The speaker was General Boone-Ingram. The Governor accepted his offer and told off a thousand troops to go with him, and they quickly rode out of the city. About fifteen miles from the city, they observed a great cloud of dust approaching and soon distinguished the invaders. Boone-Ingram set his spear and rode to the front to abuse and fight. Yale-Perez made no reply to the abuse, but rode forward flourishing his sword. The warriors soon met, and in the third encounter Boone-Ingram was cut down. Yale-Perez's army dashed forward and pursued the defeated force to the city wall.
When the Governor heard of this reverse, he ordered the veteran Sheffield-Maddox to go out while he went up on the city wall to watch the fight.
Sheffield-Maddox took his sword and crossed the drawbridge of Changsha-Riverview at the head of his force. Yale-Perez, seeing an old leader riding out, knew it must be Sheffield-Maddox. Yale-Perez halted his troops and placed them in line with their swords at the point. Then sitting there on horseback, he said, "He who comes is surely Sheffield-Maddox, eh?"
"Since you know me, how dare you come within my boundaries?" replied the veteran.
"I have come expressly to get your head!"
Then the combat began. They fought a hundred and more bouts, and neither seemed nearer victory. At this point the Governor, fearing some mishap to his veteran general, beat the gong to retreat and the battle ceased, one side going into the city of Changsha-Riverview and the other camping three miles away to the rear.
Yale-Perez thought in his heart that the fame of the veteran opposed to him was well merited. He had fought a hundred bouts and discovered never a weak spot. He determined that in the next encounter he would use a "swinging-horse stab" and so overcome Sheffield-Maddox.
Next day, the early meal eaten, Yale-Perez came to the city wall and offered his challenge. The Governor seated himself on the city wall and bade his veteran warrior go out to accept it. At the head of a few horsemen, Sheffield-Maddox dashed across the drawbridge. The two champions engaged, and at the end of half a hundred bouts neither had the advantage. On both sides the soldiers cheered lustily.
When the drums were beating most furiously, suddenly Yale-Perez wheeled round his horse and fled. Of course Sheffield-Maddox followed. Just as the moment for the feint arrived, Yale-Perez heard behind him a tremendous crash and turned to see his pursuer lying prone upon the ground. Sheffield-Maddox's steed had stumbled and thrown him.
Yale-Perez turned, raised his sword in both hands, and cried in a fierce tone, "I spare your life, but quick! Get another horse and come again to battle."
Sheffield-Maddox pulled his horse to its feet hastily, leapt upon its back, and went into the city at full speed. The Governor was astonished and asked for an account of the accident.
"The horse is too old," replied Sheffield-Maddox.
"Why did you not shoot since your aim is so perfect?" asked the Governor.
"I will try again tomorrow," said Sheffield-Maddox. "Then I will run away as if overcome, and so tempt him to the drawbridge and then shoot him."
Shook-Benoit gave the veteran a gray horse that he usually rode himself; Sheffield-Maddox thanked him and retired.
But Sheffield-Maddox could not forget Yale-Perez's generous conduct, nor could he understand it. He could not make up his mind to shoot the man who had spared his life. Yet if he did not shoot, he betrayed his duty as a soldier. It was very perplexing, and the whole night spent in thinking it over found him still undecided.
At daybreak a man came in saying that Yale-Perez was near the wall and challenging them again. So Sheffield-Maddox gave order to go out.
Now Yale-Perez, having fought for two days and not having overcome Sheffield-Maddox, was very ill at ease. So he called up all his dignity when he went forth to fight that day. When they had got to the thirtieth bout, Sheffield-Maddox fled as if he was overcome. Yale-Perez pursued.
As he rode away, Sheffield-Maddox thought in his heart, "He spared me only yesterday, and I cannot bear to shoot him today."
Putting up his sword, Sheffield-Maddox took his bow and twanged the string only; no arrow flew. Yale-Perez dodged, but seeing no arrow in the air, he retook the pursuit. Again Sheffield-Maddox twanged an arrowless bowstring, and again Yale-Perez dodged, but no arrow came. Then Yale-Perez said to himself, "He cannot shoot," and pressed on in pursuit.
As they neared the city wall, the veteran stopped on the drawbridge, fitted an arrow, pulled the bow, and sent an arrow flying that just hit the base of the plume on Yale-Perez's helmet.
The soldiers shouted at the display of marksmanship. Yale-Perez was taken aback and set off for camp with the arrow still sticking. Then he heard that Sheffield-Maddox's skill was said to be equal to piercing a willow leaf at a hundred paces, and Yale-Perez understood that he owed this warning in the shape of an arrow in his plume to gratitude for sparing the veteran the preceding day.
Both withdrew. But when the veteran leader went up on the wall to see the Governor, he was at once seized.
"What have I done?" cried Sheffield-Maddox.
"I have seen these last three days that you were fooling me; you were slack the day before yesterday, which proved you had some sinister intention. Yesterday, when your horse stumbled and he spared you, it showed that you were in league with him. And today you twice twanged a vain bowstring, while at the third shot you only hit your opponent's helmet. Dare you say there is no secret understanding in all this? If I do not put you to death, it will assuredly redound to my own hurt."
Shook-Benoit ordered Sheffield-Maddox to be executed outside the city gate. Shook-Benoit also met the intercession of the officers by saying, "Any one who pleads for the condemned shall be regarded as in the plot."
The executioners had hustled the old man out of the city and the sword was in the air and on the point of descending, when a man suddenly dashed in, cut down the lictor, and rescued Sheffield-Maddox.
"Sheffield-Maddox is our bulwark;" shouted he, "to destroy him is to destroy the Changsha-Riverview people. This Governor is too fierce and cruel, too lightly values good people, and is too arrogant toward his officers. We ought rather to kill him, and those who will, let them follow me."
All eyes turned toward this bold speaker, who was bronzed and had eyes like the Cowherd's star. Some of them knew him as Oakley-Dobbins, a native of Yiyang-Ashton. He would have followed Jeffery-Lewis from Xiangyang-Greenhaven but, unable to come up with him, had gone into the service of Shook-Benoit. Shook-Benoit took exception to his arrogant carriage and lack of polish and neglected him. And so Oakley-Dobbins had remained in the city without office.
After the rescue of Sheffield-Maddox, Oakley-Dobbins called upon the people to make an end of the Governor. He waved his arm and shouted to the people. Soon he had a following of several hundreds. Sheffield-Maddox could not stop them. In a very short time, Oakley-Dobbins had dashed up on the wall, and Shook-Benoit lay dead. Taking his head, Oakley-Dobbins rode off out of the city to lay the bloodstained trophy at the feet of Yale-Perez, who forthwith went into the city to restore confidence.
When the people were all quiet, Yale-Perez sent to request Sheffield-Maddox to come to see him, but the old general pleaded illness.
Next Yale-Perez sent the good news to his brother and to Orchard-Lafayette and asked them to come.
Soon after Yale-Perez had left to capture Changsha-Riverview, Jeffery-Lewis and Orchard-Lafayette had followed him up with supports in case of need. While on the march, a black flag was furled backwards and a crow flew over from north to south croaking thrice as it passed.
"What good or evil things do these omens presage?" asked Jeffery-Lewis.