keep out insects, this also served to prevent the arrows from
entering. There were loopholes purposely made to allow the rifles to
be thrust out.

Mercifully, Tom and the others fired only to disable, and not to
kill the red pygmies. Wounded in the arms or legs, the little
savages would be incapable of fighting, and this plan was followed.
But so fierce were they that some, who were wounded twice, still
kept up the attack.

Tom's electric rifle was well adapted for this work, as he could
regulate the charge to merely stun, no matter at what part of the
body it was directed. So he could fire indiscriminintly, whereas the
others had to aim carefully. And Tom's fire was most effective. He
disabled scores of the red imps, but scores of others sprang up to
take their places.

After their first rush the pygmies had fallen back before the well-
directed fire of our friends, but as their chiefs and head men urged
them to the attack again, they came back with still fiercer energy.
Some, more bold than the others, even leaped to the deck of the
airship, and tried to tear the screens from the windows. They partly
succeeded, and in one casement from which Ned was firing they made a
hole.

Into this they shot a flight of arrows, and one slightly wounded the
bank clerk on the arm. The wound was at once treated with
antiseptics, after the window had been barricaded, and Ned declared
that he was ready to renew the fight. Tom, too, got an arrow scratch
on the neck, and one of the barbs entered Mr. Durban's leg, but the