The Death of a Valiant Rascal. 413 



in his right hand and the spear in the other, cried 

 out, " Try and take me." The two men, knowing the 

 convict's desperate character, consulted together. One 

 ran off to the village for help, whilst the other 

 watched the man and surrounded him with the 

 hounds. If he attempted to move the dogs flew at 

 him ; and they are a cross between gray and ordinary 

 hounds, they are very powerful and fed on raw meat, 

 are also very savage. So the poor wretch could 

 neither attack nor retreat. The second man soon re- 

 turned with several villagers, one armed with a flint 

 musket and the other with a cross-bow. The former, 

 calling upon the dacoit to give himself up, cocked 

 his gun, but that individual only laughed, and 

 exposing his chest and arms, and calling their atten- 

 tion to various wart-like excrescences, under which 

 bits of gold and silver had been inserted and the skin 

 allowed to heal over, called out, " Look at me ; don't 

 you see that I am invulnerable ? " The man with the 

 musket essayed three times to fire, and each time the 

 weapon missed fire. The outlaw was exultant, saying, 

 " Did I not tell you so ? " The cross-bowman then 

 fitted an arrow, and saying, " You may be invulner- 

 able as far as a gun is concerned, but I'll see what I 

 can do," let fly. The arrow sped true, and pene- 

 trated the man's broad chest, but with a smile he 

 plucked it out, and showing it said, "Why it has 

 only gone in a span ! Do you think that will 

 hurt me ? " But inward bleeding had set in, for in 

 a few seconds he fell down, and the assailants 

 rushed on and secured him, but he expired 

 before they got to the village. Thus died a valiant 

 villain. 



