The Gold Hunters' Adventures Part 66

Cowards are always fickle, and can be swayed by good or bad success.

Those who a few minutes before were silent, or encouraged the English bully in his course, now left his ranks, arrayed themselves upon our side, and many a hand, rough and hard with toil, was stretched out for us to grasp and receive congratulations.

"Faith, Mr. Yankee," whispered a Hibernian to Fred, "ef ye can kill the divil, do so wid all your heart, for a bigger thief never lived. He stole me boots day afore yesterday, and the spalpeen refuses to return 'um."

"He licked me last week," said another, in an under tone, "and if you think you can afford to beat him for a pound, I'll give it, readily."

"When you aim at him, be sure to fire a second afore the word is given,"

cried another new, but not very conscientious friend. "It's a trick the bully is up to, and it's that way he treated poor Billy Hanes, who accused him of stealing his dust. Do as I bid you, and you'll be all right."

"We've fixed it," cried California Charley, as he was called by the crowd, interrupting the confidential advice which Fred was receiving.

"We have concluded to let Burley have a shot to heal his wounded honor, as he calls his black eye. A devilish bad looking peeper he has got, and a stunning blow you must have given him to have produced such an effect."

"When is it to come off?" I asked, almost trembling for Fred.

"We have decided that it shall take place immediately, 'cos it would be cruel to disappoint the crowd a.s.sembled. They expect a duel, and we must gratify them. If you are successful, you will be the most popular man in Ballarat, and there is no knowing what is in store for you."

"What weapons are we to use?" Fred asked.

"Revolvers, to be sure. I've promised to let the fellow use mine for the sake of placing him on an equality with you. I see that you have a revolver, so that I know you will be able to shoot better with it than a strange pistol. But remember, we have no fooling about the affair. I never stand second for a man unless he tries to win, and I should hate to think that you were foolish enough to throw away your fire. Do you kill him the first time, or he will kill you."

Fred thanked our countryman for his advice, and for a moment we conferred together apart.

"The same directions which I gave you when I was compelled to fight my first duel, will answer for this," Fred said. "If any thing should happen, don't let me be buried near this place. Carry my body to the old convict's hut, and let me be interred there by the side of the stream."

I promised, although there were tears in my eyes and a choking sensation in my throat, as I did so.

"Don't give way to any weakness, here," Fred whispered. "Remember that the eyes of a thousand people are upon us. Let them see that we possess the true Yankee grit."

He squeezed my hand as he spoke, and the next instant I was restored to my usual calmness, as far as the prying eyes which were fastened upon us could discover.

"Am I to be kept waiting all day for the young feller to say his prayers?" roared the bully, who began to grow impatient for blood.

"Don't let him call again," said Charley; "if he does, the people will think we are rather backward to meet him. Sympathy is now all on our side, and we must not lose it."

"I am ready," replied Fred, after a brief inspection of his revolver.

"That's right--are you certain that those caps are not damp? Do you want any thing? Can I do any thing for you?"

With these questions, and half a dozen others in the same breath, which Charley asked as rapidly as though there was not a moment to spare, Fred was conducted near his adversary, who uttered an exclamation when he saw him, that was intended for an intimidation.

"Where shall I hit the d----d Yankee?" he cried, brandis.h.i.+ng his pistol.

"I'll pepper him just where you tell me to, and afterwards we'll drink his speedy pa.s.sage to--"

The balance of the exclamation was so shocking that his only friend checked him by asking if his pistol was well loaded.

"It's loaded well enough to kill that d----d pup. I say, what a joke it will be! I kill a d----d Yankee with a Yankee's pistol. I suppose they want to thin the breed off."

The bully's words, instead of intimidating Fred, had a contrary effect, for I saw by his eyes that his mind was made up, and all feeling of compa.s.sion was banished from his bosom.

"You're to stand off twenty paces," Charley said, speaking to Fred; "I had some thoughts of making the distance less, but I was afraid to trust you so near, considering that you are a new beginne ..."

Fred glanced at me and smiled. The Californian little, thought that he was acting as second to a man whose reputation as a hunter of bushrangers was the theme of every miner's discourse, and that the newspapers of Australia had spread our fame all over the island.

"You need not fear that I shall disgrace your patronage," Fred said. "I have seen an enemy's front before to-day."

"Gad, I begin to think that you have," Charley cried, noticing that his man displayed no sign of tremulousness.

"Stand one side, gentlemen," cried the Californian. "Our men are going to fire."

"Let me get in front of them--that's the safest place," roared out some joker.

"It's pluck the Yankee is," cried our Hibernian friend. "See, he don't look a bit like running away."

"Five to one that Burley hits at the first fire," cried a sporting man.

"Done," yelled the Irishman. "How much does ye wish to come down?"

"Five pound to two that neither is killed at the first fire," roared another.

"Make it mortally wounded, and Jim's your customer," replied an anxious miner, producing his small bag of gold to cover the stake.

"I'll go this nugget that the Yankee hits his man at the first fire,"

cried one fellow, holding up a lump of virgin gold as large as a hen's egg.

"I'll take it--I'll take it," a number of voices replied, and straight-way there was a rush towards him.

"Jim," cried our bully opponent, "do you go into the crowd and take a few bets on my account, as I am in want of money, and _after_ I've killed this young sprig of insolence, I intend to go on a spree. Take all the odds offered."

I saw no one accept of the mission, so I concluded that the ruffian's words were merely intended as capital for the crowd, accessions to which were constantly increasing.

"Come," said Fred, speaking to Charley; "let us have this concluded as soon as possible, or the whole town of Ballarat will be here to witness it."

"That is just what. I want," replied our new-found friend, with great coolness. "If you are fortunate enough to kill the bully,--and I am sure I hope you will be,--every one who sees him fall will swear that the fight was a beautiful one, and that every thing was perfectly fair and just; 'while those who did not, will vow that murder has been committed, and urge the commissioner to arrest you. It's a great satisfaction sometimes to see a duel, and it's only right and proper that as many as possible should be gratified with the sport."

"But it appears to me that the population of the town is all here now,"

remonstrated Fred.

"There's where you are mistaken," replied Charley; "the news has hardly reached the miners in the shafts, and that cla.s.s of people will feel deeply grieved unless they are among the spectators."

"There comes a gang of men," I said, calling the Californian's attention to thirty or forty, who, to judge by soiled garments, had just come from the bowels of the earth.

"Yes, there are some of the underground miners, and a rough set they are. Will you hurry up?" Charley shouted, "or are we to wait here all night?"

"Why weren't we called afore?" asked one of the party. "This don't look like the old style of doing things, I must say."

"I got word to you as quick as I could, and what more can I do? It's all owing to me that you got an invite at all. This young feller don't know our customs, and wanted to bang away afore any one was here," replied my a.s.sistant second.

"Did you tell him how we managed things?" asked the leading miner, gravely, as though a breach of etiquette had been committed of the rudest kind.