Bunyip Land: A Story of Adventure in New Guinea by George Manville Fenn

  CHAPTER TWENTY.

  HOW JIMMY TURNED UP A TRUMP.

  Even then I could not shoot, but remained staring, helplessly fascinatedfor a few minutes by the coming danger. At last, though, I turned toTi-hi, leaning back and touching him where he crouched, busily seizingupon the arrows that came in his way and sending them back.

  He crept up to me directly and I pointed to the bush.

  His eyes glistened, and bending forward he drew an arrow to the head,and was about to send it winging into the very centre of the bush whenwe suddenly became aware of some strange excitement amongst the savages,who undoubtedly now caught sight of the bush for the first time and senta flight of arrows at it.

  The effect of this was that he who had been making use of it for ashield suddenly darted from behind it and made for our shelter.

  "Aroo, Aroo!" exclaimed the men with us, yelling with delight, while tocover his escape we all fired at the savages, who had come out of theirconcealment, but only to dart back again, for one after the other threelarge stones came bounding down the mountain side, scattering the enemyto cover, and the duel once more began, with our side strengthened bythe presence of a brave fighting man, and refreshed, for Aroo had hiswater calabash slung from his shoulders, containing quite a couple ofquarts, which were like nectar to us, parched and half-dying withthirst.

  Its effects were wonderful. The heat was still intense; but after therefreshing draught, small as it was, that we had imbibed, I seemed tosee clearly, the giddy sensation passed off, and we were ready to meetthe attack with something like fortitude.

  We could think now, too, of some plans for the future, whereas a quarterof an hour before there had seemed to be no future for us, nothing but ahorrible death at our enemies' hands.

  Ti-hi contrived to make us understand now that as soon as the sun hadgone down, and it was dark, he would lead us away to the river side andthen along the gorge, so that by the next morning we could be far out ofour enemies' reach, when they came expecting to find us in the cave.

  His communication was not easy to comprehend, but that this was what hemeant there could be no doubt, for we all three read it in the same way.

  Encouraged then by this hope we waited impatiently for the going down ofthe sun, which was now slowly nearing the broad shoulder of a greathill. Another half-hour and it would have disappeared, when the valleywould begin to fill with shadows, darkness--the tropic darkness--wouldset in at once, and then I knew we should have to lose no time in tryingto escape.

  But we were not to get away without an attack from the enemy of a boldernature than any they had yet ventured upon.

  For some little time the arrow shooting had slackened and we watchedanxiously to see what it meant, for there was evidently a good deal ofexcitement amongst the enemy, who were running from bush to stone, andhad we been so disposed we could easily have brought three or four down.

  But of course all we wished for was freedom from attack, and in the hopethat they were somewhat disheartened, and were perhaps meditatingretreat, we waited and withheld our fire.

  Our hopes were short-lived though, for it proved that they were onlypreparing for a more fierce onslaught, which was delivered at the end ofa few minutes, some twenty savages bounding along the slope war-club inhand, two to fall disabled by a mass of stone that thundered down fromabove.

  We fired at the same moment and the advance was checked, the savagesgathering together in a hesitating fashion, when _crash_, _crash_,another mass of rock which had been set at liberty far up the hillsidecame bounding down, gathering impetus and setting at liberty anavalanche of great stones, from which the savages now turned and fledfor their lives, leaving the valley free to a single black figure, whichcame climbing down from far up the steep slope, waddy in hand; and onreaching the level advanced towards us in the fast darkening eve,looking coolly to right and left to see if any enemy was left, butwithout a single arrow being discharged.

  A minute later he was looking over our breastwork into the shallow cave,showing his teeth, which shone in the gloom as he exclaimed:

  "Black fellow dreffle hungry. Give Jimmy somefin eat. All gone now."