Understanding the boy's danger, Captain Grenville quickly rose to his feet and ran towards the tree.
"Hold fast!" he cried as he got to the foot of the tree.
Gilbert raised himself a few inches until he could catch hold of the bough with his second hand, and there he hung, calling aloud for help.
Sir Richard gripped the tree and was about to make the attempt to climb up to the boy's rescue, when his shoulders were seized by a pair of hands, someone leapt upon his back and clambered over him, crushing him down under two heavy boots. When the weight was removed from him he looked up and saw young Timothy Trollope scaling the tree with astonishing speed.
"Help! help! or I shall fall!" cried Gilbert Oglander.
"Hold but another moment," returned Timothy; and ascending to the branch from which Gilbert was hanging he worked his way along it, and, leaning over like a very monkey, caught the lad in his one strong right arm and raised him bodily up to a position of safety.
For some minutes the two lads sat astride the bough facing each other, speaking never a word.
"Certes," cried Gilbert at last, breaking the silence, "'twas a narrow escape that! I was as near as might be to falling."
"In sooth I believe you were," agreed Timothy; "and it had been a goodly fall whichever way you had landed."