e, bunch apparently following bunch. Listen! Some one is talking
in an abusive voice! What's that? A gruesome, sing-song voice repeating
unintelligible words: "I-oi! huh, huh! I-oi, huh-huh!" There is a sound
as if of crackling fire. The flames cannot be seen; but they can be
heard!

Old Jordan jerked the door open, and cried like a child.

Philippina was standing in the midst of a pile of burning papers. She
had forced Daniel's trunk open, thrown every one of his scores on the
floor, and set them on fire. She was a fearful object to behold. Her
hair hung down loose and straggly over her shoulders, she was swinging
her arms as if she were working a pump-handle, and from her mouth poured
forth a volley of loud, babbling, gurgling tones that bore not the
faintest resemblance to anything human. Her face, lightened by the
flames, was coloured with the trace of fearful voluptuousness. Herr
Carovius and old Jordan stood in the doorway as if paralysed. Seeing
them, she began to hop about, and stretched out her upraised arms to the
flames, which were leaping higher and higher.

Herr Carovius, awakening from his torpidity, saw that it was high time
to make some effort to escape. Shielding his face with his hands, he
fled as fast as his feet could carry him to the hall door and down the
steps. Tears were gushing down Jordan's cheeks; fear had made it
impossible for him to reflect. He ran back into his room, opened the
window, and called out to the people on the square. Then he chanced to
think of his beloved doll. He rushed up to it and took it under his arm.
But when he tried to leave the room, the smoke blew into his face,
benumbing and burning him. He staggered, reached the top of the stairs,
made a misstep, fell headlong down the steps, still holding the doll in
convulsive embrace, twitched a few times, and then lay lifeless on the
hall floor.

Heart failure had put an end to his life.

Dorothea, who had been in the house packing her things, hastened,
luggage in hand, past the corpse. Her face was ashen; she never looked
at the dead body of Inspector Jordan. She was soon lost in the crowd of
excited people. She had vanished.

IX

The police had at last separated Daniel and the American in Frau
Hadebusch's house. Daniel fell on a chair, and gazed stupidly into
space. Frau Hadebusch brought him some water. The American put on his
clothes, while the spectators looked on and laughed.