e ship free and we need
not stay to fight them. We are almost ready to start!"

But Andy was bound to have a shot at the savages, and he grabbed up his
rifle, which was fully loaded, and came out on the deck.

The natives came on with a rush. There were about two hundred of them,
and they had arrived on several big sleds. The Esquimaux who had
piloted the adventurers back to their ship had disappeared, for he knew
he would be killed as a traitor if his tribesmen caught him.

"Come on!" cried Bill to Tom and the boys. "Let's get aboard. We'll be
killed!"

"You can go!" shouted Jack. "I'm going to stay down here and free the
ship from ice. That's the only thing to do."

"I'll stay with you!" exclaimed Mark.

Tom and Bill scrambled up the sides of the ship and disappeared into the
cabin. The boys remained on the ice, partly under the airship, chipping
and picking to free the bottom.

With loud shouts and yells the Esquimaux surrounded the _Monarch_. The
savages were armed with bows and arrows, and soon a shower of these
missiles were shot toward the craft.

Professor Henderson was in mortal terror lest one of the sharp weapons
would pierce the gas bag, but, for some reason, the natives fired at the
lower part of the ship. Andy and the two helpers were now ready to
return the fire. Their guns rattled out and the reports caused the
natives great astonishment.

The first shots the defenders had fired over the heads of the Esquimaux,
not wishing to kill them if they could help it. But though the reports
caused a momentary falling back, the attackers soon rallied again, and
shot a thicker cloud of arrows, some of which fell uncomfortably near.

"Let 'em have it right in the faces this time!" shouted Andy.

He took careful aim at the mass of natives who were advancing, and one
fell. Bill and Tom followed his example, and the onslaught was checked
for a time.

But now reinforcements to the Esquimaux arrived until there were fully
five hundred of the fur-clad savages out on the ice surrounding the
airship. To cope with such a force seemed madness. Bill received a
slight wound in the arm, and Tom had a narrow escape from being killed,
a big spear just missing his head.

"Drop down below the rail!" yelled Andy. "They can't hit us so easy
then, and we can fire just as good!"

The defenders dropped flat to the deck, outside of the cabin. A loud
yell on the part of the Esquimaux told that they thought the adventurers