im with long ugly-looking knives, and he was
maintaining a gallant defence with the aid of a stout stick, the
assistance of which he had not up to then been wholly able to discard in
walking. I saw that if he was to be saved from a serious, perhaps even
a fatal, stab, prompt action was necessary, so without waiting for
further developments I cocked my gun, and, making a lunge with it at the
man who seemed to be Smellie's most formidable antagonist, pulled the
trigger just as the muzzle struck his side, and poured the contents of
the barrel into his body. At such very close quarters the charge of
shot took effect like a bullet, and the fellow staggered backwards and
fell to the ground with an oath and an agonised exclamation in Spanish
of:

"Help, my men, help; I am shot!"

The remaining two who had been attacking Smellie turned at this to
assist their wounded companion; and the second lieutenant and I
thereupon dashed down the path after the other two, who were hurrying
off the scene with all speed, carrying Dona Antonia bodily away with
them. A dozen bounds or so and we were up with them. With an
inarticulate cry of rage Smellie sprang upon the man nearest him and
brought his stick down upon the fellow's head with such tremendous force
that the stout cudgel shivered to pieces in his hand, whilst the
recipient of the blow dropped prone without a groan or cry of any kind
upon the pathway. The other meanwhile had dropped his share of their
joint burden and seemed inclined to resume hostilities, but a well-aimed
sweep of the butt-end of my gun took all the fight out of him, and he
beat a hasty retreat, leaving his companion to our tender mercies.
Smellie, however, had something else to think about, for there, upon the
pathway, her white dress already stained with the blood of the prostrate
ruffian beside her, lay the senseless body of Dona Antonia. Raising her
in his arms my companion at once made for the house, despatching Pedro,
who had just put in an alarmed appearance, in advance to summon the
assistance of Old Madre Dolores, Antonia's special attendant.

I convoyed the pair as far as the door, and then retraced my steps down
the pathway, intent on recovering the telescope, and also to reconnoitre
the scene of action and ascertain whether or no the enemy had beaten a
final retreat. The ground proved to be clear; so I presume that the
fellow whose head Smellie had broken was not after all quite so
seriously in