190 MARTIN RATTLER.

their comrade stood, gazed down on the travellers in
surprise, and, by their movements, seemed to be
making hasty preparations for an attack,

By this time Barney had recovered his self-posses-
sion, and became thoroughly convinced of the reality
of the apparition before him. Drawing his pistol
hastily from his belt, he caught up a handful of
gravel, wherewith he loaded it to the muzzle, ramming
down the charge with a bit of mandioca cake in lieu
of a wad; then drawing his cutlass he handed it to
Martin, exclaiming, “Come, lad; we’re in for it now.
Take you the cutlass, and I'll try their skulls with
the butt o’ my pistol; it has done good work before
now in that way. If there’s no more o’ the black-
guards in the background, we'll bate them aisy.”

Martin instinctively grasped the cutlass, and there
is no doubt that, under the impulse of that remarkable
quality, British valour, which utterly despises odds,
they would have hurled themselves recklessly upon
the savages, when the horrified old trader threw him-
self on Barney’s neck and implored him not to fight;
for if he did they would all be killed, and if he only
kept quiet the savages would perhaps do them no
harm. At the same moment about fifty additional
Indians arrived upon the scene of action. This, and

the old man’s earnest entreaties, induced them to