“We must not leave the work unfinished,” he exclaimed. “Come, Archie, you and I and Tim Nolan will soon do the job;” and, springing on shore with a torch which he had just lighted, followed by Archie and Tim, each with a musket as well as a torch, he made his way towards the storehouse. As the party ran on they caught sight of several people in the distance, and Archie thought he saw some horsemen with long lances; but they believed that they could reach the building, and get back to the boat, long before the latter could be down upon them. As they arrived at the storehouse, they found that the door was closed, and that the windows were too high to enable them to throw in their torches. A piece of timber lay near at hand.
“We must make a battering-ram of this,” cried Higson; “here, Gordon, you and Tim lay hold of it on one side, and I’ll take the other, and we’ll soon knock in the door.”
The first blow failed in its intended effect. “Now, lads, heave with a will,” cried Higson, and the door gave way.
Picking up their torches, as well as their muskets, which they had put down to handle the battering-ram, they sprang in; and Higson, running to the farther end, ignited some woodwork and a pile of sacks; while Tim, leaping up a ladder, left his torch burning on the upper floor. In a few seconds Higson came back, and, throwing Archie’s torch as far as he could into the building, they all rushed out again. As they were making their way as fast as their legs could carry them to the boat, Archie, turning his head over his right shoulder, saw the horsemen he had before observed galloping at full speed towards them.
“Here come the Cossacks, Mr Higson,” he shouted out. “Run, Mr Higson, run, while Tim and I keep them at bay.”
Higson, having grown somewhat stout, was not as active as formerly; and Archie knew that he and Tim could soon overtake him. Higson, aware of this, did as he was advised, while he shouted out to the rest of the people in the boat to cover the two who remained behind.
“Oh, Mr Green, Archie and the man with him will be cut off if we don’t pull in and help them,” cried Tom, who, just as the boat got clear of the smoke, caught sight of the Cossacks.
Green on this pulled to the shore, and part of the two boats’ crews landing, just as the Cossacks got within twenty yards of Archie and Tim, they opened fire, which emptied two of their saddles, and made the rest of the troop wheel quickly round; while Archie and Tim, having also fired their muskets, took to their heels and soon joined their shipmates.
“Give way, my lads,” cried Higson, as he once more took his seat; “we’ve done the work effectually, and there’s no use stopping to get fired at as we pull down the river.”
The dense volume of smoke which rose up from the bank of the river completely concealed the Cossacks, and of course prevented them from seeing the boats, which they possibly might have supposed were still lying off the place, ready to commit other mischief. Higson had received orders, however, on no account to injure private property, and he could only hope that the flames had not reached the buildings he had seen beyond the storehouses. Just as they got a little way beyond the point there came the thundering sound of an explosion.