e top of the shed, that
it wasn't MacFarlane that had given one of them a black eye, that they
hoped one of them hadn't lost his jacket on the roof of the shed, and
that they were none the worse for their exertion, and that they expected
to meet them later on--which gracious salutations the Pennies received
in bitter silence as they ran the gauntlet; and when they had escaped
clear of the Seminaries and stood halfway between the two armies they
turned round with insulting gestures, and one of them cried, "Ye'll get
yir paiks (thrashing) for this or the day be done!"

Their arrival among their friends and the slight commotion which it
caused in the front ranks of the Pennies was a chance for Speug, who
gave the signal for the charge and made himself directly for the leader
of the Pennies. No pen at this distance of time can describe the
conflict between the two leaders, who fired forth balls at each other at
close distance, every one going to its mark, and one leaving an
indelible impress upon Speug's ingenuous forehead. They then came to
close grip, and there was a tussle, for which both had been waiting for
many a day. From fists, which were not quite ineffectual, they fell upon
wrestling, and here it seemed that Redhead must have the advantage, for
he was taller in stature and more sinuous in body. During the wrestle
there was something like a lull in the fighting, and both Pennies and
Seminaries, now close together, held their hands till Speug, with a
cunning turn of the leg that he had been taught by an English groom in
his father's stable, got the advantage, and the two champions came down
in the snow, Redhead below. The Seminaries set up a shout of triumph,
and the scouts running to and fro with the balls behind joined in with,
"Well done, Speug!"

Speug had all the instincts of a true general and was not the man to
spend his time in unprofitable exultation. It was a great chance to take
the Pennies when they were without their leader and discomfited by his
fall, and in an instant Speug was up, driving his way through the midst
of the enemy, who were now divided in the centre, whilst Johnston and
Bauldie had crept up by the side of the houses on either side and were
attacking them in parallel lines. MacFarlane and Mackenzie had come down
from the shed with their detachment and were busy in the rear of the
Seminaries. Redhead fought like a hero, but was almost helpless in the
confusion, and thought it the best str