whole lot thicker than the sides, and besides, as it is there's nothin'
to prevent the bullets from comin' in underneath. Lend a hand, everybody,
and we'll get 'er over."

He crept in between the mules and commenced unharnessing them. Bert and
his friends leaped to his assistance, although during the process they
were much more exposed to the fire of the Indians. The latter were not
slow to perceive this, and they opened a steady fire. But fortunately
they were poor shots, and most of their bullets went wild. Several struck
the mules, however, and the unfortunate animals plunged and kicked so
wildly that the three friends and the driver stood in almost as much
danger from them as from the bullets. Finally the traces were unfastened,
and the mules, released from the harness, raced wildly away.

Bert and the others dodged nimbly back behind the coach, and then all
hands set to the task of overturning it. By dint of exerting all their
strength they finally managed to lift one side of the clumsy vehicle
until it toppled over with a crash.

"There," exclaimed Buck, wiping the perspiration from his face with a big
bandanna handkerchief; "so fur, so good, but we got to do more than that.
Them Injuns will start to surround us as soon as they see they can't pick
us off from the front, and we want to be ready for them."

"What do you think we'd better do?" asked Bert.

"Fust thing is t' get the trunks and mail bags out o' the coach and build
a barricade with them," replied the driver, "an' it looks as though we
stood a good chance o' gettin' shot full o' lead doin' it, too. If them
Injuns hadn't been sech all-fired poor shots we'd a been winged before