[ CHAPTER XIII.]
THE INDIAN ATTACK.
FOR nearly half an hour the occupants of the tower remained without hearing the smallest sound. Then there was a slight jarring noise.
‘They are getting over the fence,’ Mr. Hardy whispered. ‘Go down now every one to his station. Keep the dogs quiet, and mind, let no one fire until I give the signal.’
Over and over again the clinking noise was repeated. Cautious as the Indians were, it was impossible even for them to get over that strange and difficult obstacle without touching the wires with their arms. Occasionally Mr. Hardy and the boys fancied that they could see dark objects stealing towards the house through the gloom; otherwise all was still.
‘Boys,’ Mr. Hardy said, ‘I have changed my mind. There will be numbers at the doors and windows, whom we cannot get at from here. Steal quietly down-stairs, and take your position each at a window. Then, when the signal is given, fire both your revolvers. Don’t throw away a shot. Darken all the rooms except the kitchen. You will see better to take aim through the loopholes; it will be quite light outside. When you have emptied your revolvers, come straight up here, leaving them for the girls to load as you pass.’
Without a word, the boys slipped away. Mr. Hardy then placed on a round shelf nailed to the flag-staff, at about eight feet from the ground, a blue-light, fitting into a socket on the shelf. The shelf was made just so large that it threw a shadow over the top of the tower, so that those standing there were in comparative darkness, while everything around was in bright light. There, with a match in his hand to light the blue-light, he awaited the signal.