CHAPTER THIRTY FIVE.
The sentry craned his neck forward over the great fence staring out intothe gloom, and I followed his example, my heart beating heavily thewhile, the regular throbs seeming to rise right up to my throat in a waythat was painful; but I could see nothing. There was the greatstar-specked sky reaching down towards earth, and ending suddenly in aclearly defined line which I knew was the edge of the forest beyond theplantations, which all lay in darkness that was almost black.
I strained my eyes, and held my breath, looking and listening, but couldmake out nothing, and at last I placed my lips close to Pomp's ear.
"Where are they?" I said.
"Dah!"
As he uttered that one word he stretched out his black hand, pointingstraight away toward the forest; but still I could see nothing, andthere was not a sound.
At that moment the sentry laid his hand upon my shoulder, and saidsoftly, "Is he playing tricks with us?"
"No," I answered; "he thinks he sees them. His eyes are wonderful bynight."
"Well, mine are not, for I can see nothing or hear anything either."
"Are you sure, Pomp?" I whispered.
"Yes; sure," he said. "Big lot of Injum coming to fight."
"Hadn't you better give the alarm?" I said to the sentry.
"I can't give the alarm till I'm certain there's danger coming," hesaid, rather sulkily. "I haven't got eyes like a cat, and I don't knowthat he can see them yet."
I could not help sympathising with the man as he continued--
"'Spose I fire," he said, "and the enemy don't come on; nobody has seenthem, and nice and stupid I should look."
"But Pomp says he's sure."
"I'm not," said the man, gruffly.
"Be ready then, and fire the moment they begin to make a rush," I said,excitedly. Then, turning to the boy, I whispered, "Now then; tell meonce more, can you see the Indians?"
"Yes, dah," he said, quietly.
"You are sure?"
"Yes, suah. Dey come now. Let Pomp shoot."
"No, no; come with me," I said, catching hold of his arm. "Let's run tomy father."
The boy was so accustomed to obey me, that he left the place directly,and hurried with me across the enclosure in and out among the campinggroups, to where our few poor belongings lay, and I at once awakened myfather.
"Pomp has seen the Indians coming on," I said.
He started up, and so dull and heavy had been his sleep that he did notunderstand me for the time.
"The Indians, father," I said.
He sprang up on the instant then, and felt for his sword.
"You say the boy saw them?"
"Yes, coming on. We were with one of the sentries."
"But he has not fired. I should have heard."
"No, father, he would not believe Pomp could see them."
"Pomp could see um--big lots," said the boy.
"That is enough," said my father. "Tell the bugler--no; we will notshow them that we know," he said. "Come with me."
We followed him to where the General was lying on a blanket or two inthe midst of his possessions, and he was on his feet in an instantgiving his orders, which were conveyed here and there to the variousofficers, from whence they spread to the men so rapidly and silentlythat in a few minutes, almost without a sound, a hundred well-armeddefenders of the fort were on their way to the fence in twenty littlesquads, each of which reinforced the sentries, and stood waiting for theattack.
So silent and unchanged was everything when I played the part of guide,and led my father and the General to where we had been watching, that myheart sank, and I felt guilty of raising a false alarm. Then I halfshrank away as I heard the General question the sentry, and he repliedthat he had neither seen nor heard anything. Just then my father turnedto me.
"Where's the boy?"
"Here, Pomp," I whispered; but I looked round in vain, and after a fewminutes' search I was fain to confess that he had gone.
"It is some trick," whispered my father, with suppressed anger. "Icannot hear a sound."
"No; I feel sure he was in earnest. He certainly believed he saw theIndians."
My father turned to the General, and they conversed together in a lowvoice for some minutes, during which I stood there feeling as if I werewrong, and forgetting that even if I were it was only a case of beingover anxious in our cause.
"No, no," I heard the General say quietly; "don't blame the boys. Ofcourse it is vexatious, and seems like harassing the men for nothing;but it has its good side, for it proves how quickly we can man ourdefences. Well, what do you say--shall we go back to our beds? Thereseems to be no danger. Ah, here is Preston. Well, have you been allround?"
"Right round, sir, and there does not seem to be anything moving. Afalse alarm, I think."
"Yes," said the General, "a false alarm, and--What is it?"
My father had caught his arm in a strong grip, and pointed over thepalisade.
"I don't know what it is," he whispered; "but something is moving outyonder, a hundred yards away."
Amidst a dead silence every eye was fixed in the direction pointed to bymy father; but no one else could make anything out, and the Generalsaid--
"No; I cannot see it."
"Are you sure?" whispered my father. "George, are you there?"
I replied in a whisper too, and crept to his side.
"Look. Can you make out anything?" he said.
I looked long and intently, and was obliged to answer--
"No."
"Quick! Try and find that boy," said my father, angrily now. "He oughtto have been here."
_Bang_! _bang_! Then report after report, followed by a volley quitefrom the other side of the enclosure; and, horrible as it seemed,followed as it was by a burst of yells, I felt my heart leap withsatisfaction.
There was a rush being made for the spot whence the firing had come; butmy father's voice rang out, calling upon the men to stand fast, and itwas well that his order was promptly obeyed, for almost immediatelyafter there was a whizzing sound that I well knew, accompanied by asharp series of pats as of arrows striking wood, and we knew that theIndians were attacking on our side too.
Then followed the quick firm command, and the darkness was cut by theflashes of a dozen fire-locks, whose reports went rolling away, to beechoed by the great trees of the forest beyond the clearings.
Then nothing was heard but the quick beating and hissing of the ironramrods in the guns, while I stood close under the shelter of the fence,listening intently in the terrible silence, and trying to make outwhether the Indians were near.
Again came the report of a firelock, and a volley from nearer the gate,followed by a burst of yells; and a minute later a fresh volley, and thesame defiant shouting, just as if the Indians had made their attack infour different places, but had been checked by the watchfulness of ourmen, who had been thoroughly prepared for the attacks.
I was wondering to myself whether the Indians were in a body, and hadcome on in one place, and then hurried on to the others, or were in fourdifferent bodies; but my wonderings soon ceased, for I quite started athearing a voice close to my ear.
"No got arrow 'tick in um dis time, Mass' George. Tell um Injum comingagain."
"Where? Where?" I whispered.
"Pomp see um crawl 'long de groun' like 'gator," he said. "Dah--one,two, tick, nineteen, twenty."
I gazed intently over the fence, but could only see the dark ground; butPomp's warning was too valuable to be trifled with. He had provedhimself now, and I hurried to where my father stood ready with twenty ofour men, and told him.
He gave orders, and half the men fired slowly, one after the other, theinstructions being to those who held their fire, that if they could makeout the bodies of the crawling Indians by the flashing of theircomrades' pieces, they were to fire too.
The rapid scattered reports were followed by a furious burst of yells;there was the rush of feet, sounds as of b
lows struck against the stoutpoles, and directly after, dimly-seen against the starlit sky, darkgrotesque-looking heads appeared as at least a dozen of the Indiansgained the top of the defence, but only to be beaten back by thebutt-ends of the men's fire-locks, all save two who dropped over in ourmidst, and fought desperately for a time before they were despatched.
As silence--an ominous silence full of danger and portent--fell upon usagain here, we could tell that quite as desperate a struggle was goingon at other points of the palisading. Flash was succeeded by report andyell, so loud and continuous that we knew now that the Indians weredelivering their attack in four different places; and more than once Ishuddered as I felt how terrible it would be should one of these bandsgain an entry. I knew enough of such matters from old conversationswith my father, to be able to grasp that if a party did get in over thestockade they would desperately attack one of our defending companies inthe rear, and the others in response to their yells would come on at thesame moment, when our numbers and discipline would be of little value ina hand-to-hand attack with the lithe savages, whose axes and kniveswould be deadly weapons at close quarters.
For quite half an hour the firing and yelling continued. Then it ceasedas quickly as it had begun, and the Indians seemed to have retreated.
But there was no relaxation of our watchfulness, for we could not tellbut that in their silent furtive way the enemy were preparing for afresh assault, or perhaps merely resting and gathering together to comeon in one spot all at once.
"More likely to make a feint somewhere," I heard the General say to myfather. "If they do it will be to make a big attack somewhere else, andthat is where the supports must be ready to flock down."
"You will see to that, sir?" said my father.
"Yes. You and Preston cannot do better service," continued the General,"so keep your places."
"Pomp," I whispered; "where are you?"
"Here, Mass' George."
"Let's go all round, and you can tell me where the Indians are gatheringnow."
"Pomp go outside," he said, softly. "Climb over."
"No, no; they would see and kill you."
"No. Dey too 'tupid. I go ober. You gib leg lil hyste up."
"I tell you no. Come along with me, and let's try and find out wherethey are."
"Much too dark, Mass' George, but I look all de same, try and fine em."
"Quick then; come!"
We started off, creeping along silently close inside the great palisade,and stopping to listen from time to time.
We had left one of the parties that defended the palisade close to thefar side of the gate behind for about twenty yards, when Pomp, who wasfirst, suddenly stopped short, caught me by the wrist, and said softly--
"You listum. Injum dah."
I placed my ear close to the paling, and stood for a few moments unableto make sure that the dull heavy rustling I heard meant anything; but atlast I felt at one with my companion, for I felt convinced that a strongparty was once more creeping up to the attack, and just to a spot wherethe sentries had not been placed.