Christmas Holidays at Merryvale: The Merryvale Boys

								

duck his head as they whizzed by.
"Looks as though they had plenty of balls, too," exclaimed Toad, hastily
picking up an armful and running outside to get within closer range.
"I don't think so," protested Herbie. "I could see all of them working
on the fort. We have lots more, I'm sure."
"Well," cried the Captain, "let everybody take a pile of snowballs and
we'll run out together and maybe we can drive them from their fort."
Each boy carried as many as he could in one arm, this leaving the other
one free to throw with.
"We'll have to make a quick run for it and throw just as fast and hard
as we can," said Herbie, as Toad, who had at that moment returned to the
fort in a great hurry, his hat covered with snow, exclaimed:
"They got me, but I hit two or three of them!"
"All ready!" shouted the Captain, and the others, following close on his
heels, dashed out.
Such a hail of snowballs met them that they halted for a moment, then
dashed onward right up to the enemy's fort.
"Don't waste any ammunition until you get close," ordered Reddy, and his
company obeyed. "Now let her fly," he directed, as they surrounded the
fort.
The boys threw with a will and were vigorously answered by the defenders
of the fort, and for a time it was hard to see which side would win.
Finally, after the ammunition of the attacking force was used up,
Captain Reddy ordered a retreat back to their own fort.
"I have a better plan this time," he announced after they were safely
inside. "When we charge again, two of you fellows must keep running back
to our own fort so as to bring us supplies of snowballs. Then we can
keep up a much longer fight and when anyone gets tired throwing," he
added, "he can change places with one of the fellows that have been
carrying the balls."
At this moment, Herbie, who had been on the lookout, suddenly cried:
"They're coming to charge us."
"Get ready to give it to them," ordered the Captain and each boy,
snatching up an armful of snowballs, prepared to repel the attack.
"Fire!" Reddy shouted, as the enemy drew near, and when they met that
rain of balls it didn't take them long to get back to the cover of their
own fort.
"That was great!" cried Herbie. "Come on, let us charge this time before
they have a chance to get ready for us."
"Hey, I'm the Captain," insisted Reddy. "Nobody gives any orders but
me," and he pulled his woolen cap well down over his ears in preparation
for the coming attack.
"Well, hurry up and give them, then!" shouted Toad. "I'm all loaded up."
"Charge, charge on!" shouted Reddy, starting out on the run with the
others close upon his heels, and after a few minutes of hard fighting
they had forced their way to the walls of the fort.
The balls were flying so thick and so fast, from both sides, that it
looked like a snow storm of enormous flakes shooting in all directions.
The boys carrying balls to supply the invaders were kept busy, but