CHAPTER III.
GAVROCHE HAD BETTER HAVE ACCEPTED THE CARBINE OF ENJOLRAS.
A long black shawl of Widow Hucheloup's was thrown over FatherMabœuf: six men made a litter of their muskets, the corpse was laidon them, and they carried it with bare heads and solemn slowness toa large table in the ground-floor room. These men, entirely engagedwith the grave and sacred thing they were doing, did not think of theperilous situation in which they were, and when the corpse was carriedpast the stoical Javert, Enjolras said to the spy,--
"Your turn will come soon."
During this period little Gavroche, who alone had not left his post,and had remained on the watch, fancied he could see men creepingup to the barricade: all at once he cried, "Look out!" Courfeyrac,Enjolras, Jean Prouvaire, Combeferre, Joly, Bahorel, and Bossuet allhurried tumultuously out of the wine-shop; but it was almost too late,for they saw a flashing line of bayonets undulating on the crest ofthe barricade. Municipal Guards of tall stature penetrated, some bystriding over the omnibus, others through the sally-port, drivingbefore them the gamin, who fell back, but did not fly. The momentwas critical; it was that first formidable minute of inundationwhen the river rises to the level of the dam and the water beginsto filter through the fissures of the dyke. One second more and thebarricade was captured. Bahorel dashed at the first Municipal Guardwho entered, and killed him with a shot from his carbine; the secondkilled Bahorel with a bayonet-thrust. Another had already levelledCourfeyrac, who was shouting "Help!" while the tallest of all of them,a species of Colossus, was marching upon Gavroche, with his bayonetat the charge. The gamin raised in his little arms Javert's enormousmusket, resolutely aimed at the giant, and pulled the trigger. But thegun did not go off, as Javert had not loaded it: the Municipal Guardburst into a laugh, and advanced upon the lad. Before the bayonet hadreached Gavroche, however, the musket fell from the soldier's hands,for a bullet struck him in the middle of the forehead, and he fell onhis back. A second bullet struck the other guard, who had attackedCourfeyrac, in the middle of the chest, and laid him low.
The shots were fired by Marius, who had just entered the barricade.