Suppose you’re in a coach, or riding along a road. Well, you’re expected and waited for, and the road party knows the very moment you’ll turn up. They see you a-coming. You don’t see them till it’s too late. There’s a log or something across the road, if it’s a coach, or else the driver’s walking his horses up a steepish hill. Just at the worst pinch or at a turn, someone sings out “Bail up.” The coachman sees a strange man in front, or close alongside of him, with a revolver pointed straight at him. He naturally don’t like to be shot, and he pulls up. There’s another man covering the passengers in the body of the coach, and he says if any man stirs or lifts a finger he’ll give him no second chance. Just behind, on the other side, there’s another man—perhaps two. Well, what’s anyone, if he’s ever so game, to do? If he tries to draw weapon, or move ever so little, he’s rapped at that second. He can only shoot one man, even if his aim is good, which it’s not likely to be. What is more, the other passengers don’t thank him—quite the contrary—for drawing the fire on them. I have known men take away a fellow’s revolver lest he should get them all into trouble. That was a queer start, wasn’t it? Actually preventing a man from resisting. They were quite right, though; he could only have done mischief and made it harder for himself and everyone else. If the passengers were armed, and all steady and game to stand a flutter, something might be done, but you don’t get a coach-load like that very often. So it’s found better in a general way to give up what they have quietly and make no fuss about it. I’ve known cases where a single bush-ranger was rushed by a couple of determined men, but that was because the chap was careless, and they were very active and smart. He let them stand too near him. They had him, simple enough, and he was hanged for his carelessness; but when there’s three or four men, all armed and steady, it’s no use trying to rush dodge with them.