Page:Hugh Pendexter--Tiberius Smith.djvu/109

 yawning hole through them, but we lost in speed a bit, and to my horror I saw those from behind draw nearer, just as Tib, clear of the muss, began to wabble and coast.

"‘The foe! the foe: they come! they—' I howled, as one swart devil staggered almost within reach of my motive power.

"Tib straightened to renew his lost youth, but I had listed heavily to port, and before he could right me on an even keel the foremost rogue jumped fairly upon his shoulders. If Tib hadn't been supported in a measure by my heels he would have gone down and out. As it was he went trembly for a second, then regained his underpinning, while the impetus of the jolt sent us gliding swiftly ahead.

"But the slight hesitation allowed the other sprites to close in on both sides, and while they could not strike Tib, for fear of hitting their chief on his shoulders, they had no false modesty when it came to me. Whang! smash! and every kind of a primeval weapon battered my aching sides. 'Look out!' gurgled Tib, and bending suddenly he bucked his rider ten feet in the van, and by the next second's soft crunch and slight jar I knew we'd rammed him out of commission before he could roll off the tracks. And just as the last jolt on my head-piece made me grow dizzy and steer badly, I was conscious of some one popping corn down the river, and as Tib gave a