"I don't like it. Get
back, boys."

And even as he spoke, "crack" went a rifle on their left--"crack,"
"crack," "crack," came the sound of fire-arms on three sides; and as
they turned and ran for the breastwork, a man hiccoughed and fell on his
face, clutching at the grass, coughing up his life-blood. No time to
turn and help; the yelling Redskins were at their heels, tomahawk and
scalping knife in hand; delay meant certain death for all, and the
fugitives tumbled into the breastwork just in time. Then, save for one
awful scream of agony, again for a time all was quiet; for any sign that
might be seen of them by the white men, the forest might have swallowed
up the enemy. But let one of these white men for but an instant show his
head over the breastwork, or in any way expose an arm or even a hand,
then from the concealed foe came at once a hail of bullets, and the
forest rang with the crack of rifles. Several of the little garrison,
careless, or too impatient to fire only through the roughly made
loopholes, lost their lives in this way; and some others were picked off
by Indians who had managed to get into the high branches of neighbouring
trees, and thence, concealed behind thick foliage, fired on the
garrison, for a time with impunity, till by chance it was discovered
from where the fatal shots were coming.

Meantime, for the white men it was almost like letting off their rifles
into the night; seldom could a Redskin be seen, and men fired only at
the spots where the smoke of Indian muskets hung about the undergrowth,
or where they saw a spirt of flame.

And so the fight went on, hour after hour, till many of the defenders
had fallen, and the necessity of husbanding ammunition slackened the
fire of Kerr and his comrades. Then the Indians, knowing that the white
men were few, abandoning caution tried to rush the breastwork. But now
necessarily they exposed themselves, and as the white men had reloaded
the empty rifles of their dead and wounded comrades, and thus had at
least two apiece ready, heavy toll was taken of the stormers, and the
Redskins were beaten back. Time and again was this repeated, once even
during the night--just before dawn. But each attempt failed, and the
baffled Indians finally drew off.

With thankful hearts, if with sore labour, the surviving white men, by
lightening their vessel, got her off the ground, and succeeded in
finding and stopping the leak. A few days saw them again safely at
Det