the corner of the wall, Surajah!" he exclaimed, running back
himself.

A few anxious seconds passed, then came a sharp explosion. In an
instant they ran up. The gate stood two or three inches open. It
yielded to a push, and they ran out.

Loud shouts were heard from the men above, and a hubbub of cries from
the guard house.

"Run, Surajah! We must risk it. Keep on the edge of the road, and
dodge as you go. The chances are they will run down below, to see what
has happened."

At the top of their speed, they dashed down the road. No shot was
fired from the wall, Dick's conjecture that the first impulse of the
sentries would be to run down below having been justified. They were a
couple of hundred yards away, before two shots were fired from the
gate. The bullets whistled by harmlessly.

"We are all right now," Dick cried. "They can scarcely see us, and we
shall soon be out of sight altogether."

Five or six more shots were fired a few seconds later, as the men from
the guard house reached the gate. On looking back, when they had gone
another hundred yards, they saw a number of figures on the road.

"Not quite so fast, Surajah," Dick said. "It is going to be a long
chase, now. We have got three hundred yards start, and they won't be
able to load again, running at full speed."

For a time, their pursuers gained somewhat upon them; then, gradually,
they began to straggle, as the effect of the speed at which they were
running told upon them. When they reached the ruined village, there
were four men running together, some three hundred yards behind. The
rest were a considerable distance in the rear.

"Another mile or two, and they will all give up the chase except these
four, Surajah, and if they turn out better runners than we do, we can
make a stand. There are some more huts another two miles farther, and
we will fight them there."

They were going slower now, for although the downward course of the
road helped them a good deal, the run was telling on them. Not a word
was spoken, until they reached the second village. When they came to
the first house, they stopped simultaneously, and looked round. Their
pursuers were not more than two hundred yards behind them.

"In here, Surajah," Dick said, as he ran into the ruined hut.

Its roof was gone, its door hung loose on its hinges. It had but one
window, a small one, looking up the valley. Dick laid his gun on the
sill, which was nearly level with his shoulder.