s I began to ascend. His face was flushed,
his mouth open, and his tongue out. In fact, he looked as if he were
being strangled by his position, and, trembling with eagerness, I went
up four rounds, when _smack_! _crack_! I received a blow on each ear
that sent me down.

When I recovered myself, my cheeks tingling, and my heart throbbing with
wrath, Shock had thrown himself up again, and, with his back to me, was
picking away at the apples as if nothing had been wrong.

"You see if I trust you again, my fine fellow," I cried in a rage; and,
picking up a lot of clods, I began to pelt him as hard as I could,
missing him half the time, but giving him several sharp blows on the
back and head.

It was the last shot that hit him on the head, and the clod was big and
cakey, hitting him so hard that it flew to pieces like a shell.

It must have hurt him, for he slid down and came at me fiercely with his
mouth open, and showing his teeth like a dog.

I daresay at another time, as he was much bigger and stronger than I
was, I should have turned and fled; but just then I was so hot and
excited that I went at him with my doubled fists, and for the next five
minutes we were fighting furiously, every now and then engaged in a
struggle, and going down to continue it upon the ground.

I fell heavily several times, and was getting the worst of it when, all
at once, I managed to get one hand free, and in my despair struck him as
hard as I could.

The blow must have been a hard one, for Shock staggered back, caught his
foot in one of the gooseberry bushes, and fell with a crash into one of
them, splitting the bush open.

I was half blind with rage, and smarting with blows; and as he seemed to
be coming at me again, I made another dash at him, striking out right
and left with my arms going like a windmill, till I was checked suddenly
by being lifted from the ground, and a hoarse voice uttered a
tremendous--"Haw, haw, haw!"

I had felt this last time that Shock was very big and strong, hence it
took me some moments to realise that the boy had crept out of the
gooseberry bush and had shuffled away, while it was Ike whom I was
belabouring and drumming with all my might.

"Well done, little one," he cried. "There, cool down. Shock's give in.
You've whacked him. Here's the ganger coming. Get on with your work."

Shock ran by us with a rush, mounted his ladder, and I hurried up mine,
to go on picking as well, while, panting a