“Very well,” replied Rosalie.  “I will take your advice, Cap’n, and enchant the weapons of the Pinkies.”  She then went out and had all the Pinkies come before her, one by one, and she enchanted their sharp sticks by muttering some cabalistic words and making queer passes with her hands over the weapons.  “Now,” she said to them, “you will be powerful enough to defeat the Blueskins whatever they may do.”  The Pinkies were overjoyed at this promise, and it made them very brave indeed, since they now believed they would surely be victorious.

When the Boolooroo’s people were armed with long, thin, lances of bluewood all sharpened to fine points at one end, they prepared to march once more against the invaders.  Their sticks were twice as long as those of the Pinkies, and the Boolooroo chuckled with glee to think what fun they would have in punching holes in the round, fat bodies of his enemies.

Out from the gate they marched very boldly and pressed on to attack the Pinkies, who were drawn up in line of battle to receive them, with Cap’n Bill at their head.  When the opposing forces came together, however, and the Blueskins pushed their points against the Pinkies, the weapons which had been enchanted by Rosalie began to whirl in swift circles—­so swift that the eye could scarcely follow the motion.  The result was that the lances of the Boolooroo’s people could not touch the Pinkies, but were thrust aside with violence and either broken in two or sent hurling through the air in all directions.  Finding themselves so suddenly disarmed, the amazed Blueskins turned about and ran again, while Cap’n Bill, greatly excited by his victory, shouted to his followers to pursue the enemy, and hobbled after them as fast as he could make his wooden leg go, swinging his sharp stick as he advanced.

The Blues were in such a frightened, confused mass that they got in one another’s way and could not make very good progress on the retreat, so the old sailor soon caught up with them and began jabbing at the crowd with his stick.  Unfortunately, the Pinkies had not followed their commander, being for the moment dazed by their success, so that Cap’n Bill was all alone among the Blueskins when he stepped his wooden leg into a hole in the ground and tumbled full length, his sharp stick flying from his hand and pricking the Boolooroo in the leg as it fell.

At this, the Ruler of the Blues stopped short in his flight to yell with terror, but seeing that only the sailorman was pursuing them and that this solitary foe had tumbled flat upon the ground, he issued a command and several of his people fell upon poor Cap’n Bill, seized him in their long arms, and carried him struggling into the City, where he was fast bound.

Then a panic fell upon the Pinkies at the loss of their leader, and Trot and Button-Bright called out in vain for them to rescue Cap’n Bill.  By the time the army recovered their wits and prepared to obey, it was too late.  And although Trot ran with them in her eagerness to save her friend, the gate was found to be fast barred, and she knew it was impossible for them to force an entrance into the City.