he cove in
that heat--no; much as he would enjoy a dip he wasn't prepared to
undergo that amount of exertion to get it.

As the gathering storm seemed unlikely to break suddenly, I did not
unduly hurry over my dip, but remained in the water about an hour,
emerging at last delightfully cool, and quite ready for bed. Upon my
return to the house I found Billy still up and poring over a book; but
he confessed to feeling sleepy, upon which I ordered the boy off to bed
forthwith and, extinguishing the lamp in the living-room, retired to my
own apartment and straightway turned in; being quickly lulled to sleep
by the sound of pouring rain that began just as I stretched myself upon
my bed.

It seemed as though I had only just fallen asleep when I awoke with
startling suddenness. The rain was pelting down on the roof in
torrents, making quite noise enough to account for my sudden awakening,
through which I could just hear poor Kit whining and fidgeting
restlessly under the veranda, outside my French window. Imagining that
it was these combined sounds that had awakened me, I rose, thinking:

"I must fetch that animal indoors. I expect the poor beggar is getting
pretty wet, hence his restlessness."

One of the doors of my room opened into the living-room, while the other
gave on to the veranda, both of them being wide open. As I passed
through the latter a vivid flash of lightning revealed the rain coming
straight down in sheets and rebounding in glittering spray off the
already streaming earth, with Kit straining at his leash, which Billy
had made fast as usual to one of the veranda posts. The beast had
withdrawn himself as far under the veranda as his leash would permit,
and he did not appear to be very wet; but he seemed anxious to enjoy the
more complete shelter of the living-room, so I stepped out and cast him
adrift.

To my amazement, the instant that I released him from his leash, he tore
himself away from my hold upon his collar and, with a savage snarl,
bounded through the living-room door. The next instant there issued
from the interior of the room a yell of consternation, immediately
followed by a shriek of terror, the fall of a heavy body on the floor,
screams, execrations, and the dreadful sound of Kit worrying somebody or
something; and before I could draw another breath the figure of a
yelling, screaming, frantic man dashed from the room, cleared the
veranda steps at a bound, landed heavily on the groun