din had abated,
and a momentary suspension of hostilities had taken place.

"Our rescuers are at hand!" cried Maria, and the same instant they could
hear the sound of rolling drums drawing nearer and nearer to the castle.

The rebels had quitted the besieged window and were scampering towards
the gate.

The last beat of the drum indicated that the soldiers had arrived in
front of the castle.

There were only five-and-twenty, most of them young fellows, mere lads,
and opposed to them stood a savage multitude, armed with all sorts of
hastily appropriated weapons, and with bloodthirstiness enough for a
whole army.

The young officer in command stood at the head of his little company,
and when he saw the headless, savage mob surging all around him, he
exhorted them, in a bold, manly voice, to return to their homes, respect
the laws, and give up their captives and their ringleaders.

Shaggy Hanak took it upon himself to respond to this invitation:

"We will not return to our homes," he shouted, "so long as a single
castle in the kingdom is still standing. We will make whatever laws we
like. We will give up the captive gentry when they are stone dead, and
as for our ringleader you may have him if you can catch him."

To still further emphasize his words, shaggy Hanak whirled his knobby
bludgeon above his head, and shied it frantically at the officer, who
warded off the blow with his sword, and the same instant a young private
transfixed the braggart so vigorously that the end of his bayonet stuck
in the ground behind.

This unexpected scene served as a signal for the little band of
soldiers, and they there and then fired into the thickest of the crowd.

And with that the whole horrible tragedy came to an end.

A single volley dispersed the whole ragged host. The corpses remained on
the ground naturally, but all the rest fled without another word, fled
incontinently over pillar and post, rushed straight home, hid themselves
away, put on their simplest air, washed the blood from their hands, and
held their tongues.

The rescued welcomed their deliverers with open arms. But another
quarter of an hour and very sorry remnants of them would have been found
at Hetfalu.

Meanwhile, out came Dr. Sarkantyus, and a very great pother he made,
insisting that the whole company should instantly hasten back to town,
as if they remained there the pale death would speedily overtake them,
and it would therefore boot them little