Page:Tudor Jenks--The defense of the castle.djvu/210

182 dragging him out of the gate, but since he had been somewhat stunned by Edgar's terrific blow, they carried him from the field. Edgar, also feeling somewhat weakened by his efforts and by the loss of blood, was persuaded to withdraw—which he would have been unwilling to do except that Hugh had now come up, bringing with him the additional men who could now be spared from the defense of the eastern side.

But the advantage of numbers was so greatly on the side of the besiegers that Hugh decided, after he had kept up the struggle for the gateway a short time longer, to withdraw his men rather than suffer any further loss in killed and wounded. The garrison could not afford, he considered, to lose men even at the rate of one for two, since they were hardly a quarter as strong in numbers. But before withdrawing it was necessary to drive the assailants back from the gateway, so that he could gain time enough to retreat within the intrenchment that crossed the courtyard diagonally. Hugh therefore raised his battle-cry, "A Mortimer!—a Mortimer!" and dashed so furiously forward that he drove all before him. He was bravely seconded by his fresher men, and for a moment the Count's men yielded, and were driven backward. Then stationing himself with four or five of his best fighters in the narrow way, Hugh commanded the