*CHAPTER XXII*
*A Dumb Chinaman*
Sing-Cheng Vows Vengeance--At Head-quarters--Tracking the "MountainTiger"--Deaf and Dumb--A Hill Fastness--Tracked--Strategy--Chang-Wo'sWay
General Kuroki's brilliant victory had been won at great cost. Suchdash, such persistence, such fearless disregard of death had not perhapsbeen seen on any battle-field since the days when arms of precision wereunknown, and the rival combatants fought man to man at deadly grips. Thewhole day after the battle was occupied in burying the dead and helpingthe wounded, and Bob, assisting in the sad work, saw many new signs ofthe invincible stoicism of his country's allies. Many a sturdy littlesoldier, though maimed beyond repair, accepted his fate and bore hispain without a murmur, his deepest hurt being in the knowledge that forthe rest of the campaign, perhaps for the rest of his life, he would beunable to do further service.
Towards evening, as Bob with Ah-Sam passed over an outlying corner ofthe position, where there remained a number of prostrate bodies stilluncollected, he fancied he heard a groan. He stopped and listened. Ina moment he heard the sound again, faint, but distinct, less a groan ofpain than the tired gasp of a man utterly spent. Over a comparativelysmall area lay some thirty bodies close together, and Bob saw by theirdress that they were not Japanese, but Manchurian natives. Picking hisway carefully through them towards the sound, he at length saw awhite-sleeved arm move, and when he bent down, he found that, pinnedbeneath a cold body, lay a man still alive. The wounded man was soonreleased, and then Bob saw that it was the chief of the Chunchuses,Sing-Cheng, the man with whom he had spent his memorable fortnight ofperil and adventure.
He was somewhat seriously wounded. Giving him a drink of water from hisflask, Bob searched carefully the surrounding ground for any other manin whom life still remained. He found only one; the rest were dead.With Ah-Sam's assistance he then carried the chief into the Japanesecamp, where his wounds were attended to, afterwards sending a couple ofmen to bring in his still more gravely wounded comrade.
Next morning Bob visited the chief, and was glad to see that he wasalready giving promise of a quick recovery. With Ah-Sam's aid hequestioned the man, being curious to know what had become of him afterthe last desperate brush with Chang-Wo's Manchus. He learnt that thechief had struck due east with his band, marching through the hills toavoid both Russians and Japanese, and had forded the Yalu some fiftymiles higher up. They had then made their way towards his village,intending to recuperate there and await a favourable opportunity forresuming their usual occupation of brigandage. But on arriving theyfound that Chang-Wo had been before them. Furious at his recent rebuff,he had slain every man, woman, and child in the place, including thechief's family, not one escaping to tell the tale. Without waitinglonger than to learn from the country-people, who gave him the news, inwhat direction the Manchus had gone, the chief started on their trail,but lost touch, and had not found them until the afternoon of the day onwhich Bob discovered him. Chang-Wo had fallen upon him while he laythere in hiding; his men had been taken by surprise, and, as Bob saw,the band had been annihilated.
Bob was tempted to ask why the Chunchuses had been in hiding at thatspot---a place obviously of some danger. But he had a shrewd suspicionof their purpose. He had little doubt that both Sing-Cheng's band andChang-Wo's had been hovering like vultures about the field, waiting forthe fall of night to begin their work, when Chang-Wo had discovered hisenemy and swooped down upon him with all the advantage of the firstblow.
The chief's story had been many times interrupted by frenzied outburstsagainst his enemy. He himself would recover, he was told; he would livefor nothing but to exact vengeance. His family were killed, the gravesof his ancestors had been defiled, his band was exterminated; he wasalone. But alone he would follow Chang-Wo to the ends of the earth, andwhen he found him, he would take such a terrible revenge that allManchuria should shake with the horror of it.
Sing-Cheng's threats, made with a set grimness of determination, startedBob upon a train of thought. He himself had a strong motive fortracking down the Manchu brigand. It was Chang-Wo who had-capturedKobo; where he was, there Kobo, if he were still alive, would be found.To save Kobo was the dearest wish of Bob's heart; could he avail himselfof the chief's thirst for revenge, and enlist his aid?
"Ask him whether he knows where Chang-Wo's haunt is," said Bob toAh-Sam.
Years ago, the chief replied, he had himself been a member of thebrigand band, when the stronghold had been in the hands of Chang-Wo'spredecessor--an old wise chief, a man of matchless cunning and resource.This man had been treacherously assassinated by Chang-Wo, who had madehimself the master of the band. For a time Sing-Cheng served underChang-Wo, but he had left him, at the risk of his life, and pointing toa deep scar upon his neck he mutely indicated the reason of his leaving.Since then he and Chang-Wo had been bitter enemies, but Chang-Wo hadalways commanded the larger band, and Sing-Cheng had been obliged tokeep out of his way. Now, however, come what might, he would soon orlate take his enemy's life, though he lost his own. He knew hismountain stronghold; he would make his way thither, and wait like atiger until the moment came for leaping on his prey.
"Where is this stronghold?" asked Bob.
It was three days' journey among the hills. It lay cunningly concealedin a wild region, accessible by only one difficult path.
"Then it can be surrounded?"
No, for on the other side it was protected oy a deep rocky gorge,through which ran a rapid torrent. Ascent from the gorge wasimpossible, because a wall of granite rose sheer for several hundredfeet, and at the top indeed overhung the ravine, affording no foothold,even if it were possible to cut steps in the rock. On that side thefortress was impregnable; and even on the other, access was so difficultthat any attempt to capture it must be hazardous in the extreme.
Bob left the man and pondered on the information he had obtained.Valuable as Kobo was, he could not hope that General Kuroki would send aforce into hostile country on the poor chance of saving him. If Kobowas to be saved, it must be by some private enterprise. Bob wonderedwhether he could raise a force of Manchus and storm the place. Hereflected that even if such an expedition proved successful, it mightfail in the very object with which it had been designed; for Chang-Wo,the moment he felt himself in danger, would assuredly kill Kobo, if tillthen he had kept him alive. It was clear, then, that to win success inits main object, the rescue of Kobo, any expedition must be organizedand carried through with secrecy.
Several days passed before Sing-Cheng had recovered sufficiently to moveabout freely. During these days Bob spent many anxious hours inthinking and thinking again. He consulted nobody. If Yamaguchi had beenat hand, Bob would have discussed every detail of the problem with him;but he did not care to unbosom himself to strange Japanese officers, andhe hesitated to go to General Kuroki himself until he could put beforehim a scheme that was reasonable and likely to command his approval. Heput many questions to Ah-Sam and the chief--questions which sometimespuzzled them, and to which he obtained sometimes useless answers; butall the time he was fitting together the bits of information heobtained, and slowly outlining a plan.
At length one day he went to head-quarters and asked for an interviewwith the general.
"Well, Mr. Fawcett," said Kuroki on seeing him, "are you ready to rejointhe fleet?"
"Are there any orders for me, sir?" asked Bob anxiously. "I hope not."
"At present you remain with me--at my request. But why do you say youhope not?"
"Because I wished to be still at your orders, sir. I have been thinkingabout Kobo San. You remember, sir, he is presumed to have been capturedby the Manchu brigand Chang-Wo; is there any chance of a force beingsent to rescue him?"
"None at all. I answer you quite frankly. Useful as Kobo San has beenand might still be to us, he is now, if Chang-Wo's prisoner, in a partof the country remote from my line of advance, and an expedition on
hisbehalf is out of the question. Besides, it would be labour and timelost. His life would not be worth a moment's purchase if we made anattack in force on Chang-Wo."
"I had thought of that, sir. But I wondered, that being the case,whether you would allow me with my Chinese boy and a Chunchuse chief togo secretly to Chang-Wo's haunt, and discover if we can whether Kobo Sanis there and still alive, and communicate with him if possible."
"That would be a dangerous business, Mr. Fawcett."
"Possibly, sir; but I have been over the mountains before, and theChunchuse knows the district well, and was in fact at one time a memberof the same gang. I should like to make the attempt, for Kobo San hasbeen a good friend to me."
General Kuroki smiled.
"Kobo San's public services are likely to weigh more with me, Mr.Fawcett. Before I say more, have you any definite plan?"
"My idea was for all three of us to go as Chinamen, with a story thatour farm has been burnt down by the Russians, and that we are going toGensan to find employment with an uncle of my boy Ah-Sam--a masterstevedore there."
"But you don't speak Chinese?"
"No, sir; but I was a dumb Korean for a day or two, and it won't be anymore difficult to be dumb in Chinese."
"True," said the general, smiling. "Well, you seem to have concocted asufficiently plausible scheme. I will not stand in your way. You go atyour own risk. I shall be very glad if you succeed; if you fail--"
General Kuroki gave him an expressive glance, which seemed to say thatsympathy would in any case be vain, for failure would possibly involvedeath. Bob thanked the general and withdrew.
A day was spent in making preparations. Bob was carefully disguised asa Chinaman; the chief altered his dress somewhat, and did what he couldto hide his scar; and both he and Ah-Sam got together a number of smallportable Chinese objects such as might have been saved from the wreck ofa farm. Then early one morning the party of three set off on foot.They carried no arms, except each a revolver concealed with a supply ofcartridges in a special pocket in their baggy trousers. As Chang-Wo'shaunt did not lie in a straight line between Kiu-lien-cheng, theirstarting-place, and Gensan, their ostensible destination, they struck atfirst north-eastwards, in order to approach the fortress from adirection that would lend colour to their story.
For two days they tramped on. Their account of themselves found easycredence at the hamlets where they stopped for rest and food, and Bobwas secretly amused to watch the cleverness with which Ah-Sam feigned asorrowful indignation to match that of the chief. On the evening of thesecond day they arrived at a village which, as they entered it,Sing-Cheng explained was a little more than ten miles from Chang-Wo'sstronghold. They made their way to an inn, and Ah-Sam, who for safety'ssake was allowed to be spokesman on these occasions, once more gliblyrepeated the story about the raided farm and the purpose of findingshelter with his uncle in Gensan. The landlord, an active littleChinaman, appeared to Bob to give the travellers an anxious warning, andas they continued in conversation, the other guests in the inn formed agroup and took a voluble part. Bob sat upon the k'ang, wishing with allhis heart that he could understand what was being said, but doing hisbest to keep up the semblance of being deaf and dumb by munching away atthe food given him and letting his eyes rove round the room with ahalf-vacant stare.
He learnt later from Ah-Sam what the matter of the conversation hadbeen. The landlord, on hearing of the travellers' destination, hadexpressly warned them against approaching too near the fortress of theManchu brigand. His guests added their warning to his. They were forthe most part peasants of the neighbourhood, and the manner in whichthey spoke of Chang-Wo showed how terribly they were afraid of him.They did not even name him directly, but referred to him incircumlocutions, calling him variously the Mountain Tiger, the Wild Manof the Hills, and the One-eared Devil. For ten miles around his hauntnot a building was left standing. No stranger who penetrated within thezone came out alive. If an intruder was caught he was killed on thespot, and his corpse was chained to a post as a warning to others. Themethod of execution was the slow torturing penalty common in China; thevictim was crucified.
There was special danger at the present time, for the Mountain Tiger hadreturned to his lair a few days ago, laden with booty obtained from theslain in a great battle that had been fought down the river. TheRussians, the hated barbarians from the west, had been victorious,largely by the Wild Man's help; and as the landlord repeated this story,industriously circulated by the brigand's men, a deep groan was utteredby several of the company. Had he brought back any Japanese prisoners?asked Ah-Sam. There was none to bring, was the reply; all the Japanesehad been killed save those who fled. But one of the guests mentionedthat nearly a month ago a prisoner had been brought to the fortress--asmall man dressed in Chinese garb, but really a Japanese, an old enemyof Chang-Wo's, and, it was whispered, a man of consequence. Woe to theenemy who fell into the One-eared Devil's hands!
Ah-Sam at once asked whether the prisoner was still alive, or had hesuffered the penalty. Only a few days ago, was the reply, a man hadcome into the village from the stronghold, released from his duties bythe return of his chief. For a fortnight he had been on constant guard,scarcely daring to sleep, for nameless tortures would have been his fateif he had allowed the prisoner to escape, or even if he had been foundabsent from his post. He had signalized his release from duty bygetting drunk, and drunk he had remained ever since.
Ah-Sam affected the greatest alarm at hearing all this. Withwell-feigned nervousness he asked how the region of danger could beavoided. Where did it begin? Was it guarded?
Before these questions could be answered a new-comer entered the inn anddemanded food. He was a tall muscular Manchu, of most forbiddingcountenance, and as he pushed his way through the group he gave alowering suspicious glance around, and allowed his eyes to rest on thesolitary figure seated on the k'ang. The conversation was stilled. Thenew guest wore the leggings and carried the fowling-piece of aManchurian hunter. Having obtained his supply of food from the landlordhe went to the k'ang, where he arranged a comfortable place for himself,and, squatting there, began to eat his meal in silence.
For a few moments the rest of the company conversed in subdued tones,making no reference to the topic that had engaged them when thenew-comer entered. Once or twice this latter glanced round at Bob, whowas within a yard of him, still looking listlessly about, and idlyfingering a small metal image which was among the native objects he hadbrought with him. At length the man addressed a few words to him. Bobdid not turn his head or alter his movements. The Manchu spoke to himagain in still louder tones. Again Bob paid no heed; he felt thenecessity of being doubly on his guard; the man for all he knew might bea spy in Chang-Wo's pay. A third time he was addressed, in still louderand more impatient tones. This time the landlord cried out that theyoung man was deaf and dumb, and half an idiot to boot. The Manchu gavea grunt, and shoved a huge mass of rice into his mouth, emptying thecopper vessel in which it had been contained. Feeling that the man'seyes were off him, Bob watched him narrowly, wondering whether he wouldbe satisfied with the explanation, and keeping a firm hold upon himselfin case the man should suddenly put him to a test. His precaution wasjustified, for with a sudden movement the Manchu tossed the pan upon thefloor, where it fell with a resounding clang, and at the same time swunground and fixed his evil eyes on the squatting figure not two yardsaway. Bob did not even start; he ceased fingering the idol and watchedthe pan as it rolled across the floor and came to rest; then he lookedround with his empty stare, smiled vacuously, and took up the idol oncemore. The Manchu drank a heavy draught of rice-beer, then threw himselfbackward and was soon snoring.
Bob caught a look of approval in Ah-Sam's eyes. The stranger beingasleep, the company resumed the conversation at the point where hisentrance had interrupted it. Where did the dangerous region begin? Somethree miles from that inn. It was impossible to enter it without beingdiscovered; no one indeed wished to
enter it; if some incautioustraveller did intrude within its borders, his only wish, and that a vainone, was to make his way out. The reason of its being so carefullyguarded was that once the Mountain Tiger had narrowly escaped beingsurprised by a sotnia of Cossacks, and he had determined never to becaught napping again. On the outer edge of the prohibited districtthere were patrols by day and by night, and surprise visits were paid toevery hamlet in the neighbourhood. Within, at a distance of about twomiles from the fortress, there was a series of posts about a quarter ofa mile apart, and the ground between them was studded with innumerableand unexpected obstacles. One only path led to the stronghold, and uponthis men were constantly encamped. These particulars had been learnt atvarious times from members of the garrison when they came out on briefspells of furlough, and neither the landlord nor the man who had spokenmost could vouch for the truth of all the details they had thus pickedup.
Ah-Sam enquired whether the obstacles mentioned completely encircled thefort. The question was answered by an old man who had hitherto takenlittle part in the conversation. There was no need, he said, forartificial obstacles on the farther side of the fort. He had been in iton one occasion many years ago, in the time of the old chief, and heknew therefore more about it than anyone present in that inn. Had anyother of the company ever entered the stronghold? No, none had buthimself alone. Sing-Cheng had just opened his mouth to contradict himwhen Ah-Sam gave a loud sneeze, the snoring figure on the k'ang stirred,and in the general rustle Ah-Sam whispered to the impetuous chief to bemore carefully upon his guard. The old man continued, speaking in lowtones and with a solemn air of mystery. On the other side of the fort,he said, was a ravine, so wide, so deep, so precipitous, that no otherdefence was needed. He remembered that, when he was a young man, one ofthe inmates of the fort had incautiously stepped too near the edge; hehad fallen, and his mangled body was washed and battered by the foamingtorrent until the vultures had picked his bones clean.
The incident impressed the company. There was a moment's silence. Thesnores of the prone figure on the k'ang had ceased. Then Ah-Sam askedagain: Could the fort be seen from that village? No, it was too faraway, said the landlord; but it could be seen from a low hill about ninemiles to the south-east, the direction which he advised the travellersto take. But it was so distant that it looked scarcely larger than ahut upon the hillside. Ah-Sam said that he must get a glimpse of thestronghold next day; he had never before heard of such a terrible place,and he would like to be able to tell his uncle, when he reached Gensan,that he had seen with his own eyes the dread haunt of the MountainTiger.
The conversation dragged on for some time longer, turning upon the greatstruggle then in progress between Russia and Japan. Bob was thoroughlytired when at length the voices ceased, the evil-smelling lamps were putout, and the guests sought their several couches. He was burning witheagerness to learn from Ah-Sam what he had discovered; but it was toodangerous to attempt to talk to him in the inn, and he had perforce towait until the morning.
Early next morning they purchased as large a stock of provisions as theycould carry in their wicker-baskets, and set off towards the hill ofwhich the landlord had spoken. Bob felt that the eyes of the people inthe inn were upon them as they left. The late-comer of the previousevening stood at the door watching them with his furtive eyes. Ah-Sam,in obedience to a cautious whisper of Bob's, had made particularenquiries regarding the road to their alleged destination. The nearestvillage of any consequence, he had learnt, was about twenty milesdistant, on the far slope of a range of high hills just visible againstthe morning sky. Towards this, then, the three took their course, in adirection that would lead some four miles outside the forbidden districtof the Mountain Tiger. The country was rolling and sparsely wooded,becoming more and more broken as it approached the hills that stretchedacross the horizon from south-west to north-east.
When they were fairly away from the inn, Bob whispered to Ah-Sam that onno account must he or the chief look behind. Presently the path ledthem through a clump of trees, and Bob seized the opportunity to lookback, from behind a trunk, along the path towards the inn. He was justin time to see, about a third of a mile away, the figure of a manscuttling along in their wake. Even in the distance Bob was almost surethat he recognized the beetle-browed guest who had so persistentlyaddressed him in the inn. Again impressing upon his two companions theimportance of not looking back, he set a steady but not hurried pace,and now that he was well out of earshot, got from Ah-Sam a full accountof what he had learnt in the inn. They tramped on for two hours beforeresting on the slope of a low hill, which from the Chinaman's generaldescription appeared to be the hill from whose summit Chang-Wo's fortcould be seen. But, in order to avoid the appearance of curiosity, Bobcalled a halt some distance down the slope rather than at the top. Thenpursuing their way after a short rest, still careful to show nosuspicion of being followed, they gained the crest of the hill, and sawa wide expanse of country spread out before them. They did not pausenow, but Bob, taking his observations as he walked, noted in the fardistance to the left a bright spot against the dark background of ahill. It gradually defined itself as an extensive building perched on aprecipitous spur. The intervening country was bare; and at two or threespots upon it he descried small moving patches, which he surmised to bebodies of horsemen. One of these patches, from its size consisting offrom twenty to thirty riders, was much nearer than the others, andapparently heading in his direction. It was still very far away, andsince it was not coming from the direction of the inn he hoped that thehorsemen were not concerned with him. He would have liked to hurry hispace, but recognized that he would thus awaken the suspicion of the manbehind, who, as he had perceived by a hasty glance some time before, wasstill following.
The situation was clearly somewhat awkward. If the horsemen were indeedcoming on the track of the party of three, Bob suspected that they wouldnot be satisfied with explanations, but would arrest them and carry themto the fortress for examination by Chang-Wo himself. In that casenothing could save them, for Bob at any rate must be instantlyrecognized. If they were not actually on his track, they might be setupon it by the Manchu coming up behind. It was important, at any rate,to know whether they were working in concert with that dogged pursuer,and Bob decided that his best course was to dodge the latter until thispoint could be cleared up.
What could be done? There was no time for making experiments; if theattempt at eluding the Manchu did not succeed at once, it would failmiserably and entirely. Bob looked anxiously around. For some distancethe path had led over loose, rocky ground, alternating with small copsesof hill trees where the rainfall had washed the soil into hollows. Thecopse nearest to the spot on which he now stood was a ragged clump ofstunted pines, which in the late Manchurian spring had scarcely begun toshow signs of new growth. In any case it would prove an insecure placeof hiding, for it would be instantly searched by his pursuers. But halfa mile farther on he spied a narrow watercourse zigzagging almost atright angles to the track. It was a mountain stream which had been soswollen by the frost and rains that it had cut a bed some feet deep inthe face of the hill. Except where it crossed the path it was concealedby the shelving bank.
As Bob's eyes fell upon it, a sudden idea struck him. Hurrying his pace,he led the way towards it, and found that on the other side was astretch of damp, mossy ground, leading up to an irregular group of rockssomewhat to the left of the path. These rocks were the lower fringe ofa vast extent of broken country--a country of large boulders separatedby narrow, tortuous fissures. Without telling his companions what was inhis mind, he waded through the stream, the water of which was still icycold, and stepped on to the wet, oozing ground. The two Chinamenfollowed him; the footsteps of the three left deep prints in the moss,filled instantly by water. They gained the rocks beyond; then Bob,instead of pursuing the same course, which would have been among theinhospitable boulders, turned sharp to the left, and describing a roughsemicircle came back to the stre
am.
His followers tramped along behind him, saying never a word, wonderingwhat his purpose was, and confident that this doubling on their trackwas not without some important end in view. Along the bed of thestream, the water rising almost to his knees, he made his way as rapidlyas possible, crossed his former path, and continued his march for somehundred and fifty yards beyond, till he came to a spot where the bank onthe right was low, scarcely above the level of the water. There he leftthe stream, and wading through a small swamp, bore continually to theright until he arrived almost at the path again, more than a hundredyards from the stream. He had thus made a complete circuit, and come toa point where the hillside rose steeply above the path and was strewnwith several fallen trees uprooted or overthrown by the previousautumn's storms. Creeping forward with great caution under cover of theprostrate trunks and of the few standing trees which the elements hadspared, the little party came to a spot almost immediately over thepath, but completely screened from the sight of anyone below. Therethey lay in cold silence and waited.
Hardly more than two minutes passed when they heard the rapid shuffle offootsteps upon the stony path, and the hard breathing of a man. Peeringcautiously over, Bob saw that it was their Manchu pursuer. He wasmoving with swiftness on his clogs, seeming uneasy at having lost sightof the party. He did not look up; indeed, he would never have suspectedthe hiding-place above him, for no one could have reached it directlyfrom the path without being seen by him. Panting and perspiring, he hadonly just passed the concealed party, when Bob heard the clink ofapproaching hoofs, and a few moments later a group of riders dashed overthe crest of a hillock some distance on the other side of the path andbore down immediately on the Manchu, who stopped, wheeled round, andstood waiting.
With a thrill of uneasiness Bob saw that the foremost of the horsemenwas Chang-Wo himself. Sing-Cheng also recognized his old enemy; Bobheard him pant, and for a moment feared lest an incautious exclamationshould betray him. But Ah-Sam was on the watch; he laid his hand on thechief's arm, and the man restrained his pent-up rage.
Chang-Wo rode up to the Manchu and eagerly questioned him. Bob was, ofcourse, unable to follow their brief conversation, but from theirgestures and demeanour--the man pointing along the path ahead, hisleader's face gleaming with malignant satisfaction--he divined what itspurport was. With a grunt of approval Chang-Wo rode on; his troopfollowed him. Bob counted sixteen horsemen. Then the Manchu, hisfeatures relaxing in the relief of a task accomplished, sat downcontentedly beside the path, untied his wallet, and brought out ahandful of dried fish, which he proceeded to devour.
The party in hiding waited on, cramped and chilled, not daring yet torise. The man was only a few yards below them; they could hear theworking of his jaws, the smacking of his lips, his grunts ofappreciation; between the mouthfuls any movement they might make wouldassuredly be heard by him. Half an hour passed slowly by; once or twiceBob noticed that the man paused in his eating and looked somewhatanxiously in the direction in which the horsemen had disappeared; buthearing nothing, seeing nothing, he returned to his fish until hisappetite was appeased. He had just retied his wallet preparatory torising, when the sound of hoofs scattering the loose stones was heard.A few seconds later Chang-Wo dashed up, followed at a little distance byfourteen out of his sixteen men. He almost rode down the Manchu, who,having scrambled to his feet, stood in cowering alarm as the brigandchief pulled up his horse with a jerk, and rained down upon the man ashower of furious questions. Vainly the poor wretch tried to makereply; at the first word Chang-Wo shortened the long spear he carried,and with ungovernable rage drove it through him. The man fell without agroan. Then Chang-Wo, riding his horse over the prone body, roared anorder to eight of his men, and with the remaining six galloped away overthe crest of the hill.