; the man dropped in his tracks, the heavy stone falling on his face.
“The wild drunken crowd rushed at the door with yells of drunken madness. Four small puffs and flashes issued from under the eaves; the rabble drew back pell-mell, leaving three stretched upon the ground.
“Our precise locality being thus discovered, the bullets came thick and fast, and the efficacy of the planks was proven—a dozen balls perforated the roof, but lodged in the stout boards.
“Suddenly I saw the horse thief partially slip from shelter and poise his deadly-looking rifle. I was aware that its contents would pierce our barricades, and not being able to pick the fellow off in his position, I sprang aside, dragging the boss with me.
“Hardly done ere whizz went the ball through a spot of the plank where my brain was the preceding instant, and buried itself in the noble Newfoundland’s heart.
“With a mournful cry of agony the brute sprang up, and fell across his master’s knees. The boss stroked his glossy coat, then a strange gleam flashed in his eyes.
“We both fired at the slayer—he dropped, then sprang up, and savagely laughing whipped behind a tree.
“By this time, from continual battering, the door hung loosely on its broken hinges; nevertheless, our fire kept the mob from attempting the breach, and finally they retreated far back in the forest, giving us a respite to refresh and contemplate our begrimed and bruised faces, our arms discoloured, and trembling from violent exertion, for we had begun the struggle at dawn; it now wanted one hour of noon.
“Suddenly a wreath of smoke curled up from the tree; firing and shouting again were rampant; and we got a glimpse of the horse-thief darting from tree to tree, at last bringing up behind a huge oak, exactly in front of which and opposite our citadel grew a tall, flexible sapling.
“The man clutched a roaring brand, and I saw his hand cautiously creep around the tree trunk toward the sapling. Then I fired at his huge palm; but he drew it back too quickly. When the smoke cleared away, we saw the sapling bent behind the tree—the man, unseen, busily attaching something to the branches.