aster Builder hurried along at his side, and before they had
reached the end of the bridge there were quite a dozen of the
householders or their servants joining the procession to the scene
of the conflagration. Until they reached the corner of Thames
Street they saw nothing beyond the red column of flame and the
showers of sparks mingling with clouds of smoke; but when once they
reached the corner, a terrible sight was revealed to them, for the
whole block of buildings between Pudding Lane and New Fish Street
was a mass of flames, and the fire seemed to be like a living
thing, driven onwards before some mighty compelling power.

"God preserve us all! it will be upon us in an hour if nothing be
done to check it," cried Harmer in sudden dismay.

"What is being done? What are the people doing?" cried a score of
voices.

But what indeed could the terrified people do, wakened out of their
sleep in the dead of night to find their houses burning about their
ears? They were running helter skelter this way and that, not
knowing which way to turn, like so many frightened sheep. Not that
they thought as yet that this fire was going to be so very
different from other bad fires which some of them had seen; for
their wooden and plaster houses burned down too readily at all
times, and were built up easily enough afterwards. A little farther
off the people were trying to get their goods out of the houses,
that they might not lose all if the fire came their way. But those
actually burned out seemed to do nothing but stand helplessly by
looking on; and perhaps it was only the Master Builder himself who
at this moment realized that there was a very serious peril
threatening the whole quarter of the city where the fire had broken
out, and had already taken such hold.

The wind being slightly north as well as east in its direction, it
seemed reasonable to hope that the conflagration would not cross
Thames Street in a southerly direction, in which case the bridge
would be safe; and, indeed, as New Fish Street was a fairly wide
thoroughfare, it was rather confidently hoped that this might prove
a check to the fire. The Master Builder ran up the street crying
out to the terrified inhabitants to get all the water they could
and fling it upon the roofs and walls of their dwellings, to strive
to keep the flames at bay; but there was scarcely one to listen or
try to obey. The people were all hurrying out of their houses,
bringing their fami