and Samson turned over and sat up,staring in his assailant's face.
"You here?"
"Here, sir, yes; and look what you've done. Don't ketch me sharpingyour sword again, if you're going to serve me like that."
He held up his hand, which was bleeding from the fact of his havingseized hold of the blade which had pinned down his hilt.
"But I thought you were one of the enemy--a spy."
"Then you'd no business to, sir. I only come up here to see the fight."
"But I thought you were down in the ranks--gone to the attack."
"Me? Now, was it likely, sir, as I should go and fight against theHall? No, sir, my bad brother Nat, who is as full of wickedness as agooseberry's full of pips, might go and try and take the Manor, if itwas only so as to get a chance to ransack my tool-shed; but you knowbetter than to think I'd go and do such a thing by him. Would you mindtying that, sir?"
Samson had taken a strip of linen out of his morion, and after twistingit round the slight, freely bleeding cut on his finger, held it up forFred to tie.
"Thank ye kindly, sir. I meant that for a leg or a wing, but it will doagain for them."
"I am very sorry, Samson," said Fred, giving the knot a final pull.
"Oh, it don't matter, sir; only don't try any o' them games again. Soyou thought I was a spy?"
"Yes."
"And what was you going to do with me?"
"Make you a prisoner, and take you down to camp."
"Well, you are a one!" said Samson, looking at his young master, andlaughing. "Think of a whipper-snapper like you trying to capture a bigchap like me."
Fred winced angrily.
"Well, not so much of a whipper-snapper as Master Scarlett, sir; but youhaven't got much muscle, you know."
"Muscle enough to try."
"Yes, sir," said the ex-gardener, thoughtfully; "but it isn't the muscleso much as the try. It's the thinking like and scheming. You see a bitof rock stands up, and you can't move it with muscle, but if you put alittle bit of rock close to it, and then get a pole or an iron bar, andputs it under the big rock and rests it on the little, and then pushesdown the end, why, then, over the big rock goes, and it's out of yourway."
"Yes, Samson," said Fred, thoughtfully, as he watched the advance; "andso you didn't care to go to the attack?"
"No, sir, I wouldn't; but it was tempting, though; ay, that it was."
"Tempting?"
"Well, you see, Master Fred, Nat has got some chyce cabbage seed, andhe'd never give me a pinch, try how I would; no, nor yet sell a man apen'orth. He kept it all to himself, just out of a nasty greedy spirit,so that his cabbages might be bigger and heavier than ours at the Manor.I'd have had some of that seed if I'd gone, for he couldn't have comeand stopped me now."
"No, poor fellow! I wonder how he is?"
"Getting better, sir. He's as tough as fifty-year-old yew. Nothingcouldn't kill him; but look, sir, look! See how they're getting up tothe terrace. Ah!"
This exclamation was made as a white puff suddenly seemed to dart fromone of the windows of the Hall, and then there was another, and another,the reports seeming to follow, and then to echo from the next hill.
But no one in the attacking force seemed to fall, neither did it checkthem. On the contrary, they appeared to be spurred into action, andinstead of creeping on as it were in a slow steady march, they broke upinto little knots, and dashed forward, while a second line kept steadilyon.
"Look at them! look at them, Master Fred! Don't it make you feel as ifyou wished you was in it?" cried Samson, excitedly. "That's it; fireaway; but you won't stop 'em. All Coombeland boys, every man-jack of'em, and you can't stop them when they mean business."
"No," said Fred between his teeth, as he tried to keep down the feelingsof elation engendered by the gallantry of the attack, by forcing himselfto think of how it would be were he Scarlett Markham, and these menenemies attacking his home. "Look, look, Samson!" he whispered, withhis throat dry, his tongue clinging to the roof of his mouth, and thescar of his worst wound beginning to throb.
"Yes, I'm a-looking, sir," said Samson, in as husky a voice. "There,they've got a ladder up against the big long window, and they'reswarming up it. They'll be in directly, and drive the long-hairedgentlemen flying like leaves before a noo birch broom."
"No," said Fred, shading his eyes with his hands; "no. Ah, did you hearthe crash? How horrible! Some of them must be killed."
"Not they, Master Fred. But I don't see how they did it. Fancy turningthe ladder right back with seven or eight lads running up it! But itwas well done."
"Can you see whether any one is hurt?"
"Not at this distance, sir. Not they, though, unless they've got any ofthose long thin swords skewered into them. I've tumbled twice thatheight out of apple-trees, and no one to fall upon. They'd all got someone to tumble on, except the bottom one, and I don't suppose he's muchhurt."
"Hurt, man? He must be killed."
"Tchah! not he, sir. T'others would be too soft. Look, sir; don't losenone of it. You may never have such a chance again. Yes; there,they've got the ladder up once more, and some's holding it while theothers goes up. Yes. Huzza! they'll do it now. No. If they haven'toverturned it again."
"Yes," said Fred, sadly, and yet unable to help feeling pleased, sothoroughly were his sympathies on both sides. "They're giving it up,Samson; they're retiring."
"No, sir; only carrying some of the hurt ones out of the fight. Theregoes another ladder up--two. Hah! look at that!"
Fred's eyes were already riveted on the fresh scene, for, plainly seeneven at that distance, the strong oaken-boarding screen nailed over thewindow at the end of the terrace on the ground floor was suddenly throwndown, and with a shout which was faintly heard on the hill, a party ofabout five and twenty Cavaliers rushed out, sword in hand, taking theattacking party in the flank with such vigour that they gave way, thetwo scaling-ladders were overturned, and for the moment the Puritanstook to flight, and the attack seemed to have failed.
"Beaten, Samson," said Fred, unable to crush down a feeling ofsatisfaction, even at the reverse of his own party.
"Beaten, sir? Not they. Only driven back. It's just like the wavesdown by the cave, yonder; they come back again stronger than ever. Toldyou so, sir. Look at that."
Samson Dee was right, for a solitary figure had suddenly stepped forwardfrom the second rank, rallied the beaten men, and advanced with themslowly and steadily. There was a desperate _melee_, as the Cavaliers,reinforced by more from within, tried to complete their rout, and then,as it seemed to the excited watchers, the Royalists were driven backstep by step, by sheer force of numbers. Then in the midst of aseething confusion, all swayed here and there along the terrace, and onand on, till the barricaded windows and porch were reached, and then, asthey were checked by the stubborn walls as water is stopped by a pier,they struggled fighting ever sidewise, a stream of mingled men along thefront of the house and over the broken-down boarding, till the tide ofconfusion set right through the open window into the Hall.
At first this human current was a mingling of both sides; then theCavalier element seemed to disappear, and as Fred watched with startingeyes, he could see at last that it was a steady stream of their own menwhich flowed through the opening.
"They're in, Master Fred! The day's ours. Hark! Hear them firinginside? Look! Look!"
It was plain enough to see: from the window, whence the scaling-ladderswere thrown down, men come dropping forth sword in hand, Cavaliersevidently, to be encountered by those of the Puritan party stillwithout. Then out came other Puritans, to take the Cavaliers in therear, as they fought together in a knot facing all round, with theirswords flashing as they made their gallant defence.
Then a rush seemed to take place, and they were overpowered, while thesmoke came slowly rolling out from the open window, though the firinghad ceased.
The fighting still went on within for a few minutes; then a rush as
madeout from door and window, and a tremendous cheer arose, loud enough tostrike well upon the spectators' ears, helmets were seen flashing,swords flourished in the air, and it was plain enough that resistancehad ceased, while the attacking force were gathering together onceagain.
"Smoke seems long while rolling out, Master Fred; must ha' been a dealo' firing we did not hear."
"Oh!" shouted Fred, as like a flash the truth came home to him.
"What's the matter, lad? Are you hurt?"