The Works of Edgar Allan Poe — Volume 3Poe, Edgar Allan
General
The Works of Edgar Allan Poe — Volume 3
Poe, Edgar Allan
American fiction -- 19th century; Fantasy fiction; Horror tales, American
had the musket, but the barrel had received so much injury in
being thrown from the precipice that I cast it aside as useless,
preferring to trust my pistols, which had been carefully
preserved in order. With these I advanced upon the assailants,
firing one after the other in quick succession. Two savages fell,
and one, who was in the act of thrusting a spear into Peters,
sprung to his feet without accomplishing his purpose. My
companion being thus released, we had no further difficulty. He
had his pistols also, but prudently declined using them,
confiding in his great personal strength, which far exceeded that
of any person I have ever known. Seizing a club from one of the
savages who had fallen, he dashed out the brains of the three who
remained, killing each instantaneously with a single blow of the
weapon, and leaving us completely masters of the field.
So rapidly had these events passed, that we could scarcely
believe in their reality, and were standing over the bodies of
the dead in a species of stupid contemplation, when we were
brought to recollection by the sound of shouts in the distance.
It was clear that the savages had been alarmed by the firing, and
that we had little chance of avoiding discovery. To regain the
cliff, it would be necessary to proceed in the direction of the
shouts, and even should we succeed in arriving at its base, we
should never be able to ascend it without being seen. Our
situation was one of the greatest peril, and we were hesitating
in which path to commence a flight, when one of the savages
_whom_I had shot, and supposed dead, sprang briskly to his feet,
and attempted to make his escape. We overtook _him,_however,
before he had advanced many paces, and were about to put him to
death, when Peters suggested that we might derive some benefit
from forcing him to accompany us in our attempt to escape. We
therefore dragged him with us, making him understand that we
would shoot him if he offered resistance. In a few minutes he was
perfectly submissive, and ran by our sides as we pushed in among
the rocks, making for the seashore.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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