“Good for you,” replied Hal.  “We’ll get the rest of them as fast as they come.”

The pounding upon the door continued and the occupants of the shack kept their eyes upon it anxiously.

“It gave a little that time,” declared Hal, after an extraordinarily furious blow.  “It won’t last much longer.  Then we’ll have to do some real fighting.”

“They will hardly rush us,” said the colonel.  “We should be able to pick them off as fast as they come through.  They won’t try that long.”

At this juncture Chester grew tired of waiting.  He motioned Uncle John to give him a hand up and from the latter’s shoulder raised his head cautiously to the edge of the window.  For the moment he was not seen.  A body of Austrians stood beneath the window, engaged in deep conversation.

Quickly Chester levelled his automatic and pressed the trigger.  Ten shots struck squarely in the little knot of the enemy, and several men fell.

A cry of anger rose on the night air, as Chester leaped down within the little cabin.

“Think I got some more of ’em that time,” he said with a grin.  “They’ll find out we can take the initiative ourselves once in a while.”

“Let them alone, unless they bother us,” ordered Colonel Anderson.  “The longer they keep quiet and do nothing, the better for us.  Time is the one factor that will work to our advantage.”

“I forgot about that,” returned Chester a little sheepishly.

There came a terrible thundering upon the door now; and it was evident that many men without had been called to force an entrance.

“It can’t hold much longer,” declared Hal quietly.

“About two more like that and it will give,” agreed Colonel Anderson.

Another rain of blows was followed by a crash, as the bottom of the door gave way.  A moment later it tumbled inward against the table and chairs stacked up to brace it.

And even as it did so, Colonel Anderson and Hal pressed the triggers of their revolvers.  Once, twice, each spoke, and the voices of the automatics were rewarded by cries of pain from the outside.

“We must have done some damage,” said Hal quietly.

Colonel Anderson did not reply; but stepping forward behind the improvised barricade, again levelled his revolver and fired twice.

“Think I got a couple that trip,” he remarked.

He glanced around the room quickly.

“Back in the corners,” he instructed.  “They’ll probably try to rush us this time.”

He had predicted correctly.

For a moment there was silence without; but suddenly there came a wild yell and a score of Austrians dashed forward to force an entrance to the shack.

“Make every shot count!” cried Hal.

The occupants of the cabin waited until the foe was in plain sight and then four revolvers spoke once.  As many men dropped in their tracks—­for at that distance a miss was practically impossible; but the other Austrians came on.