Page:California Inter Pocula.djvu/440



a bullet,  he  coolly  leant  over  upon  the  left  leg,  and continued to  fire  until  a  shot  in  the  hip  brought  him down, fatally  wounded. Struck with  admiration  at his  courage,  the  prisoners  refrained  from  doing  him further harm,  and  merely  secured  his  pistol. The resolute stand  of  the  guard  had  caused  many  irreso- lute convicts to  return  to  the  shelter  of  their  cells,  and soon a  reenforcement  of  three  guards  and  two  citi- zens came up. Two of  the  guards  were  speedily placed hors  de  combat,  while  a  citizen,  whose  rash- ness led him  too  near  the  windows  of  the  guard-house, received a  bullet  in  the  head  from  which  he  did  not recover.

During; the  confusion  Denver's  little  daug;hter  found her way  into  the  yard,  and  ran  heedlessly  into  the range of  the  fire,  as  if  to  shield  the  brave  Isaacs. A French prisoner,  employed  in  the  guard-room,  rushed forward on  seeing  the  danger  of  the  little  one,  and bore her  off,  leaving  the  terrified  mother  in  an agony  of  doubt  whether  her  child  had  not  escaped one danger  only  to  encounter  another. A young woman had  also  noticed  the  child,  and  impelled  by feminine  devotion,  she  had  followed,  only  to  flutter  in bewilderment  over  the  blood-stained  ground  before the windows  with  the  belchmg  guns. Once more  the gallantry of  La  Grande  Nation  was  displayed  as  the Frenchman dashed  to  the  rescue. Of the  reenforce- ment one citizen  alone  remained  unscathed.

A man  with  a  buggy  who  happened  to  be  at  the prison when  the  firing  began,  hurried  to  town  to  give the alarm ;  but  before  the  sheriff  and  his  dozen  f  jIIow- ers arrived,  twenty -nine  of  the  most  desperate  con- victs had escaped,  some  badly  wounded,  leaving behind forty -three  comrades  who  had  been  restrained by force  and  fear,  or  whose  term  was  nearly  expired. A large  force  of  citizens  also  appeared  equipped  from the state  armory,  followed  by  two  militia  companies from Virginia  city,  who  were  already  in  pursuit  in different  directions  before