Among the Brigands Part 35

The delivering host drew nigh, and then at a respectable distance halted and surveyed the scene of action.

Frank and Bob came on, however, without stopping, followed by Uncle Moses, after whom came the guide. Frank with his old fowling-piece, Bob with a pitchfork, Uncle Moses with a scythe, and the guide with a rope. What each one proposed to do was doubtful; but our travellers had never been strong on weapons of war, and the generous Alban people seemed to be in the same situation.

As Frank and his companions moved nearer, the rest of the mult.i.tude took courage and followed, though in an irregular fashion.

Soon Frank came near enough to speak.

"Is he there yet?" was his first remark.

"Yes," said Clive.

"Where?"

"At the left end of the lower room, under a pile of f.a.gots."

"Can't you manage to drive him out, so that I can get a shot at him?" asked Frank, proudly brandishing his weapon.

"O, no. We can't do anything."

"I wish you could," said Frank.

"I wish we could too." said David, fervently.

Upon this Frank talked with the guide. The question was, what should they do now? The most desirable thing was, to draw the wild beast out of his lair, so that they might have a fair chance with him; but, unfortunately, the wild beast utterly refused to move from his lair.

After some talk with his guide, Frank suggested that a large number of the crowd should go to the rear, and the left end of the house, and strike at it, and utter appalling cries, so as to frighten the wild boar and drive him out. This proposal the guide explained to the crowd, who at once proceeded with the very greatest alacrity to act upon it. Most of them were delighted at the idea, of fighting the enemy in that fashion; and so it happened that the entire crowd took up their station in a dense ma.s.s at the rear of the building; and then they proceeded to beat upon the walls of the house, to shout, to yell, and to utter such hideous sounds, that any ordinary animal would simply have gone mad with fright, and died on the spot. But this animal proved to be no ordinary one in this respect.

Either he was accustomed to strange noises, or else he had such nerves of steel, that the present uproar affected him no more than the sighing of the gentlest summer breeze; indeed, David and Clive were far more affected, for at the first outbreak of that tumultuous uproar, they actually jumped from the floor, and thought that the rickety old house was tumbling about their ears.

During this proceeding, Frank stood bravely in front of the door, about a dozen yards off, with his rusty fowling-piece; and close beside him stood Bob with his pitchfork, Uncle Moses with his scythe, and the guide with his rope.

"He doesn't care for this at all," said Frank, in a dejected tone.

"We must try something else. What shall we do?"

And saying this, he turned once more and talked with the guide.

Meanwhile David and Clive, who had recovered their equanimity, rushed to the opening, and began to a.s.sist their friends by doing what they could to frighten the wild boar.

"Shoo-o-o-o-o-o!" said David.

"Hs-s-s-s-s-s-s!" said Clive.

"Bo-o-o-o-o-o-o!" said David.

"Gr-r-r-r-r-r-r!" cried Clive.

But the wild boar did not move, even though the uproar without still continued.

Then Clive went down the ladder a little distance, far enough down so that by bending, his head was below the upper floor. Then he took his hat and hurled it with all his might and main at the pile of f.a.gots.

Then he went up again.

But the wild boar did not move.

Thereupon David went down, and he went a little lower. He took his hat, and uttering a hideous yell, he threw it with all his force at the f.a.gots.

But even this failed to alarm the wild boar. David stood for a moment after this bold deed and listened. The only satisfaction that he had was the sound of a low, comfortable grunt, that seemed to show that the present situation was one which was rather enjoyed than otherwise by this formidable, this indomitable, this invincible beast.

They came back to the windows in despair, and by this time Frank had finished his discussion with the guide. He was looking up anxiously towards them.

"Look here," said he; "that miserable wild boar won't come out. The guide thinks the only way to get at him is to smoke him out. The only trouble is about you. Will the smoke bother yon, do you think?"

"I don't know," said Clive.

"Can you stop up the opening?"

"No."

"Can you keep your heads oat of the windows?"

"We'll try. But I wish you'd only thought of bringing a ladder, so as to get us out first, before smoking him."

"Yes, I wish we had," said Frank, thoughtfully. "But never mind,"

he added, cheerily, "there's no use going back for one, because, you see, we'll have you out of that long before a ladder could be brought here."

It was only by yelling at the top of their voices that they were able to make themselves heard by one another, for the crowd behind the house still kept up their yells, and knockings, and thumpings, and waited to hear that the wild boar had fled. As the time pa.s.sed without any such news, they were only stimulated to fresh efforts, and howled more fearfully and yelled more deafeningly.

"There's an awful waste of energy and power about here, somehow,"

said Frank. "There ought to be some way of getting at that wretched beast, without all this nonsense. Here we are,--I don't know how many of us, but the whole population of a town, at any rate, against one,--and what's worse, we don't seem to make any impression."

Meanwhile the guide had gone off among the crowd, and while Frank was grumbling, he was busying himself among them, and was engaged in carrying out a very brilliant idea that had just suggested itself to him. In a short time he returned with an armful of something, the nature of which Frank could not quite make out.

"What have you got there?" he asked. "What are you going to do?"

"Dey are all handkerchiefs."

"Handkerchiefs?"

"Yes; de handkerchiefs of de population of Albano. Dey are as many as de days of de year."

"I should think so," cried Frank, in amazement. "But what are you going to do with them?"

"Do wit dem? I am going to make a smoke."

"A smoke? What? Are you going to burn them up?"

"Dere is notin else to burn; so I must burn what I can. See, I make a bundle of dese. I set fire to dem. Dey burn--dey smoke--and de boar smoke out. Aha! he suffocate--he expire--he run!"

"Well, if that isn't the greatest idea I ever heard of!" cried Frank. "Handkerchiefs! Why, you must have hundreds of them in that bundle."