THE RIOT
Two days later the boys, returning from the city, were met by Jane and
Jessie in the big carriage to be driven home. Halfway to Four Oaks the
carriage suddenly halted, and a confused murmur of angry voices gave
warning of trouble. Jack opened the door and stood upon the step.
"Fifteen or twenty drunken miners block the way,--they are holding the
horses," said he.
"Let me out; I'll soon clear the road," said Jarvis, trying to force his
way past Jack.
"Sit still, Hercules; I am slower to wrath than you are. Let me talk to
them," and Jack took three or four steps forward, followed closely by
Jarvis.
"Well, men, what do you want? There is no good in stopping a carriage on
the highroad."
"We want work and money and bread," said a great bearded Hun who was
nearest to Jack.
"This is no way to get either. We have no work to offer, there is no
bread in the carriage, and not much money. You are dead wrong in this
business, and you are likely to get into trouble. I can make some
allowance when I remember the bad whiskey that is in you, but you must
get out of our way; the road is public and we have the right to use it."
"Not until you have paid toll," said the Hun.
"That's the rooster who said we drank whiskey and didn't work. He's the
fellow who would rob a poor man of his liberty," came a voice in the
crowd.
"Knock his block off!"
"Break his back!"
"Let me at him," and a score of other friendly offers came from the
drunken crowd.
Jack stood steadily looking at the ruffians, his blue eyes growing black
with excitement and his hands clenched tightly in the pockets of his
reefer.
"Slowly, men, slowly," said he. "If you want me, you may have me. There
are ladies in the carriage; let them go on; I'll stay with you as long
as you like. You are brave men, and you have no quarrel with ladies."
"Ladies, eh!" said the Hun, "ladies! I never saw anything but _women_.
Let's have a look at them, boys."
This speech was drunkenly approved, and the men pressed forward. Jack
stood firm, his face was white, but his eyes flamed.
"Stand off! There are good men who will die for those ladies, and it
will go hard but bad men shall die first."
The Hun disregarded the warning.
"I'll have a look into--"
"Hell!" said the slow-of-wrath Jack, and his fist went straight from the
shoulder and smote the Hun on the point of the jaw. It was a terrible
blow, dealt with all the force of a trained athlete, and inspired by
every impulse which a man holds dear; and the half-drunken brute fell
like a stricken ox. Catching the club from the falling man, Jack made a
sudden lunge forward at the face of the nearest foe.
"Now, Jim!" he shouted, as the full fever of battle seized him. His
forward lunge had placed another miner _hors de combat_, and Jarvis
sprang forward and secured the wounded man's bludgeon.
"Back to back, Jack, and mind your guard!"
The odds were eighteen to two against the young men, but they did not
heed them. Back to back they stood, and the heavy clubs were like
feathers in their strong hands. Their skill at "single stick" was of
immense advantage, for it built a wall of defence around them. The
crazy-drunk miners rushed upon them with the fierceness of wild beasts;
they crowded in so close as to interfere with their own freedom of
movement; they sought to overpower the two men by weight of numbers and
by showers of blows. Jack and Jim were kept busy guarding their own
heads, and it was only occasionally that they could give an aggressive
blow. When these opportunities came, they were accepted with fierce
delight, and a miner fell with a broken head at every blow. Two fell in
front of Jack and three went down under Jarvis's club. The battle had
now lasted several minutes, and the strain on the young men was telling
on their wind; they struck as hard and parried as well as at first, but
they were breathing rapidly. The young men cheered each other with
joyous words; they felt no need of aid.
"Beats football hollow!" panted Jarvis.
"Go in, old man! you're a dandy full-back!" came between strokes from
Jack.
Let us leave the boys for a minute and see what the girls are doing.
When Jarvis got out of the carriage, he said:--
"Lars, if there is trouble here, you drive on as soon as you can get
your horses clear. Never mind us; we'll walk home. Get the ladies to
Four Oaks as soon as possible."
When the battle began, the miners left the horses to attack the men.
This gave a clear road, and Lars was ready to drive on, but the girls
were not in the carriage. They had sprung out in the excitement of the
first sound of blows; and now stood watching with glowing eyes and white
faces the prowess of their champions. For minutes they watched the
conflict with fear and pride combined. When seven or eight minutes had
passed and the champions had not slain all their enemies, some degree of
terror arose in the minds of the young ladies,--terror lest their
knights be overpowered by numbers or become exhausted by slaying,--and
they looked about for aid. Lars, remembering what Jarvis had said, urged
the ladies to get into the carriage and be driven out of danger. They
repelled his advice with scorn. Jane said:--"I won't stir a step until
the men can go with us!"
Jessie said never a word, but she darted forward toward the fighting
men, stooped, picked up a fallen club, and was back in an instant.
Mounting quickly to the box, she said:--"I can hold the horses. Don't
you think you can help the men, Lars?"
"I'd like to try, miss," and the coachman's coat was off in a trice and
the club in his hand. He was none too soon!
Jane, who had mounted the box with Jessie, cried, "Look out, Jack!"
just as a heavy stone crashed against the back of his head. Some brute
in the crowd had sent it with all his force. The stone broke through the
Derby hat and opened a wide gash in Jack's scalp, and sent him to the
ground with a thousand stars glittering before his eyes. Jane gave a sob
and covered her eyes. Jessie swayed as though she would fall, but she
never took her eyes from the fallen man; her lips moved, but she said
nothing; and her face was ghastly white. Jarvis heard the dull thud
against Jack's head and knew that he was falling. Whirling swiftly, he
stopped a savage blow that was aimed at the stricken man, and with a
back-handed cut laid the striker low.
"All right, Jack; keep down till the stars are gone." He stood with one
sturdy leg on each side of Jack's body and his big club made a charmed
circle about him. It was not more than twenty seconds before the wheels
were out of Jack's head and he was on his feet again, though not quite
steady.
Jack's fall had given courage to the gang, and they made a furious
attack upon Jarvis, who was now alone and not a little impeded by the
friend at his feet. As Jack struggled to his legs, a furious blow
directed at him was parried by Jarvis's left arm,--his right being busy
guarding his own head. The blow was a fearful one; it broke the small
bone in the forearm, beat down the guard, and came with terrible force
upon poor Jack's left shoulder, disabling it for a minute. At the same
time Jarvis received a nasty blow across the face from an unexpected
quarter. He was staggered by it, but he did not fall. Jack's right arm
was good and very angry; a savage jab with his club into the face of the
man who had struck Jarvis laid him low, and Jack grinned with
satisfaction.
Things were going hard with the young men. They had, indeed,
disqualified nine of the enemy; but there were still eight or ten more,
and through hard work and harder knocks they had lost more than half
their own fighting strength. At this rate they would be used up
completely while there were still three or four of the enemy on foot.
This was when they needed aid, and aid came.
No sooner had Lars found himself at liberty and with a club in his hands
than he began to use it with telling effect. He attacked the outer
circle, striking every head he could reach, and such was his
sprightliness that four men fell headlong before the others became aware
of this attack from the rear. This diversion came at the right moment,
and proved effective. There were now but six of the enemy in fighting
condition, and these six were more demoralized by the sudden and unknown
element of a rear attack than by the loss of their thirteen comrades.
They hesitated, and half turned to look, and two of them fell under the
blows of Jack and Jarvis. As the rest turned to escape, the Swede's club
felled one, and the other three ran for dear life. They did not escape,
however, for the long legs of the young men were after them. Young blood
is hot, and the savage fight that had been forced upon these boys had
aroused all that was savage in them. In an instant they overtook two of
the fleeing men, but neither could strike an enemy in the back. Throwing
aside their clubs, each seized his enemy by the shoulder, turned him
face to face and smote him sore, each after his fashion. Then they
laughed, took hold of hands, and walked wearily back to the carriage.
Jarvis's face was covered with blood, and Jack's neck and shoulders were
drenched,--his wound had bled freely. Lars had relieved the ladies on
the box after administering kicks and blows in generous measure to the
dazed and crippled miners, who were crawling off the road or staggering
along it. The Swede had a strain of fierce North blood which was not
easily laid when once aroused, and he glared around the battle-field,
hoping to find signs of resistance. When none were to be seen, he donned
his coachman's coat and sat the box like a sphinx.
The girls went quickly forward to meet the men. They said little, but
they put their hands on their battered champions in a way to make the
heart of man glad. The men were flushed and proud, as men have been, and
men will be, through all time, when they have striven savagely against
other savages in the sight of their mistresses, and have gained the
victory. Their bruises were numb with exultation and their wounds dumb
with pride. There was no regret for blows given or received,--no
sympathy for fallen foe. The male fights, in the presence of the female,
with savage delight, from the lowest to the highest ranks of creation,
and we must forgive our boys for some cruel exultation as they looked on
the field of strife. Better feelings will come when the blood flows less
rapidly in their veins!
"We must hurry home," said Jane, "and let papa mend you." Then she
burst into tears. "Oh, I am so sorry and so frightened! Do you feel
_very_ bad, Jack? I know you are suffering dreadfully, Mr. Jarvis. Can't
I do something for you?"
"My arm is bruised a bit," said Jarvis; "if you don't mind, you can
steady it a little."
Jane's soft hands clasped themselves tenderly over Jarvis's great fist,
and she felt relieved in the thought that she was doing something for
her hero. She held the great right hand of Hercules tenderly, and Jarvis
never let her know that it was the _left_ arm that had been broken. She
felt certain that he must be suffering agony, for ever and anon his
fingers would close over hers with a spasmodic grip that sent a thrill
of mixed joy and pain to her heart.
While I was bandaging the broken arm I saw the young lady going through
some pantomimic exercises with her hands, as if seeking to revive the
memory of some previous position; then her face blazed with a light,
half pleasure and half shame, and she disappeared.
When the carriage arrived at Four Oaks, the story was told in few words,
and I immediately set to work to "mend" the boys. Jack insisted that
Jarvis should receive the first attention, and, indeed, he looked the
worse. But after washing the blood off his face, I found that beyond a
severe bruise, which would disfigure him for a few days, his face and
head were unhurt. His arm was broken and badly contused. After I had
attended to it, he said:--
"Doctor, I'm as good as new; hope Jack is no worse."
I carefully washed the blood off Jack's head and neck, and found an ugly
scalp wound at least three inches long. It made me terribly anxious
until I fairly proved that the bone was uninjured. After giving the boy
the tonsure, I put six stitches into the scalp, and he never said a
word. Perhaps the cause of this fortitude could be found in the blazing
eyes of Jessie Gordon, which fixed his as a magnet, while her hands
clasped his tightly. Miss Jessie was as white as snow, but there was no
tremor in hand or eye. When it was all over, her voice was steady and
low as she said:--
"Jack Williams, in the olden days men fought for women, and they were
called knights. It was counted a noble thing to take peril in defence of
the helpless. I find no record of more knightly deed than you have done
to-day, and I know that no knight could have done it more nobly. I want
you to wear this favor on your hand."
She kissed his hand and left the room. Jack didn't seem to mind the
wound in his head, but he gave great attention to his hand.