The car was now close at hand, and all at once as with a single
impulse, there was a surging forward, and the crowd closed in blocking
the track with a solid mass of human beings. The motorman set his
teeth hard, and rang the gong loudly, insistently. The conductor
hastened through the car and stood beside him. The only passenger was
a policeman, who stood on the rear platform calmly gazing at the sea
of angry, excited faces on either side.
"This car's got to stop!" shouted a big, brawny fellow, springing onto
the step and giving the motorman a threatening glance.
"This car ain't a-goin' to stop!" retorted the motorman, grimly, as he
released the brake.
"We'll see about that," and with the words the big fellow seized the
man's arms and wrenched his hand off the lever.
The conductor sprang to the assistance of his comrade while the
policeman ran forward and pushed the man roughly off the car.
In the same instant, Theo saw Carrots snatch a box from a bootblack
near him and with a wild yell of defiance, hurl it through one of the
car windows. The shrill, taunting cry of the boy, mingled with the
crash of the breaking glass, and the sight of the policeman's upraised
club, aroused the mob to sudden fury. At once there arose a wild
hubbub of shouts, yells and cries, followed by a shower of
cobble-stones, and a fierce rush upon the three men on the car, and in
two minutes the car was a shattered wreck; the motorman and conductor
were being hustled through the crowd with threats and warnings, while
the policeman's club had been wrenched from his grasp.
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