The Little Nugget

te. His hands and feet were tied. As I looked at him, he moved, as if straining against his bonds, and I was conscious of a feeling of relief. That sound that had reac

in his case the sand-bag had been utilized. He had bee

g seemed to have been turned out on a pattern. Externally, they might all have been twins. This man, to give him a semb

owards the classroom. 'I've locked dem in. What's doi

plained Mr MacGinnis. 'De kid ai

guor disappeared wi

Here, let me beat

iled, as concerned myself, among the members of Mr MacGinnis's gang. Men, doubtless of varying o

en off me. Though feeling no friendlier towards me than did his assistants, he declined to allow sentiment to interfere with business. He concentra

ustached man sank back against the wall again with an air of dejection, sucking his cigar now like one who has

e dormitories were the three boys who had been stricken down with colds on the occasion of Mr MacGinnis's

with something of the feelings of a drum

n,' sa

ne of th

ourself

I urged. 'We're

he said austerely

n the dormitories. The only other room was Mr Abney's; and, as we came

his depths. He 'pointed' a

dere?' h

ter not disturb him

struction on my solic

er becam

door, you,

e him a na

n! Op

will ever find me disobliging. I opened the door-knocking first, a

taring at the ceiling, and our entrance did n

ief. Muffled sounds, as of distant explosions of dynamite, together wit

trode past me, and, having prodded with the pistol that part of the bedclothes beneath which a rou

e-box. One might almost say that

Buck had appeared to him hitherto, if they appeared at all, only in dreams after injudicious suppers. Even in the ordinary costume of the Bowery gentleman, w

His hair, disturbed by contact with the pillow, gave the impression of standin

ouse ain't in a dime museum.

I have flattered him. In reality, his mode of speech suggested that he had something large and unwieldy permanently stuck in his mouth; and it was

faction to oneself. Buck stood by the bedside in moo

dea of action occurred to me. Until this moment, I suppose, the strangeness and unexpectedness of these happenings had numbed my brain. To precede Buck meekly upstairs and to wait with equal

ink; and, my mind making up for its previous inaction by work

nce with the geography of Sanstead House and Buck's ignorance of it. Let me but get an adequ

leave me between the door and himself. I supposed he relied too

on the switch of the electric li

and swung it into the space between us. The

was not in a position to be deterred by the prospect of a bruise or two. I had not failed to realize that my position was one of extreme peril. When Buck, concluding the tour of the house, found that the Little Nugget was not there-as I had reason to know that he would-there was no room for doubt that he would withdraw the protection which

few seconds, and I calculated that it would take Buck just those

peted landing. From the hall below came answering shouts, but with an interrogatory note in them. The assistants were willing, but puzzled. Th

hind me, before they could arrive at a

. A panel splintered beneath a kic

ver me in a wave, that numbing terror which comes to one in dreams. Indeed, the thing had become dream-like. I seemed to be stan