252 THE FAT OF THE LAND 
«“T’ll have a look into —” 
“Hell!” said the slow-of-wrath Jack, and his 
fist went straight from the shoulder and smote 
the Hun on the point of the jaw. It was a 
terrible blow, dealt with all the force of a 
trained athlete, and inspired by every impulse 
which a man holds dear; and the half-drunken 
brute fell like a stricken ox. Catching the club 
from the falling man, Jack made a sudden lunge 
forward at the face of the nearest foe. 
“Now, Jim!” he shouted, as the full fever 
of battle seized him. His forward lunge had 
placed another miner hors de combat, and Jarvis 
sprang forward and secured the wounded man’s 
bludgeon. 
«“ Back to back, Jack, and mind your guard!” 
The odds were eighteen to two against the 
young men, but they did not heed them. Back 
to back they stood, and the heavy clubs were 
like feathers in their strong hands. Their skill 
at “single stick” was of immense advantage, for 
it built a wall of defence around them. ‘The 
crazy-drunk miners rushed upon them with the 
fierceness of wild beasts; they crowded in so 
close as to interfere with their own freedom of 
movement; they sought to overpower the two 
men by weight of numbers and by showers of 
blows. Jack and Jim were kept busy guarding 
their own heads, and it was only occasionally 
that they could give an aggressive blow. When 
these opportunities came, they were accepted 
