We all halted at the edge of the timber and let them go, well knowing what was about to take place. Hurriedly we reloaded our weapons. As I rammed home a ball on top of a charge of powder poured in by guess I looked out at our barricade and saw the lodges standing in it intact.
"Pitamakan, our relatives survive!" I cried.
"Of course! I so signed to you! See, they are wheeling the loud-mouth out from the passageway!"
But I had no time to look. Our mounted party had followed on after us pretty closely and now broke out from the timber and charged at the enemy. How we yelled when the enemy came to an abrupt stand and then turned and headed back toward the river, shedding their robes, pouches, ropes, everything they carried except their weapons! Right then was my uncle's one chance to fire into them without our being in the line of his aim, and he seized the opportunity. Boom! went the old cannon, and Bang! Bang! Bang! sounded the rifles of his men. Though the enemy were far from him, several of them went down.
On sped the others toward the river while we fired into them. Meanwhile our riders were rapidly gaining on them, but not rapidly enough to overtake them before they went leaping down the bank and into the water with furious pawings and kickings and cries of terror and despair. Our whole force soon lined the bank and fired at them, but the treacherous, sand-laden, swirling current of the river took more toll of their number than our shots did.
I could not shoot at the defenseless swimmers; so I called to Pitamakan and we left the bank and ran toward the barricade.
There at the passageway a strange sight met our eyes. My uncle, with parched lips and bloodshot eyes, stood guard with his rifle over Tsistsaki, who doled out a cupful of water to one after another of the engagés, while they, crazed from want of it, alternately called him bad names and cried and begged for more. Now and then one of them ran to scale the barricade and go to the river, only to be forced back by Abbott and the Twins.
"Look at 'em! Look at the pigs!" Josh was exclaiming. "They'd just natcherly drink 'emselves to death if we'd let 'em!"
My uncle turned and saw us at his side.
"Ha! Here are my faithful boys!" he exclaimed in a hoarse, cracked voice.