ent to bed, but not to sleep. I placed my gun under my
pillow, locked and bolted the door, and arranged a string cunningly
across the open window so that an intruder--unless he had extraordinary
luck--could not have failed to kick up a devil of a clatter. I was
young, bold, without nerves; so that I think I can truthfully say I was
not in the least frightened. But I cannot deny I was nervous--or rather
the whole situation was on my nerves. I lay on my back staring straight
at the ceiling. I caught myself gripping the sheets and listening. Only
there was nothing to listen to. The night was absolutely still. There
were no frogs, no owls, no crickets even. The firm old adobe walls gave
off no creak nor snap of timbers. The world was muffled--I almost said
smothered. The psychological effect was that of blank darkness, the
black darkness of far underground, although the moon was sailing the
heavens.

How long that lasted I could not tell you. But at last the silence was
broken by the cheerful chirp of a frog. Never was sound more grateful to
the ear! I lay drinking it in as thirstily as water after a day on the
desert. It seemed that the world breathed again, was coming alive after
syncope. And then beneath that loud and cheerful singing I became aware
of duller half-heard movements; and a moment or so later yellow lights
began to flicker through the transom high at the blank wall of the
room, and to reflect in wavering patches on the ceiling. Evidently
somebody was afoot outside with a lantern.

I crept from the bed, moved the table beneath the transom, and climbed
atop. The opening was still a foot or so above my head. Being young,
strong, and active, I drew myself up by the strength of my arms so I
could look--until my muscles gave out!

I saw four men with lanterns moving here and there among some willows
that bordered what seemed to be an irrigating ditch with water. They
were armed with long clubs. Old Man Hooper, in an overcoat, stood in a
commanding position. They seemed to be searching. Suddenly from a clump
of bushes one of the men uttered an exclamation of triumph. I saw his
long club rise and fall. At that instant my tired fingers slipped from
the ledge and I had to let myself drop to the table. When a moment later
I regained my vantage point, I found that the whole crew had
disappeared.

Nothing more happened that night. At times I dozed in a broken sort of
fashion, but never actually fell into sound sleep.