The Bourbon news. [volume] (Paris, Ky.) 1895-19??, 1902-12-02
Stairs Of
Sand
By ERNEST DE LANCY PERSON.
Copyright. 1901. by Street & Smith.
CHAPTER XXI.-CoNT1NUED.

Near the window through whieb
he had been peering was an open
door, and without knowing exactly
why, he entered. The room was
empty, but along one side ran a
shelf, on which were ranged various
rusty candlesticks containing pieces
of candle, evidently for the use of
the guests"
Job helped himself to the largest
piece of the candle he could find and
appropriated some of the matches.
MAY need 'eul," he muttered
This enterprise may carry me into
many dark places"
AS he came out of this room, he
thought he heard the sound of steps
below and the echoes of muffled
voices.
"They must have got on my trail"
he muttered. 'Well, the only thing
to do is to try and reach the roof;
perhaps it may communicate with
some other building. If not-well,
I shall be caught"
As he approached the stair again
the sound of the voices below be-
came louder, and, from the frag-
ments of conversation that drifted
up to him, he judged that the po-
lice were making an examination of
the rooms on the lower floor.
ut will take 'em some time to do
that" was the thought that was run
ming through his mind, land in the
meantime who knows but 1 may be
able to show them a clean pair of
heels"
He had reached the stairs again,
and, cautiously, that he might not
awake the sleepers, assembled them
slowly.
Whoever it was investigating the
lower rooms, he did not take any
precaution to muffle his voice, and
fragments of what was said satisfied
Job that the police were in the
building.
He had now reached the upper
floor, which, from the silence that
prevailed, he judged to be unoccu-
-
leading to the roof, and, without a
moments hesitation, he climbed this,
and, opening the trap, closed it be-
hind himself on the roof.
1t was only through this trap that
they could possibly find him, so he
thought if he could only weight down
the trap, they would have no easy
task in reaching him. At the same
time, if he found no way of escape
from the roof, his enemies had only
to wait, and he must eventually fall
into their hands.
lie closed the trap carefully, and
seeing a pile of old lumber near at
hand, by degrees brought the boards
over in his strong arms, and piled
them on top. When he found there
was nothing else of a weighty nature
that he could pile over the door, he
wiped his forehead of its perspira-
ton and sat down on the pile of
boards to consider his situation.
Looked at in any light, his position
seemed to be desperate, for the place
'N1 SudluCU DClOW, anu bn6 mousse
was full of policemen. He rose and
walked to the further end of the
roof, and then saw below him low
building that looked as if it were a
factory OF some sort. Then he wan
dered to the front of the building,
and, looking down, thought he could
see a policeman walking back and
forth, and, beyond, others. So he
returned to the contemplation of the
little factory. If he could only reach
that roof, it would not be hard to
get to the street. But it lay far be-
low him, and to jump would be i'm
possible. Just then, as he was walk
ing about, feeling very uneasy, he
trlpped over a rope fastened to one
OF the chimneys, and which at some
ume must have been employed in the
work # painting the building.
IL was only a short piece, but he
s0ok 1t up tenderly, undid the knots
ana then found that it was still of
10 short . length to be of any serv-
70 him. Rope in hand. he drew