"Get out of this! Lively!" shouted Tom to the girls.
"Keep together!" added Hippy.
The two men forced their ponies between the girls and the lumberjacks,
the girls using their crops on their ponies and urging them on.
The Overland girls cleared the scene in a few seconds, and halted a
short distance up the street to wait for Hippy and Tom, who were having
difficulty in extricating themselves from the mob. They did not succeed
in doing this until Hippy began to belabor Ginger over the rump, at the
same time pulling up on the reins. This caused the animal to whirl and
buck and kick. Every volley from Ginger's lightning-like kicks put
several members of the mob out of the fight. Tom was using his crop, but
without much effect.
A rough hand was laid on Hippy's leg, and a mighty tug nearly unhorsed
him. It probably would have done so had not Hindenburg at that juncture
taken a bite of the lumberjack's hand and caused the fellow to let go
without delay.
The jacks by this time had begun to fight among themselves. Single and
group fights suddenly sprung up all over the street. The jacks, for the
moment, had lost their interest in the newcomers, and the two Overland
men, taking advantage of the opportunity, galloped down the street,
passing scattered groups of brawlers who were too busy with their own
affairs to heed them.
The Overland men were almost clear of the mob when yells ahead of them
attracted their attention to a fresh disturbance. A man, who, as they
drew near, was seen to be an Indian standing at the side of the road,
taking no part in the disturbance, was the object of the uproar. A crowd
of half a dozen jacks had pounced on the Indian. He went down under the
rush. Hippy saw them grab the fellow and hurl him into the middle of the
street. The Indian was on his feet in an instant, and, from the light
shed through the windows along the street, Hippy saw a knife flash in
the Indian's hand, saw the red man's arm shoot out, and a man fall,
uttering a howl.
The jacks hesitated briefly, then uttering angry yells they hurled
themselves upon the Indian, bore him to the ground, and began to kick at
him with their heavy boots.
Tom turned his pony and rode into the crowd at a gallop. Three
lumberjacks went down under his charge.
"The cowards!" raged Hippy, also charging into the group and completing
what his companion had begun.
"Run, you poor fish!" he yelled at the Indian, who had got to his feet
and stood dazedly gazing at his rescuers. "Run!"
The Indian, suddenly recovering himself, darted between two buildings
and disappeared.
"Good work!" chuckled Hippy, galloping up the street with Tom to join
the girls, who were waiting for them.
"Oh, that was splendid!" cried Anne Nesbit as Tom and Hippy rejoined the
party of Overland girls.
"It won't be splendid unless we step lively," answered Tom.
"Keep going, girls, keep going," urged Hippy.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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