A big fellow, trussed up with so much finery that he must perforce have found it difficult to move quickly, seemed to have singled me out, and in order to prevent him from running me through, I grappled him by the throat. We fell to the ground, I uppermost, as I strove to throttle him, using every effort to get my hands down beneath the leathern stock he wore, when I heard a cry which I fancied was uttered by Archie Gordon, and it came from the lips of one who was dying. Dimly, as if in a dream, I realized that everything depended upon our prolonging the fight until our people at the front could work their way well into the encampment, and clenched my teeth to repress a cry of pain when the fellow beneath me, having unfastened his bayonet, thrust it through my leg. I tried to put into my fingers all the strength of my body, believing that if I could kill this hireling of the king’s at once I might have yet remaining sufficient life to grapple another, thus continuing the struggle so many seconds longer. Whether I gave him his quietus, or he succeeded in slipping out from my grasp, I cannot say, but certain it is that after a time, not knowing what had been done, and realizing nothing whatsoever of that which was going on about me, I found myself confronting another man. At the same time I heard, as if from afar, the thundering of horses’ hoofs, and mingled with the noise the words of Gabriel: “We surrender! Throw down your arms, lads! There is no reason why we should sacrifice our lives uselessly.” I believe it was the word “surrender” from his lips which brought me to my senses, even as a douche of cold water brings the blood to the surface of the body, and on the instant I saw and understood all the situation. The enemy must have believed we were the advance of a large force, for in addition to those whom we had seen come from out the blockhouse, a full hundred mounted men were riding toward us. Even though we had struggled on regardless of life, no more than ten seconds would have remained for resistance. Seeing this, I let my hands fall idly by my side, and stepped somewhat behind Gabriel, not, as God knows, with any idea that his body should shelter mine, but because he was the leader, and it was for him to speak. I also desired that those minions of the king who fancied two or three hundred all insufficient a force to cope with twenty men and boys, should see how young our leader was. It was not Archie Gordon’s death-cry I had heard, but some other, for on the instant Archie stood by my side, and from the tremor of his voice I knew how near his eyelids the tears were brought because we had not been able to do more, as he said: “There are less than half of us yet alive, and I question, Rufus, whether we were wise to surrender.”