Jasniff struck out with his left fist, and at the same time put his right hand back as if to draw some weapon. Dave dodged the blow intended for his face, and then struck out swiftly, hitting Jasniff in the cheek. Then several blows were exchanged in quick succession, Dave being hit in the chest and shoulder and Jasniff receiving several in the chest and one on the nose which sent him staggering several feet. Then the bully rushed forward and clinched, and both circled around and around on the narrow trail, each trying to get the advantage of the other.
“I’ll fix you! Just wait and see!” panted Jasniff, as he did his best to get a strangle hold on our hero.
Dave did not answer, for he realized that in an encounter with such a tall and powerful fellow as Jasniff he must make the best use of his breath as well as his muscles.
He slipped from the clutch Jasniff was trying to get on him, and caught the fellow by the waist. Then Jasniff went down with Dave on top of him, and both rolled over and over among the rocks and into some bushes which chanced to have sprung up in that vicinity.
“You le—le—let up!” gasped Jasniff presently, when he found Dave had him by the throat.
“I’ll let up when I’m through with you—not before,” answered Dave pantingly.
The struggle continued, and Jasniff arose partly to a sitting position only to have his head banged backward on the rocks. Then, however, he managed to get one leg doubled up and he sent his foot into Dave’s stomach in such a way that our hero was for the moment deprived of his breath. Both clinched again and rolled over until they were close to the edge of the rocks.
“Now I’ve got you!” cried the bully; and just as Dave managed to hit him another blow in the nose, one which made the blood spurt, Jasniff tore himself free and an instant later pushed Dave down over the rocks.
Even then our hero might have saved himself, as he had his left foot planted in what he thought a safe place, and he might have caught Jasniff by the leg. But the foot gave way most unexpectedly, and in a trice Dave found himself rolling over and over down a rocky slope. He clutched out wildly, and managed to catch hold of several bushes. But these came out by the roots, and then he slid downward once more, at last reaching a little cliff over which he plunged sideways, to land with a crash in some bushes and stunted trees some distance below.
The rolling and the drop over the cliff had all but stunned the young civil engineer, and for fully five minutes he lay among the bushes hardly realizing where he was or what had happened. Then, when he finally arose to his feet, he found that his left shoulder hurt him not a little, and that his left ankle felt equally painful and was quite lame.