felt a thump as
if a cow had fallen on me, then I felt a sharp stab on the hip, two of
them one after the other, then the weight was lifted suddenly off and I
jumped up. As I put my feet on the ground I tumbled over Ivan here
and--who is it? Hold the lantern close to his face--ah, Koshkin. What is
it, Ivan, are you hurt?"

"He ran his knife pretty deep into my leg once or twice," Godfrey said.
"I got his arms pinned down, but I could not keep him from moving his
hands. If we had lain quiet he would have hurt me seriously, I expect;
but we were both struggling, so he only got a chance to give me a dig
now and then."

"But what is it all about, Ivan, for I don't quite understand yet?"
Mikail asked.

"I told you, Mikail, that fellow would do you a mischief. You laughed at
me, but I was quite sure that that smiling manner of his was all put on.
I have lain awake for the last five nights to watch, and to-night I just
caught sight of something crawling along at the edge of the bench. He
stood up at your feet and leant over, as I thought then, and I know now,
to stab you, but I flung myself on him, and you know the rest of it."

"Well, you have saved my life, there is no mistake about that," and
Mikail lifted and laid him on the bench. "Now," he said to the guards,
"you had better take that fellow out and put him in the guard cell, the
cold air will bring him round as soon as you get him out of this room.
You had better hold him tight when he does, for he is a slippery
customer. When you have locked him up will one of you go round to the
doctor's? This young fellow is bleeding fast, and I fancy I have lost a
good deal of blood myself."

As soon as the soldiers had left the ward carrying Koshkin between them
Mikail called Osip and Luka. "Here," he said, "get the lad's things down
from under his iron belt and try and stop the bleeding till the doctor
comes. I feel a bit faint myself or I would ask no one else to do it."

In ten minutes the doctor arrived. Godfrey had three cuts about half-way
between the hip and the knee.

"They are of no consequence except for the bleeding," the doctor said.
"Has anyone got a piece of cord?"

"There is a piece in my bag," Mikail replied. The doctor took it and
made a rough tourniquet above the wounds, then drew the edges together,
put in two stitches in each, and then strapped them up. Then he attended
to Mikail. "You have had a narrow escape," he said; "the knife has
struck on your