ing beneath the curb so long, and fixing his eyes red with the
blaze of anger upon Pecksuot, he cried,--

"On guard, O Pecksuot!" and sprang upon him, seizing the squaw-knife,
which was sharpened at the back as well as at the front, and ground at
the tip to a needle point. With a coarse laugh Pecksuot snatched at the
captain's throat with his left hand, while his right closed like iron
over the captain's grasp of the hilt and tried to turn it against him.
But the rebound from his forced inaction had strung the soldier's
muscles like steel and thrilled along his nerves like fire. A roar like
that of a lion broke from his panting chest, and with one mighty effort
he wrung the knife from the grasp of the giant, and turning its point
drove it deep into the heart of the boaster. A wild cry of death and
defeat rung through the room as he fell headlong, and Wituwamat turning
his head to look, gave Billington his chance and received his own mortal
wound; while Kamuso fighting with the silent courage of a great warrior
only succumbed at last beneath a dozen wounds from Hopkins's short
sword, and Howland having disarmed and wounded his opponent presented
him as prisoner under Standish's orders.

"Should'st have slain him in the heat of the onset, Howland," panted the
captain, wiping his hands and looking around him. "Now--take him out,
Billington, and hang him to the tree in the middle of the parade. We
shall leave him there as an example for the others. Open the door,
Hobomok."

Hobomok did as he was bid, but then advancing with slow step to the side
of the fallen Pecksuot he placed a foot upon his chest and softly
said,--

"Yes, my brother, thou wast a very big man, but I have seen a little man
bring thee low."

It was the giant's funeral elegy.

"I have notched my sword on yon villain's skull," exclaimed Hopkins
wiping and examining his blade, and the Captain smiling shrewdly said,--

"I risked not Gideon in such ignoble warfare, though he clattered in his
scabbord. Savage weapons for savage hearts, say I."

"Ha! There's fighting without!" cried Hopkins, rushing to the door,
where in effect Soule and Browne had shot down two stout savages, who
hearing Pecksuot's death cry had tried to avenge him; while another
rushing upon Alden with uplifted knife was caught in mid career by a
bullet from the captain's snaphance snatched up at Hopkins's warning.

So fell seven of the savages, who would if they could have barbarously