That which met his gaze temporarily sobered him. The fumes of the liquor were driven from his brain, and he saw clearly the danger which menaced.
On the day when he descended to the kitchen with the intention of remaining until death should come to his release there had been perhaps two hundred apes guarding the dwelling. As he looked forth now, five times as many were to be seen. To count them was impossible; they were as the sands of the sea, and equally silent.
Five days previous these besiegers had gathered only insignificant piles of stones. Now this rude ammunition had increased to such an enormous extent that it formed veritable hills, placed so close one to the other that it was as if an army had been throwing up breastworks, and behind them three men each raised on the shoulders of the other could hardly have looked over the top. The dwelling, instead of commanding a view of the surrounding country, was now so inclosed that he was forced to lift his eyes in order to see the grinning faces which were gazing down upon him. The house no longer stood on an elevation, but in a valley formed by these walls of projectiles.
Just within the edge of the woods, where was yet an open space, two large apes were engaged in a deadly struggle, and Philip watched them for a moment with a sort of savage pleasure, as if delighting in the brutal scene.
Then a delirium of fever seized him once more. He was no longer a reasoning animal, but a brute sunk to the level of those who held him captive.
Without questioning as to what might be gained by such a course, he discharged both barrels of his musket into the crowd of those who had gathered around the combatants, and three fell at the first discharge. Again and again he emptied his weapons, mowing down long lines of apes, but apparently increasing their numbers, for as one fell a dozen sprung to fill his place in the line of battle which was now formed.
In five minutes, where perhaps a hundred had stood, half a thousand were gathered.
Neither were these new-comers idle. It was as if the report of his weapon had been waited for as the signal of a general assault, and in an instant the air was filled with fragments of rocks and stones, until one might have fancied a furious hailstorm was raging. Pelting against the building on all sides came the missiles, doing little damage at first; but it was not possible such a frail structure could long withstand the assault.
Amid the shower of stones were handfuls of sand, as if the latter was thrown by weaker arms; and, accompanied by grunts and shrieks of the besiegers, the effect can hardly be described. It was deafening, and at the same time horrible.