A Dash from Diamond City Part 49

"Without our horses?"

"Yes; poor beasts! I'm sorry they're gone; but daybreak will show us that we are close to Mafeking, I feel sure. We'll crawl on as far as we can, and then get up and run for our lives."

"Yes; but you know how clever they are at bringing down a running buck!"

"Some of them!" said Ingleborough drily.

"Well, if I am brought down, don't hesitate a moment: out with your knife, rip open my jacket, get the despatch, and run on."

"Do you mean that?"

"Of course."

"What about you? Are you to be left wounded here on the veldt?"

"Yes: until the despatch reaches the proper hands. Then come and save me if you can."

"I understand," said Ingleborough drily. "That's if matters come to the worst! Let's hope they will not!"

He raised his head a little and had a good look round as soon as he had finished speaking, for all was now very still, and as far as he could make out in the eerie light there was not a Boer within sight.

"Now then," he said softly; "let's go on! No, no; not like that.

Crawl, man, crawl."

He only spoke in time, for West was about to spring up. Then their painful imitation of some quadruped recommenced, West following his comrade patiently and unquestioningly till a change seemed to come over the light.

"Morning coming fast!" said West.

"The sooner the better," was the reply; "for I'm not sure that we are going right."

"I'm sure we're going wrong," said West quickly.

"Why?"

"Because we are going straight for that great wagon laager."

"Yes; there's Mafeking, with its corrugated-iron roofs, off to our right."

"Hah!" e.j.a.c.u.l.a.t.ed West, for at that moment there was a flash from the front of the laager they were approaching, followed by a tremendous roar and a hissing sound overhead, as a sh.e.l.l winged its way towards the town, whose outskirts were certainly not more than a couple of miles away.

"We've wasted ever so much strength," said Ingleborough; "but never mind: we know exactly where we are. It's about two miles' run to the nearest houses. What do you say--go on crawling, or make a dash?"

"It will be broad daylight directly," replied West, "then we shall be discovered, and become the mark for every rifle within range. I say let's get up and walk steadily on till we see that we are discovered, and then run for our lives."

"Wait a moment! Do you know how we shall find out that we are discovered?"

"Yes," said West coolly; "we shall have the bullets whistling about us."

"Well, you are cool!" said Ingleborough. "That's it; and in addition we shall have some of the mounted Boers coming at full gallop."

"Perhaps," said West; "and perhaps the Mafeking outposts will begin firing to cover us. Now then, I feel breathless to begin, for it's rapidly getting lighter. Come on!"

They rose quietly, and set off, making straight for the nearest building--a long, low, broad place with a corrugated-iron roof which seemed to be perfectly deserted; but it had one advantage--it was the nearest object to where they were, and it would, if they could reach it, form cover from which they could fire upon any mounted Boer who came in pursuit.

Then with the day broadening rapidly they walked steadily on, with sh.e.l.l after sh.e.l.l arching over their heads, to fall and burst far in advance, right away in the town; but there was no sign of pursuit for quite ten minutes, and not a friend anywhere visible in the outskirts the fugitives approached.

"Now then," shouted Ingleborough suddenly; "be cool, and as you run unsling your rifle and be ready for a shot, for I'm going to fight to the last."

"Make for that shed?"

"Yes. Forward; here they come."

Away they went, for West at his companion's warning had looked sharply round, to see about a score of mounted Boers das.h.i.+ng after them at full gallop, and the fugitives had hardly got into the full swing of their stride before they heard _cracky crack, crack_, the reports of rifles far in the rear, and _ping, ping_, _ping_, the whistling buzz of the thin bullets, several of which came unpleasantly near.

"Open out half-a-dozen yards," said Ingleborough, "and lessen their mark! Think we shall reach that shed?"

"No," said West coolly. "It's farther off than I thought. Let's stop at that clump yonder, and lie behind it to fire back."

"Very well; but they'll ring round us and we shall be taken in flank and rear."

"Not till we've brought down two of them," said West, through his teeth.

"Two apiece," said Ingleborough. "Now then, put on a spurt, and let's get to that heap, or they'll be down upon us before we're half-way to the shed. Run!"

They did run, with all their might; but out on the open veldt distances are horribly deceiving, especially in the early morning light, and to the despair of the fugitives the Boers came rapidly nearer, while the clump of earth for which they made seemed to be as distant as ever. The only thing they made out was that it became more diffused, and they plainly saw that it was a long ridge of earth freshly thrown up, evidently from a ditch beyond.

"Why, it's a long rifle-pit," cried Ingleborough. "Run, lad, run; we must do it now!"

But the pursuing Boers were coming on fast, and the fugitives felt that in a minute or so they would be overtaken.

There was something, though, in their favour, for as the enemy converged upon them the firing from a distance ceased, those who were using their rifles fearing to hit their own friends.

"It's of no use; we can't do it!" panted West, as Ingleborough, now that there was no need to try and diminish the mark at which the Boers fired, closed in again.

"Not two hundred yards away now!" said Ingleborough hoa.r.s.ely.

"Let's turn and have a couple of shots at them!" cried West.

"No: we should be bound to miss. Run, run!"

It was not the distance but the pace that was killing, and Ingleborough was right. To have stopped and turned to fire, with their pulses throbbing, breath coming in a laboured way, every nerve and muscle on the jump, must have resulted in missing; and the next moment the enemy would have ridden over them and they would have been either shot or prisoners.

Knowing this, they tore on till the rifle-pit was only a hundred yards away. The foremost Boers spread out like a fan not fifty yards distant, and came on at full gallop, with the result appearing certain that before the fugitives had torn on despairingly another score of yards their enemies would be upon them.

"My despatch!" groaned West to himself, and then aloud: "Halt! Fire!"

True to his comrade in those despairing moments, Ingleborough obeyed the order, stopped short, swung round, and following West's example, he was in the act of raising his rifle to his shoulder with his quivering hands, when--