k at night, the particular burglar to whom I owe so
much, effected an entrance into the hotel through a basement window, and
quietly made his way up stairs. Every one was asleep except myself, and
I was planning all sorts of expedients to conquer the prejudices of my
mother-in-law that was to be. Mrs. Pinkerton's room opened on a long
corridor, near the end of which my modest seven-by-nine snuggery was
situated. It was a warm night, and the transoms over the doors of almost
all the bed-chambers had been left open to admit the air. A gleam of
light from a dark-lantern, coming through my transom, was what led me to
hastily don a pair of trousers and take my revolver from my valise. Then
I opened my door very cautiously, without having struck a light, and
could see--nothing! I waited a few moments, almost holding my breath. At
the end of those few moments I could make out the form of a man swarming
over the top of the door of Mrs. Pinkerton's room. His head and
shoulders were already inside the room, and I could see his legs wriggle
about as he noiselessly wormed his way through the narrow transom. It
took me but a brief second of time to glide forward on tiptoe and mount
the same chair which had been used by the intruder in climbing to the
transom. This done, I seized both the wriggling legs simultaneously, and
gave a tremendous pull.

My excitement must have imbued me with double my natural strength, and
the result of that pull was simply indescribable. Burglar,
transom-glass, chair and all, went in a heap on the floor of the
corridor, producing the most appalling and unearthly racket conceivable.
The whole house was in an uproar in a moment. People seemed to spring up
from every square foot of floor in the corridor as if by magic. Cries of
"Fire!" "Murder!" "Help!" and screams of frightened women, rose on every
hand. The costumes which I beheld on that momentous occasion were not
only varied but exceedingly amusing and picturesque as well. The
assembled multitude found nothing to interest them, however. I alone was
to be seen, seated on a broken chair, with a rapidly swelling black eye,
while broken glass and an extinguished lantern lay on the floor. I told
the male guests what had happened. The burglar had not waited to ask for
my card, but had contented himself with planting one blow from the
shoulder on my left eye, before I could get upon my legs. And my
revolver. Well, I had not had the ghost of a chance to use it.