ing, 'You may as well come down, old boy. 'Twas a spry jump, and we
give ye credit for 't.'

The latter movement of Loveday had been a mere feint. Partly hidden by
the leaves he glided back to the other part of the tree, from whence it
was easy to jump upon a thatch-covered out-house. This intention they
did not appear to suspect, which gave him the opportunity of sliding down
the slope and entering the back door of the mill.

'He's here, he's here!' the men exclaimed, running back from the tree.

By this time they had obtained another light, and pursued him closely
along the back quarters of the mill. Bob had entered the lower room,
seized hold of the chain by which the flour-sacks were hoisted from story
to story by connexion with the mill-wheel, and pulled the rope that hung
alongside for the purpose of throwing it into gear. The foremost
pursuers arrived just in time to see Captain Bob's legs and shoe-buckles
vanishing through the trap-door in the joists overhead, his person having
been whirled up by the machinery like any bag of flour, and the trap
falling to behind him.

'He's gone up by the hoist!' said the sergeant, running up the ladder in
the corner to the next floor, and elevating the light just in time to see
Bob's suspended figure ascending in the same way through the same sort of
trap into the second floor. The second trap also fell together behind
him, and he was lost to view as before.

It was more difficult to follow now; there was only a flimsy little
ladder, and the men ascended cautiously. When they stepped out upon the
loft it was empty.

'He must ha' let go here,' said one of the marines, who knew more about
mills than the others. 'If he had held fast a moment longer, he would
have been dashed against that beam.'

They looked up. The hook by which Bob had held on had ascended to the
roof, and was winding round the cylinder. Nothing was visible elsewhere
but boarded divisions like the stalls of a stable, on each side of the
stage they stood upon, these compartments being more or less heaped up
with wheat and barley in the grain.

'Perhaps he's buried himself in the corn.'

The whole crew jumped into the corn-bins, and stirred about their yellow
contents; but neither arm, leg, nor coat-tail was uncovered. They
removed sacks, peeped among the rafters of the roof, but to no purpose.
The lieutenant began to fume at the loss of time.

'What cursed fools to let the man go! Why, look