The San Francisco call. [volume] (San Francisco [Calif.]) 1895-1913, 1908-04-19

the last details of his plan. Everything
depended on getting the imprisoned
man out of the Amena tower at once,
and he believed he could do that with
out much difficulty. At first sight il
might seem madness to attempt a revo-
luton with only 500 men to bear arms
in the cause. against 10000 or $4,000.
but the Venetian knew what sort of
men they were, and how profoundly
Andronieus was hated by all the army
except his body guard.
For nearly 20 minutes Gorlias pulled
steadily up stream. Then he slackened
speed and brought the boat slowly to
the foot of the tower.
The windows were all dark now, and
the great mass lowered up into the
night till the top was lost in the black
sky. During the hours GOriias had
spent in fishing from the pier he had
succeeded in wedging a stout oak peg
between the stones. He found it at
once in the dark. got out and made the
boat fast to 1t by the painter. His bare
feet chung to the sloping surface like a
fiy's to a smooth wall; he pulled the
boat alongside the pier. holding 1t by
the gunwale, and held up his other
hand to help Zeno. But the Venetian
was in no need Of that. and was stand
ing beside his companion in an instant.
1t was only then, a whole second after
the fact. that he knew he had stepped
upon something oddly soft and at the
same time elastic and resisting. that
lay amidships in the bottom OF the boat.
covered with canvas The quick reeol-
lection was that Of having unconscious
ly placed one foot on a human body
when getting out. He had taken of his
shoes. but the cloth soles of his hose
were thick and he could not feel sure
of what he had touched. Besides. he
I.aI M i -
to what Gorlias might have In the skin
besides his lines and his coil of rope.
Gorlias now got the end of the fish,
ing line ashore, and took il in his
teeth in order to climb up the inclined
plane OF the pier on his hands and
feet, ape fashion. In a few seconds he
had found the end OF a string that
hung down from the blackness above.
with small stone tied to il to keep
1t from being blown adrift To this
string he bent the fishing line. Until
this was done neither of the men had
made the least sound that could posi-
bly, be heard above. but now Gorlias
gave a signal. 1t was the cry of the
beautiful little owl that haunts ruined
houses in Italy and the east, one soft
and musical note. repeated at short
and regular intervals. The bird al
ways gives II thus. but for the signal
Gorlias whistled 1t twice each time. in
stead of once. No living owl ever did
that. and yet it was thousand to one
that nobody would notice the difference
IL any one heard him at all, except the
person for whom the call was meant.
He had not been whistl;ng more than
a quarter OF a minute when he felt
the Irvine passing upward through his
fingers and then the tine after it. He
let the latter run through his hand TO
be sure that it did not foul and kink.
though he had purpose:y chosen one
that had been long in use. and he had
kept Ii in dry place for week.
Zeno had dropped his cloak in the
stern of the boat before getting out
and he now sat at the waters edge
with his hands on the moving line
ready to check the end when Ii came.
in case 1t We're not already fast to the
rope that was to follow ~. But Goriias
had done that beforehand. lest any
time should be lost. and presently Zeno
felt the line growing taut as it began
to pull on the rope itself
This had single overland knots in 1t.
about two feet apart, for climbing, and
instead of coiling Ii down GorIias had
ranged 1T fore and aft on the forward
thwarts SO that IT came ashore clear.
Whatever the astrologer's original pro-
fession had been. il was evident that he
understood how to handle rope as we'll
as II he had been to sea- Moreover.
Zeno, who was as much a sailor as a
soldier. understood from the speed at
which the rope was now taken up that
there was tolerably strong person at
the other end of ii. high up in the top
most story OF the tower The end came
sooner than he expected. and a slight
noise of something catching and knock
ing against the inner side OF the boat