The Denison review. [volume] (Denison, Iowa) 1867-current, 1906-02-22

Succeeded In draDtng the bolt.
an outlying lamp post cast across the
new made road. 1t seemed to me
road of building sites, with but this
one house built all by itself at one
end, but the night was too dark for
more than a mere impression.
Rallies, however, had seen the place
by daylight and had come prepared for
the special obstacles. Already he was
reaching up and putting champagne
corks on the spikes, and in another mo-
ment he had his folded covert coat
across the corSs. l stepped back as he
raised himself and saw a little pyra-
mid of states snip the sky above the
gate. AS he squirmed over l ran for
ward and had my weight on the spikes
and corks and covert coat when he
gave the latter tug.
Coming, after all?"
"Rather!''
'"Take care, then; the place is all
bell wires and springs. It's no soft
thing, this! There-stand still while
take off the corks.''
The garden was Ne.sy -snIasfffi ind hey-
with grass plot still in separate sods,
but quantity of full grown laurels
stuck into the raw clay beds. BELLS
in themselves" as Raf1les whispered.
There's nothing else rustles so-cun-
ming old BEAST" And we gave them a
wide berth as we crept across the
grass
"He'S gone to bedw
81 don't think so, Bunny. believe
he's seen u.s.
"Why"
II saw light"
"Where?'
Downstairs, for an instant, when
~
His whisper died away. He had seen
the light again, and so had l.
1t lay like golden rod under the
front door-and vanished. 1t reap
peared like a gold thread under the
Intel and vanished for good. We
heard the stairs creak, creall and cease,
also for good. We neither saw nor
heard any more though we stood wait
ing Oh the grass till our feet were
soaked with the dew.
I'm going in" said RatIles at last.
II don't believe he saw us at all. l
wish he had. This way"
We trod gingerly on the path. but
the gravel stuck to our wet soles and
grated horribly in little tiled veranda
with a glass door leading within. 1t
was through this glass that BATTLES had
first n iU1
ceeded to take out li;..ie with the
diamond, the pot of t.raca and the.
sheet of brown paper which We're sell
dom omitted from his inl3ntlimenta.
Nor did he dispense With ny own as
sistance, though he may haze accepted
1t as instinctively as it wal. proffered.
In any case, it was these fingers that
helped to spread the treacle on the
brown paper and pressed the latter
to the glass until the diamond had
completed its circuit and the pane fell
gently back into our hands.
Rallies now inserted his hand,
turned the key in the lock and by max
ing long arm succeeded in drawing
the bolt at the bottom of the door 1t
proved to be the only one, and the
door opened. though not very wide.
whats that?" said Raffies as some
thing crunched beneath his feet on the
very threshold.
"A pair Of spectacles," l whispered.
picking them up. was still lingering
the broken lenses and the bent rims
when Raffles tripped and almost fell,
with a gasping cry that he made no
effort to restrain.
Hush, man, hush!" entreated I'M
der my breath. Hell hear you"'
For answer his teeth chartered, even
his, and heard him fumblng with
his matches. mo. Bunny; he won't
hear u.s." whispered Ratties presently,
and he rose from his knees and lit q
gas jet as the match burned down.
angus Baird was lying on his own
io9r. dead, with his gray hairs glued
together by his blood; near him poker