Off ran the sheriff to the court-house. "You're saving of your gunpowder, I see, sir," said O'Grady to the captain, with a sardonic grin. "You seem to be equally sparing of your humanity, sir," returned the captain. "God forbid I should be afraid of a pack of ruffians," said O'Grady. "Or I of a single one," returned the captain, with a look of stern contempt. There is no knowing what this bitter bandying of hard words might have led to, had it not been interrupted by the appearance of the sheriff at one of the windows of the court-house; there, with the Riot Act in his hand, he called out:-- "Now I've read it--fire away, boys--fire away!" and all his compunction about the effusion of blood vanished the moment his own miserable carcass was safe from harm. Again he waved the Riot Act from the window, and vociferated, "Fire away, boys!" as loud as his frog-like voice permitted. "Now, sir, you're ordered to fire," said O'Grady to the captain. "I'll not obey that order, sir," said the captain; "the man is out of his senses with fear, and I'll not obey such a serious command from a madman." "Do you dare disobey the orders of the sheriff, sir?" thundered O'Grady. "I am responsible for my act, sir," said the captain--"seriously responsible; but I will not slaughter unarmed people until I see further and fitter cause." The sheriff had vanished--he was nowhere to be seen--and O'Grady as a magistrate had now the command. Seeing the cool and courageous man he had to deal with in the military chief, he determined to push matters to such an extremity that he should be forced, in self-defence, to fire. With this object in view he ordered a fresh advance of the police upon the people, and in this third affair matters assumed a more serious aspect; sticks and stones were used with more effect, and the two parties being nearer to each other, the missiles meant only for the police overshot their mark and struck the soldiers, who bore their painful situation with admirable patience. "Now will you fire, sir?" said O'Grady to the officer. "If I fire now, sir, I am as likely to kill the police as the people; withdraw your police first, sir, and then I will fire." This was but reasonable--so reasonable, that even O'Grady, enraged almost to madness as he was, could not gainsay it; and he went forward himself to withdraw the police force. O'Grady's presence increased the rage of the mob, whose blood was now thoroughly up, and as the police fell back they were pressed by the infuriated people, who now began almost to disregard the presence of the military, and poured down in a resistless stream upon them.