THE MAYOR’S DAUGHTER.

South Canterbury Times, Issue 5012, 21 May 1889, Page 4

THE MAYOR’S DAUGHTER.

' LITERATURE-

They were hanging over his prostrate form/ chafing his hands, and wiping the blood from the white hair, which should have been as sacred from attack as a white flag of truce, when, with a cheering eftect on their drooping spirits, a bugle up in the barracks was beard to ring out loud and clear. After their exploit of knocking down one old man, the intrepid two thousand became for a time a little quieter, ; as if resting on their well-earned laurels, and consequently every note of the bugle reached the scene of turbulence and terror. First the ‘ Alarm ’■ was sounded, a call with a peculiarly and appropriately portentous rhythm, especially when sounded, as it generally is, in the dead of night; then the « Assemble,’ slow, long, and impressive; and finally the ‘ Double,’ quick, sharp, and crisp—the whole signifying, with no uncertain sound, in the sleeping soldieFr ear, ‘There’s something wrong; turn out, the whole lot of you ; and look sharp about it.’ Of course the exact import of these calls was not known to our friends in their dire need, but they knew enough to feel certain that they meant succour was at.hand. ‘ Thank G-cd ! ’ said Mr Buddlecombe, ‘Joe Bolitho’s messenger has raised the alarm at the barracks, and our gallant deliverers will soon be here.’ , Again did Mrs Buddlecombe, notwithstanding her grief and terror, . bestow a significant glance on her husband. This, it may be remarked, was not, under the circumstances, in accordance with her usual generosity and kindness of heart. But jealousy is cruel as the grave! She had neither forgotten nor forgiven the deep injury . she considered her husband had inflicted upon her. That lethal dart still rankled in her side. Though husband and wife in name, though living under the same roof, their lives were sundered. On the mob the effect of the bugle, calls was of course very different, and as the notes of the last one died away, drunken shouts and shrieks of defiance filled the air with a hideous discordance. Luckily for the inmates of the bouse, the mob, instead of making short work of the business before sue cour could arrive, decided, in their drunken valour, upon the still more desperate plan of resisting the military, and for a considerable time they were engaged, under their ringleaders, in preparing a warm reception for the red-coats. On either side of the avenue, for about fifty yards from the entrance, dense bodies of rioters, five and six deep, were posted under cover of the shrubs, while a plentiful supply of ammunition was furnished by pavingstones torn up from the stable-yard and the bricks of various outbuildings, speedily demolished for this purpose. These operations occupied some time, the women, by means of their more capacious style of dress, especially distinguishing themselves —such as were not too drunk —as ammunition

carriers. These arrangements having been completed, the remainder of the mob now turned their attention to firing the houses. Piles ol combustible material were placed at various spots wherever any woodwork on the ground floor of the building offered a good startingpoint for the flames. A few minutes more and hundreds of eager hands had snatcbed blazing brands from the bonfire, and the work of incendiarism was fairly started. Already with a fierce crackling the tongues of fire were angrily licking trellis-work, and pillar, and joist, when the despair of the inma'es was turned to hope by the cry that the soldiers were coming. A fervent thanksgiving rose to the lips of (hose in the house, while with curses or ribald jests the rioters in ambush grasped their paving-stones or their brickbats, and, in grim brutality, awaited their victims. There is a strange force in all order —a dynamic law of sound as well as of bodies. Even as twenty men acting in unison can overcome an undisciplined host, so will a regular and simultaneous sound be heard above a confused din ol far greater volume. Though nothing like so loud as the uproar and hubbub of the mob, the regular tramp of the soldiers with the steady rattle of their accoutrements, as they doubled along the highroad, was distinctly heard at the scene of disorder. They had indeed turned out smartly. Not more than twenty minutes bad elapsed since the alarm had first roused them in their beds, and here they were fully armed and accoutred, nearly a mile away from their barracks. But they were old campaigners, well accustom'ed ro the midnight cry of “ Stand to your arms ! ”

The whole ol' the regiment had been ■ turned out and remained under arms ; hut only one company had been despatched to the scene, under the command of the smartest and coolest, albeit the youngest, captain in the corps. On they came at a steady swinging double, in full sight ol the straining eyes which from the upper windows had bt*en anxiously watching for their coming ; and as the glare of the flames lit up their bright uniforms, Mr Buddlecomhe thought that once hated and garish red rag just about the prettiest bit of colouring he had ever beheld hi all his life. ■

. Nearer and nearer they drew to the lodge gates, close to which the ambush was laid; and the main body of the mob yelled with delight as they thought of the broken heads and the dismay there would soon be in those now compact ranks. But though bravo as a lion, the young officer commanding the party was, in soldierly instinct, ..as cunning as a fox. He happened to know the topography of the Mayor’s grounds, and as his party approached the entrance thereto, it occurred to him that the first fifty yards or so of the avenue, with a steep bank on either pide, well covered with a profusion of

laurel, would be admirably adapted to , the purposes of an ambush. Taking! this into consideration, the young officer determined upon shirking the ; avenue altogether; and it was fortunate he did so. About a hundred paces from the lodge was, a wooden gate leading into a paddock, by crossing which in a diagonal direction the house could be gained. Opposite this gate the officer halted his men. In.a trice a pioneers crowbar disposed of the chain and padlock : the gate swung on its hinges, and the company doubled through. A yell of rage burst from the foiled mob, and in a tumultuous mass they rushed forward to oppose the progress of the newcomers. Overwhelming numbers, drink, and rage inspired them with courage. ‘ Halt! ’ shouted the young officer, as with a hoarse roar the dense mass of debased humanity surged towards the little party. ‘O, it’s Algy’s voice ! ’ exclaimed Florence, clasping her bands and lifting her eyes up to heaven in an ecstasy of gratitude. ‘ It’s Algy coming to save us ! ’ ‘ Gallant young fellow! Noble youngster ! ’ murmured Mr Buddlecombe. * I always liked him.’ The halt of the soldiers was construed by the mob into a symptom o£ fear, and shrieks of derision mingled with the yells of defiance. The order was then given to the front rank of the leading section to fix bayonets. There was a crisp metallic, trill, and a little row of glittering steel flashed forth a very forcible warning to the rioters. A silence fell on the crowd, and the stone-throwing ceased. It was not a white-headed old man that they had to deal with this time. The steady double was now resumed, and on came the glittering little line of cold steel with the undeviating regularity and measured progression of a machine. {To he Continued .)