“Go for him, Carl, and show him how we licked the Tagals!”
“Make them fight one at a time, Dutchy! Two to one isn’t fair.”
“Form a ring, boys, and let ’em have it out to a finish.”
So the talk ran on, and soon the crowd grew larger. Then Jerry Nickerson tried to hit Carl again. The German dodged, struck out swiftly and surely, and in an instant Nickerson measured his length on the deck, and lay there like a log.
CHAPTER XIII
THE LANDING AT TONGKU
“Stummer has knocked his man out! My, but that was a dandy blow!”
“The Dutchman ought to go into the prize ring. He would make his fortune at it.”
“He has finished his first man. Now let the second come on, if he dares.”
So the cries continued; for there is nothing that so delights the heart of a sailor or a soldier as a “scrap,” either on land or at sea. Among sailors especially, boxing is a constant pastime; and the “best man” is always considered something of a leader.
The crowd looked to Nuggy Polk to continue the fight; but that young man had no desire to do so, for he could plainly see that his chum had suffered heavy punishment.