"Sir!" exclaimed the Pacha, halting in front of the captain, who attempted to proceed on his way without noticing him. "Coward! You shall not escape me! You have insulted me, and you refuse to meet me like a gentleman!" added Ali-Noury, as he seized the commander by the throat.
But His Highness made a mistake, and in consequence thereof the next instant he was rolling in the mud at the side of the driveway, to the serious detriment of his magnificent costume. His attendants sprang to his assistance, and lifted him from the mire into which he had fallen. As they did so both the Americans discovered that he had a cowhide in his hand, and it was plain that he had intended to castigate the captain with this implement.
He spoke to his servants, as doubtless they were, in his own language. The four men rushed upon the commander and attempted to lay hold of him. For the moment he seemed to forget that he had a cane in his hand; for when one of his assailants seized him by the collar of his coat, he planted a tremendous blow between the two eyes of the fellow which knocked him over into the gutter. Another attempted to do the same thing and shared the fate of the first. The Pacha became furious at the defeat of his satellites.
Ali-Noury spoke to the other two very fiercely, and they rushed together upon the captain; but Uncle Moses had by this time overcome his professional dignity, and dealt a smart blow with his cane over the head of one of the assailants, which caused him to step aside, while the commander upset the other with his fist.
The usual crowd had quickly gathered, and a couple of policemen stepped to the front. It was not convenient for them to pick up seven persons at once, and the guardians of the peace waited for further developments. Ali-Noury had become more furious than ever when he witnessed the overthrow of his forces; and, beside himself in his wrath, he rushed forward upon Captain Ringgold.
The policemen were alert enough; and when the commander was about to defend himself again as he had done before, they seized His Highness, a hand of each on the throat of their victim; and they were not tender about it. The affair brought out the fact that the reputation of the Pacha was as unsavory as in Funchal. The officers marched him off in spite of his struggles, and his troop followed him.
Before Captain Ringgold could reach the barge he and Uncle Moses were invited to appear before a magistrate and give their evidence. Their story was confirmed by half a dozen who had seen the beginning of the affray, and His Highness was sentenced to pay a heavy fine.
CHAPTER XXVII
A FEW LESSONS IN NAVIGATION
Captain Ringgold was a powerful man, fully six feet high, and weighing one hundred and eighty pounds, while his assailant, though nearly as tall, was slender in form, and not a strong man. Doubtless he was brave, for he held high rank in the army of Morocco, though he was usually absent on furlough. It was very rash and injudicious for him to attack the commander. He had "caught a Tartar," and he had found it out.