To the left, to the right they dodged, the chair rocking madly between them, she sending out shriek after shriek at every feint, and he growling meaningless curses through his hard set teeth.

"Oh! the fiendish noise that split his head and seemed to choke his breath .-- It would kill him .-- It must be stopped!" An insane desire to crush that yelling thing induced him to cast himself recklessly over the chair with a desperate grab, and they came down together in a cloud of dust amongst the splintered wood.

The last shriek died out under him in a faint gurgle, and he had secured the relief of absolute silence.
He looked at the woman's face under him.

A real woman! He knew her.

By all that is wonderful! Taminah! He jumped up ashamed of his fury and stood perplexed, wiping his forehead.