seeming
to grasp the ground on which they stood.

A loud flourish of trumpets gave the signal of the onset, and with
inconceivable impetuosity the two parties threw themselves on each
other. In spite, however, of the fury and violence of the shock,
neither side yielded an inch of ground. The bridge was completely
filled with men from end to end, and from side to side; there was no
parapet or barrier of any kind to prevent the combatants from pushing
one another into the canal; yet so equally balanced was the strength
of the two parties, that after nearly half an hour's struggle very few
men had been thrown from the bridge, and not the smallest advantage
had been obtained either by Castellani or Nicolotti. Those in the
rear, who had as yet done nothing but push the others forward, now
came to the front, and the combat was renewed with fresh vigour, but
for a long time without any result. Again and again were the
combatants changed; but it was past noon before Antonio, whose
thoughts had been gradually diverted from the incognita by the
struggle that was going on, perceived symptoms of weariness amongst
those indefatigable athletes. Here and there a knee was seen to bend,
or a muscular form to sink, under some well-directed blow, or before a
sudden rush of the opposite party. First one, then another of the
combatants was hurled from the bridge into the canal, an immersion
that, dripping with perspiration as they were, not unfrequently caused
death or severe illness. Nevertheless the fury of the fight seemed
rather to increase than diminish. So long as only a man here and there
fell into the water, they were dragged out by their friends; and the
spectators even seemed to feel pity and sympathy for the unfortunates,
as they saw them carried along, some covered with blood, others
paralysed by the sudden cold, with faces pale as death and limbs stiff
and rigid. But as the fury and violence of the combatants augmented,
the bystanders forgot every other feeling in the excitement of the
fight, about the result of which they seemed as anxious as those who
were actively engaged in it. Even women might be seen encouraging
those who were driven back, and urging them once more to the charge;
applauding and cheering them on when they advanced, and assailing
those who hung back with vehement reproaches. The uproar and shouting,
shrieks and yells, exceeded any thing that could be imagined. The
partizans had got completely mixed togethe