And then Shard saw a branch that he had not marked on the chart, it
would just catch the top of the mainmast. He anchored at once and sent
a hand aloft who sawed it half way through and did the rest with a
pistol, and now the Arabs were only three knots astern. For a quarter
of a mile Shard steered them through the forest till they came to the
ten men and that bad big tree, another foot had yet to come off one
corner of the stump for the wheels had to pass over it. Shard turned
all hands on to the stump and it was then that the Arabs came within
shot. But they had to unpack their gun. And before they had it mounted
Shard was away. If they had charged things might have been different.
When they saw the Desperate Lark under way again the Arabs came on to
within three hundred yards and there they mounted two guns. Shard
watched them along his stern gun but would not fire. They were six
hundred yards away before the Arabs could fire and then they fired too
soon and both guns missed. And Shard and his merry men saw clear water
only ten fathoms ahead. Then Shard loaded his stern gun with canister
instead of shot and at the same moment the Arabs charged on their
camels; they came galloping down through the forest waving long
lances. Shard left the steering to Smerdrak and stood by the stern
gun, the Arabs were within fifty yards and still Shard did not fire;
he had most of his men in the stern with muskets beside him. Those
lances carried on camels were altogether different from swords in the
hands of horsemen, they could reach the men on deck. The men could see
the horrible barbs on the lanceheads, they were almost at their faces
when Shard fired, and at the same moment the Desperate Lark with her
dry and suncracked keel in air on the high bank of the Niger fell
forward like a diver. The gun went off through the tree-tops, a wave
came over the bows and swept the stern, the Desperate Lark wriggled
and righted herself, she was back in her element.