e dog was facing directly
toward me, and its eyes, now wide open, flamed upon me with strange and
awful whiteness. I sprang up the steps and was at the beast's side in an
instant; but I found the head, as before, resting upon the paws, the
eyes half closed and dull, the water gushing down into the basin.

As I bathed my shaking hands and clammy forehead, I laughed with deep
irritation. I said then to myself that the ignorant could hardly be
blamed for even the wildest superstitions, when a cool-headed and
enlightened modern like myself was so wrought upon by the fictions of
his brain. I philosophized for some time, however, before I got the
better of my repugnance to that doorway. I humorously assured myself
that, at the worst, this incomprehensible beast was securely anchored to
his fountain; and that if anything terrible were at the other side of
the door which I was going to open, it surely could not be capable of
much, good or ill, after its century or so of imprisonment. Then I
walked firmly straight to the doorway and down the seven steps; and I
knew that first one eye was turned upon me, then both; the water was
silent before I had gone ten paces.

It was useless trying to conquer the creeping of my skin, the fear that
pricked along my nerves; so, bidding my reason ignore these minor
discomforts, I busied myself with the problem of loosening the
bolt-socket. It occurred to me at the time that there might be an easier
entrance at the other side of the wall, as nothing in this neighborhood
was in good enough repair to boast of more than three walls standing;
but no, that would have been a concession to my illusions. I chipped
away at the soft stone with my knife. I jerked hard upon the bolt, which
gave a little, with clatter of falling stucco; and on the instant I
faced around like lightning, in an indescribable horror. There, at the
very top of the steps, crouched the dog, its head thrust down close to
my face. The stone jaws were grinning apart. A most appalling menace was
in the wide, white eyes. I know I tugged once more upon the bolt, for a
great piece of the door and arch crumbled and came away; and I thought,
as the head closed down, that I made a wild spring to get past the
crouching form. Then reason and consciousness forsook me.

When sense returned, I found myself lying on a pile of rags, in a
darkish, garlicky hut, with the morning sunlight streaming in through
the open door. I sat up, with the memory