Roving Jack, The Pirate Hunter — page 126: what you’re looking at

Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.

146 ROVING JACK, THE PIRATE HUNTER. IT OS proceeding which had not the least effect upon the minds of his hearers. However, ina little time he began to see the folly of his behaviour. “We must see about doing something,” said he. ‘The house seems to be alarmed.”’ He was quite right. Lights were seen moving from window to window, and the stern, deep voices of men were heard above the clamour of the frightened women. The men-seryants in the “Owlet’s Roost” had loaded their pistols and muskets; the doors and windows were barricaded, and the place put in as strong a state of defence as possible. Brave Ellen Peveril commanded, directed, and, by her courageous bearing, animated every heart, Violet Tremaine endeavoured to follow the ex- ample of her friend, but the imitation was a decided failure. The pirates were now seen advancing from the shelter of the bushes. They came on towards the door, which it seemed they were determined to force open, or scale the low window immediately over it. The doorway was a narrow one, so that only two men could be placed in it to check the entrance of the pirates, Loopholes had been cut, and from these projected the muzzles of two muskets, “When you have fired, make way for others,” whispered Nell, as she surveyed the arrangements. The servants nodded, and in breathless anxiety awaited the approach of the pirates. The attacking force had advanced half way to the house, on the clear open space between it and the bushes. The brave girl gave the word, Fire |” A cleud of smoke floated before their eyes, and the rattle of the muskets seemed echoed by a volley from the pirates. Then the:voice of Barabbas was heard urging on his men, who continued to press forward, They were rather surprised, though, to be greeted by a second discharge from the building. , They halted, and fired in return, As the garrison could not fire more than three or four shots at each volley, the dwarf imagined their force to be much smaller than it really was. But he could not understand the quickness of their fire, , The constant flashes and bullets from the door held his men in check, and the dwarf began to see that, in order to insure the success.of his enter- prise, it would be necessary to take other steps, He called upon his men to spread themselves out in a semi-circle in front of the building, which they did, and thus kept up a continuous fire upon the building, fire of more muskets from the Owlet’s Roost than before, and Barabbas found that he had a strong and very determined enemy to contend with. In fact, had the dwarf anticipated so stout a resistance, he would hardly have been persuaded to undertake the task. It was now very dark, for the moon had reassumed her veil of fog to hide the sight of such foul deeds from her chaste face. The only light shed upon the scene was from the momentary flashing of myskets and pistols. Barabbasj left his men to continue the attack, and, under cover of the sulphurous canopy of smoke, crawled up to the door. He examined it again, and soon saw that there ~ would be very little chance of forcing an entrance. But it struck him that he might plant a party on each side of the doorway in such a position that they would not be exposed to the bullets of the defenders of the house. He hastily crawled back, and, directing them to continue their fire, took with him six men, Three he posted on each side of the door, with directions to fire through the planks or through the loopholes which had been eut by those inside, The advantage of this manoeuvre was soon evident. The balls of the pirates inflicted some severe wounds on those inside, and even the heroic Nell Peveril herself did not escape without receiving a bullet through her tresses, which did no other damage than to sever a lock from her head. ‘*‘ Retreat !-retreat!’? she cried, but she herself was the last to leave the doorway. ; They retired into the house, and kept up a fire from the windows. But even this style of warfare did not continue long. ! Barabbas had discovered that the door and the wooden porch were very dry and ancient, and another method of forcing an entrance suggested itself, He gave directions to some of his men, who hastened to the outhouses, and returned with bundles of straw and faggots of wood in their arms. “ We are lost!” thought Violet, as from an upper window she watched the movements of her foes. She hastened to her friend and companion, who had also seen the threatened danger, ‘‘ What can we do now, dearest Nell?” she asked, “‘ Those fearful men will set the place on fire.” ‘We must endeavour to hold out until help comes from the town; they must have heard the’ noise of the firing by this time,” “But it is a long distance, and the wind blows from the town.” Nell was silent. The wind had indeed begun to freshen, but, un- luckily for her hopes, it blew, us Violet had said, . But, in this position, they were exposed to the | from the direction in which the town was situated, : omicbooks-com