a lion. Though the odds were so
much against him and the rest, he yelled defiance at the revenue men
and volunteers, and cursed them with bitter oaths. They resorted to
Indian tactics. They shot from behind trees at any man in sight, and
soon had wounded a number. However, the struggle was unequal, for the
revenue officer sent his men out in the form of a fan, and thus they
would soon have succeeded in making an enfilading fire upon the
moonshiners; and the latter could not retreat rapidly, because in
running from tree to tree they were in danger of being shot. Besides,
in a short time their ammunition was exhausted, and they were at the
mercy of their pursuers. When called upon to surrender, all but Wiles
and Turner complied. These refused.

Then spoke Long Tom with his well known drawl: "Pardners, it would be
nuthin' but murder to kill defenseless men, an' I move dat we'uns
surround 'em an' bind 'em an' tote 'em off to jail."

This advice was heeded, and Long Tom was the first to move forward. The
monster dwarf stood like a wild beast at bay with his clubbed rifle in
his hand. As Long Tom came near he swung it with terrible force,
attempting to break his adversary's skull; but Tom was too quick and
the blow passed by. Instantly Long Tom caught the dwarf around the arms
to hold those members, for he well knew their power. But in a moment
Turner, like a snake, twisted his right arm loose, and reaching under
his short coat, drew out a sharp hunting knife, and hissing the words,
"Traitor! Dat's my holt," between his clenched teeth, drove it into the
back of the reformed moonshiner.

One man, however, had been on the alert for some dastardly act of the
dwarf. This was young George LeMonde. Ever since his horse had been
stolen, and his sister had been kidnapped, he was on his guard against
this man for himself and his friends. So now, while the struggle
between the two men was going on, George was standing with his rifle
ready for use. He saw the flash of the knife, the descending stroke,
and knowing the design, made his rifle speak, only a moment too late to
save Long Tom. The bullet sped on its way and penetrated the brain of
the dwarf, and the two men fell to the ground locked in each other's
arms.

In the meantime a crowd had surrounded Sam Wiles, who had backed up
against a giant oak tree and stood holding his rifle by its barrel,
determined to sell his life as dearly as possible. Again Jasper Very
became his good