The Toppletonians were in these spaces, and I saw that the object of the movement was to drive them aft, and get possession of the engine-room, so as to control the machinery, and thus prevent the captain from taking the boat to Middleport. Our fellows, unarmed, could not stand up against the bayonets of the enemy, and we heard them fall back. I concluded, by this time, that Major Tommy had come to his senses; though, if he was disposed still further to vent his ire, he had an excellent opportunity to do so against the sharp-pointed weapons of his conquerors. The Toppletonians were not only driven aft, but were forced below the deck into the little cabin, which was hardly large enough to hold them all. A little later, we heard a violent altercation in the engine-room, and then the boat stopped. The Wimpletonians had certainly won a complete victory. CHAPTER IX. FEATHERS AND THE ENGINEER. Major Tommy Toppleton and Company B were prisoners in the little cabin, while Major Waddie Wimpleton and Companies A and B of his battalion were in possession of the steamer. The wheels had stopped, and this was evidence to us in the wheel-house that Forbush, the engineer, had been driven from his post. “This will never do,” said Captain Underwood. “The young rascals will blow us all up. They have stopped the engine, and have not let off steam.” Though it was really becoming quite a serious matter, I saw that the captain could hardly keep from laughing, there was something so absurd in the situation. Major Waddie, in his chapeau and gold lace, strutted before us on the forward deck, and we had regarded the whole affair as a joke; but now we were actually in the toils of the captors. They had not yet disturbed the occupants of the wheel-house; but this step had only been deferred till the other parts of the boat were made secure. The Toppletonians had all been locked up in the cabin, and the engine-room, the citadel of the boat, had yielded. “It is time something was done,” I replied to the captain. “I have been opposed to a fight, but I think one is necessary about this time.” “What shall we do?” “That’s the question. The Wimpletonians are armed with ugly weapons,” I added. “There are three of us besides Forbush. I see the victors have neglected to secure the captured arms on the forward deck. We can jump down, arm ourselves, and fight it out.” “But there are nearly a hundred of the rascals,” answered Captain Underwood. “Some of them are pretty well grown, and all of them have been exercised with the bayonet. I don’t relish having one of those things stuck into me, and I shouldn’t dare to punch any boy with such an ugly iron. I think I would rather do what fighting I do without any bayonet.”