done he shouted “Charge!” for he saw that while standing quiet his men were no match for the peasants, whose long poles with the scythes at the end gave them great advantage over the shorter weapons of the soldiers.  With a cheer the latter threw themselves upon their opponents, their close formation and more handy weapons depriving their enemies of this advantage.  Thrusting and overthrowing all in front of them, the line burst its way through the mob, the little party of cavalry charging furiously whenever the peasants endeavoured to fall upon their rear, and the latter, boldly as they fought against the infantry, shrank back before the flashing swords and the weight of horses and riders.

As soon as they had passed through the crowd Hector gave the order for his troops to face about, and they again burst their way through the mob that had closed in behind them.  Four times was the manoeuvre repeated, the resistance growing fainter each time, as the peasants found themselves unable to withstand the charge of the disciplined troops.  When for the fifth time they reached the gate of the castle the crowd no longer pressed upon their rear, but stood hesitatingly some fifty yards away.  Hector took advantage of the pause, and ordered his men, who were panting from their exertions, to load again.  He formed them in single line now.

“Don’t fire a shot until I give the word,” he said; “then pour in your volley, fix bayonets instantly, and charge.”

Standing in the shade as they did, the movement of loading was unobserved by the peasants, who, as they saw the line again advancing, prepared to meet them, but gave a yell of surprise when a terrible volley was poured into them at a distance of twenty yards.  Then, before they had recovered from their surprise, the long line was upon them with levelled bayonets.  Only a few stood their ground.  These were instantly overthrown.  The rest, throwing away their weapons, fled in all directions.

“Thank God that is over!” Hector said, as he told the troops to halt and reload.  “If they had all been as courageous as their leader they would have annihilated us, but each time we charged I observed that a considerable number fell away on either flank, so that it was not a solid mass through which we had to make our way.  What is our loss, Mieville?”

“I rode along the line and counted the numbers.  There are but seventy-five on foot,” he said, “and most of these have got more or less severe wounds with their ugly weapons.”

“Let the ground over which we have passed be carefully searched,” he said, “and any of our men who show signs of life be carried in front of the chateau.”

Twelve men were found to be living; their wounds were at once attended to and bandaged.

“I think most of them will do,” Captain Mieville said.  “They are ugly looking gashes, but it is not like a bullet in the body.”

The men who had been killed were found in most cases to have been slain outright from the blows of hatchets, which had in several cases completely severed their heads.  While the wounds of the soldiers were being attended to, Hector went to the gate at which the baroness and her daughter were now standing.