THE FIGHT WITH THE MYALLS.
The little party made a very sparing breakfast that morning, as Alec
said they would have to place themselves on half rations of flour, and
trust to their guns and Murri's hunting for the rest of their food.
George shot a white cockatoo, of which they made a hasty broil, and
Murri caught a little mottled snake amongst the stones, which he
quickly cooked and ate.
They were ready to break camp almost before the light mist had been
melted by the first rays of the sun. The morning was bright, and the
dew-drops that covered the short spare grass or hung on the leaves of
the stunted bushes that grew amongst the rocks gleamed like diamonds as
they trembled in the crisp morning air. The horses were fresh, for they
had found good feed on the little dried-up marsh, and the whole day was
cheery with the morning songs of the birds and the sounds of life that
proceeded from all living things that rejoiced in the early glory of
the day.
Although the boys had suffered such a loss in the night they were not
desponding; it had made their undertaking more difficult, but it had
not rendered it impossible, and their spirits only rose the higher at
the thought of greater obstacles to be overcome. They still had forty
pounds of flour and about ten of rice, and George, who was head of the
commissariat department said that, with very careful management, and by
eating plenty of kangaroo or other flesh, it ought to last them five or
six weeks, and they did not expect to be away more than a month in all.
Busy with these calculations and full of talk as to what had become of
Prince Tom and the horse he had stolen, and as to whether the box on
the ears Alec had given him the day before had been the cause of his
deserting them in this shameful manner, they rode along for some few
hours. The valley amongst the hills, along which they had been riding
since they had entered the ranges the evening before, was not only very
winding but very varying in shape as well. The place where they had
camped the night before, and from which Prince Tom had deserted them,
was a mere rocky defile, with the hills close on either hand. The
valley had widened out shortly after leaving this place, and they had
been able to travel a little quicker; but now that they began to
approach the other end of the pass it gradually narrowed again till the
rocks on either side almost met overhead, making the defile shadowy and
dark.
Murri had told them that when they emerged from the rocks they would be
able to see the great mountains beyond, and the boys were eagerly
looking forward to seeing the land of promise which they hoped would
prove such an El Dorado for them. They were talking of the gold they
would find, and were laughing excitedly at the thought of so soon
seeing the mountains, forgetful of all the difficulties that still lay
between them and the far-off peaks, for the glamour of gold was upon
them, and their imaginations were dazzled with the dreams which they
themselves had conjured up. They had touched their horses with the
spur, and the animals were just breaking into a canter, for the sandy
ground was clear just there, when Murri, who was close behind them,
leading the pack-horses, called out to them in a voice which, although
low, was so eager and earnest that the boys almost unconsciously obeyed
it.
"Stop, stop!"
They pulled their horses up dead and turned round, Alec's hand
instinctively falling on the lock of his rifle, which he carried slung
at his back, for he was instantly aware, from the tone of Murri's
voice, that some near danger threatened them.
"What is it?" he asked, in the same low tone.
"You no _mil-mil_" (see)? "Black fellow go along o' this place, two,
four minutes ago. Um come down along o' that gully. Lookee, there um
footmark," said he, pointing to a number of traces on the shingly sand
that the boys had not noticed. "And there," he added, suddenly, his
voice growing hoarse with the intensity of his excitement, "there
footmark o' _yarroman_. That Dandy, mine _pitnee_" (I know). "Prince
Tom, him with _myalls_."
This sudden announcement of their danger made the boys' hearts beat
high, and for a moment sent the strong blood surging in their ears.
They well knew what it meant. As they had thought possible, Tom had
succeeded in joining one of the numerous tribes of savages wandering
about the neighbourhood, and, telling them of the prey, had led them to
this narrow gorge, which he knew the lads must pass through. But there
was not an ounce of coward in either of the boys, and in a moment both
of them were ready for any emergency.
Alec's voice was steady, though his face was pale, when, through his
closed teeth, he said, without turning to his brother, but keeping a
steady glance ahead--
"Geordie, is your rifle loaded as well as your revolver?"
"Yes, both barrels."
"Fix your reins round the D-iron on the pommel, so as to have both
hands free. Will Firebrace be guided by the knees?"
"Yes, as well as Amber. Let us try to get to that great rock in the
middle of the gully. If we can get that behind us we shall, at least,
have no one at our backs."
"Come along, then. Come on, Murri. Keep well behind me, Geordie."
But George Law was not of the sort to seek to protect himself behind
any one, and he took no notice of this direction, but quickened his
pace a little and rode up alongside of his brother, without a word, to
face the danger, whatever it might be, equally with him. Alec knew what
he meant by doing so, and gave one of those little nods of the head
that meant so very much between the brothers.
The next few moments, when they knew that dozens of pairs of keen and
hostile eyes were even then gazing at them from the rocks and crannies
and bushes that hid their coming foe, were perhaps the most trying that
the boys ever experienced. Every second they expected a shower of
spears to dart upon them from their enemies' hiding-places, and yet
they had to pass along the hundred yards or so that lay between them
and the rock they wished to reach quite slowly and calmly that they
might fire upon any native that aimed a spear at them.
They had almost reached the rock where they meant to make their stand,
when the first spear, whistling as it flew, thrown with enormous speed
from a throwing stick, darted between George and his horse's head. It
buried itself deep in the shingle. Geordie turned like a shot, but
before he had time to lift his hand the black warrior had dropped
behind the rock, where he was completely hidden. This was the signal
for attack, and many spears were darted at them from either side as
they rode on. One struck Jezebel, one of the led horses, and made her
rear and kick out viciously, but as yet the boys and Murri were unhurt.
Como had one or two narrow escapes; in fact he was grazed by one spear.
The boys' blood began to boil, for they could get no shot at all at any
of their assailants, and they themselves were quite open to attack.
Directly that they reached the rock George sprang from the saddle and
sang out in a voice, made clear and loud by excitement--what need was
there for whispering now?--
"Get down, Alec; they are aiming at Como and the horses, the brutes; we
must send 'em round to the other side of the rock with Murri. Keep them
safe, or we are done for."
No sooner said than done. In an instant Alec was by his side, and,
making Murri understand what he was to do, they gave him hold of their
bridles. He led the horses to the other side of the little fortress,
and the boys stood there alone. Alec, with a true soldier's eye, had
seen the advantage of this position, which not only screened them from
attack in the rear, but offered a good protection at the sides as well.
The _myalls_, who, in that part of Queensland, are a big, bold, and
finely-made race of men, seeing that they could not get at the boys
unless they left the shelter of the rocks and bushes where they were
hidden, now came out into the open and collected themselves for the
attack. There must have been twenty or thirty of them, all armed to the
teeth with spears and _nullah-nullahs_ and _waddies_, and there, on the
extreme left of the group, was Prince Tom, grinning like a demon, and
still mounted on Dandy. Besides the men there was a little crowd of
_gins_, who collected stones for their husbands, picked up their spears
when they were thrown, and goaded the warriors on when the fighting
began with their shrieks and wild yells.
"There's that thief of a Tom, look!" said George to his brother; "I'd
dearly love to have a shot at him, but I might miss at this distance,
and that would never do."
"Don't waste a single shot, Geordie; and look here, we mustn't fire
together, or they will be in on us and stick us in no time. I'll shoot
first, both my rifle and my revolver, and while I am reloading you keep
up a steady fire. It's our only chance. Do you understand?"
Alec's heart was thumping in his throat so that he could hardly speak;
he knew how much depended on their keeping cool and never losing their
heads. Geordie's steady answer relieved him somewhat, and surprised him
too, for the boy's face to his very lips was white.
"Aye, aye, Alec, I understand. God protect us now, for they are on us."
The words had hardly left his lips before the blacks had made a run and
discharged a little cloud of spears at them. The boys dropped on their
knees, and the weapons striking the rock above them fell harmlessly
behind them. Then Alec fired. His hand was as steady as the rock itself
now that the supreme moment had come, and he aimed quite quietly. With
the two quick reports of his rifle two savages fell dead, and then
instantly dropping his rifle he picked up his revolver, and fired six
shots again in rapid succession.
Hearing, for the first time, the awful report of the white man's
mysterious weapon, and seeing two of their number fall dead from no
apparent cause, stayed for a moment the black men's attack; but seeing
no evil results ensue from the other shots--for Alec was not accustomed
to pistol shooting and got a wrong elevation--they plucked up courage
again and renewed the attack. They had fallen back a little when Alec
first fired, but hearing that the mysterious noise had ceased they
again rushed forward.
The little ravine that a moment before had appeared so quiet and
deserted had suddenly been changed to a scene of the wildest fury. The
savages were leaping and bounding about, uttering the most unearthly of
cries as they brandished their _waddies_ and their spears; the women,
whose thin bodies seemed here, there, and everywhere at once, added
their yells and shrieks to the awful clamour.
Before Alec had had time to reload, a second volley of spears was
discharged at them, and George, as coolly as though aiming at pigeons,
fired in return. He hit one man, killing him, and wounded another, who
fell to the earth shrieking in his agony. By the time he had emptied
the six barrels of his revolver three more men, who had come up to
close quarters, had received disabling wounds, and the greater part of
the _myalls_, thinking that they had had enough of it, rushed off with
the women up the cliffs. But a few bolder spirits still remained to
dispute the field.
Four great naked fellows, strong and muscular, and made hideous by the
paint with which they had daubed themselves, rushed in upon the lads,
_waddies_ in hand, and rending the air with their shrieks. The boys
gave one quick glance at each other as though to say farewell, and
seizing the barrels of their rifles in both hands they waited for the
assault. But before the _myalls_ reached them unexpected help came to
their aid. Just as the foremost of the men was within a few feet of the
rock, a figure dashed round from the other side of it like a flash of
light and dealt the gigantic savage so fierce and heavy a blow on the
side of the head with a stone that he held in his hand that it
stretched him silent and senseless on the sand.
It was Murri who had thus rushed to their rescue.
They now were but three to three, as Murri instantly attacked another
of the _myalls_ with the _waddy_ which he had snatched from the hand of
his fallen foe. George made a step forward, and quickly swinging his
rifle round he brought it heavily down upon the neck of another of the
men. But the blow was not a disabling one; he had aimed it at his head,
but the wary savage had bent on one side. Before George had time to
recover himself and lift his weapon for a second blow his opponent
sprang in, and striking him a sickening blow on the top of the head he
felled him to the ground. He would have had his head beaten in by the
savage had not Como leaped over his master's prostrate body and,
showing all his strong white teeth, flown at the enemy. This created a
momentary diversion.
Alec saw George fall, and felt sure, from the nature of the blow he had
seen him receive, that he was dead. He dealt a wild blow at the man
with whom he was engaged and disabled him, and then, with such a yell
of fury as a lioness gives when she protects her young, he turned upon
his brother's foe. He sprang across Geordie's body as it lay face
downwards in the sand, and seizing in one powerful hand the descending
arm of the savage, who had kicked Como to one side and was aiming a
second cruel blow at the boy as he lay, he began a hand-to-hand
struggle with him.
Alec dealt him a crashing blow between the eyes with his disengaged
fist as he leaped upon him, and then clasping him in both his arms he
tried to bring him to the ground. The _myall_ was a grand specimen
of the tall Queensland savage, strong and fully developed, and at an
ordinary time Alec would have been as a child in his hands, but the
sight of this murderous black slaying his brother Geordie, his only
brother, had stirred up such a mad tempest of passion in Alec's breast
that he was, for the time, as strong as any three. Every muscle in his
strong young body was strained, every sinew and fibre stiffened for the
effort, and as he felt the wild mad struggles of the savage to free
himself from his grip his grasp seemed to grow stronger, and his clutch
upon his hot and swelling throat to grow fiercer every second.
Gradually, as the seconds passed, the struggles of the black grew less
and less, but Alec never loosed his hold, so maddened was he with rage
and despair, till, with starting eyes, the head of the savage rolled
over on his shoulder, and when at last Alec's convulsive grip was
relaxed, and he turned with a sob of anguish to where his brother lay,
the black man fell down--dead.
In the meantime Murri was not idle; he was engaged, upon pretty equal
terms, with the one remaining savage. They had neither done any damage
to the other, when suddenly the stalwart black, seeing the fate of his
companion at Alec's hands, sprang away from Murri, and made secure his
position by an ignominious flight. Murri started in pursuit, but he
soon saw the hopelessness or folly of it, and stopped. As he did so he
saw Prince Tom some little way down the gully, still mounted on Dandy,
who, wild with fear at the firing and at the proximity of the shrieking
savages, was rushing about the little glen, refusing to mount the steep
sides, as Tom was trying to force him to do.
Seeing the state of fear the horse was in, Murri called him loudly by
his name several times, thinking that he might try to rejoin them. At
the first sound of his name the intelligent creature pricked up his
ears and, rearing suddenly, turned in the direction of his friends. As
he did so, Prince Tom, dislodged by the sudden bound of the horse, lost
his seat and fell heavily to the ground. He could not succeed in
disentangling himself, as the horse tore along at full speed; one foot
was held fast in the stirrup, and as the maddened horse rushed wildly
over the rocky ground to rejoin the others the unfortunate man's head
and body were beaten almost to pieces on the jagged stones. When Dandy
at last stopped, all trembling and foaming, by Murri's side, Prince Tom
was nothing but a bruised and battered corpse.
When Alec's anger and revenge were satisfied, and he felt that the
murderer of his brother was dead beneath his hands, he passionately
threw himself down by the side of his brother, and, with the
unaccustomed tears pouring down his cheeks, he raised his poor pale
face from the sand. He could have lifted up his voice and howled like
any savage, for he loved this bright young brother of his more than all
else in the world beside.
Geordie's face was white as marble, and his eyes were closed as though
in sleep, his bright dark waves of hair were covered with the sand in
which he had fallen, and a great wide wound, from which the blood had
flowed that stained one side of his head and neck, extended across the
crown.
Alec, stooping over Geordie, whom he had partly raised and laid against
his heaving chest, was calling him by all the old familiar names of
their childhood, and was speaking to him as though he thought the boy
would hear his voice. He was quite oblivious to all that was going on
around him. He had fought a good fight, and it had gone against him,
inasmuch as he had lost the brother whom he loved beyond himself. What
did anything else matter to him then: the old home station; their wild
dream of gold; the struggle he had just gone through? All seemed
dreamlike and unreal, and the only fact that was patent to his mind was
that Geordie, his dear brother, his better self, was lying dead in his
arms. The noon-day heat of the tropical sun poured on him unobserved,
his own wounds and bruises were unfelt, and his whole soul seemed to
sob itself out in the one great cry he uttered--
"Oh, that it had been me instead!"
There might have been something in his agonised accents that made
itself heard in Geordie's closed and senseless ears, and that called
back the life that was fluttering within him to depart, for at Alec's
cry a feeble tiny sigh just parted the dying boy's pale lips, and his
eyelids quivered as though they would unclose.
Alec gave one wild shriek of rapture.
"_Thank Heaven_, he is not dead! Murri, Murri," he cried, in his
new-born joy, "bring water. _Burrima, burrima_" (quickly, quickly).
Murri, who had been so intent on his own part of the fight as not to
notice what had happened to the boys, turned round and loosed Dandy's
bridle as he heard Alec's cry. He now saw that "Missa Law," his friend
and favourite, was dead or badly wounded, and rushed to his side to
help. He saw at once what was necessary, and ran to the other side of
the rock, where he had tied the bridles of the five horses to the stem
of a sturdy little tree that grew in a cleft of the rock.
The water, from one of the battered tins in which they carried it, was
quite tepid from the heat of the sun, but it served to revive George a
little, and the deathly pallor passed from his face. In a few moments,
as the effects of the stunning blow he had received began to pass away,
he opened his eyes and looked about him in a dazed, astonished way. At
last he looked up and saw Alec's face anxiously bending over him, then
he seemed to remember where he was.
"What is the matter?" he said, faintly. "Are we all here, and have they
gone away? Tell me, are you hurt, Arrick?"
It was an old pet name of his for his brother, formed when he was a
little lad and could not yet speak plainly. In his terrible weakness he
seemed to drop, unconsciously, into the old familiar habit.
Alec's voice was husky when he answered, though he did his best to
speak quite calmly.
"No, I'm all right, Geordie, lad; but you are hurt and mustn't talk."
"My head, is it?" he said, vaguely; and then, as Alec and Murri lifted
him from the ground to carry him to the shade of a clump of trees that
stood a little to one side at the entrance to the glen, his eyes closed
with faintness, and he seemed to slip off again to insensibility.