Now Leonard had no knife, and at the moment he never thought of his revolver.

But he still held the hilt of his sword, and with it he sprang straight at Xavier, who rushed to meet him.
They met with a dull shock as bull meets bull.

Leonard struck one blow with the broken sword-hilt, then dropped it--it was useless.

But the stroke did him good service, for, falling on the right hand of the Portugee, it paralysed his arm for a second, causing him to let fall the dagger.

Then they gripped each other, fighting desperately with their naked strength alone.