he top had been removed, and setting his makeshift lantern on
the other. "In broad daylight, when it can't be spotted from the
outside, you shall have as much artificial light as you like. If you
want to do some writing, that's the top of the desk on end against the
mantlepiece. You'll never have a better chance so far as interruption
goes. But no midnight oil or electricity! You observe that their last
care was to fix up these shutters; they appear to have taken the top
off the desk to get at 'em without standing on it; but the beastly
things wouldn't go all the way up, and the strip they leave would give
us away to the backs of the other houses if we lit up after dark. Mind
that telephone! If you touch the receiver they will know at the
exchange that the house is not empty, and I wouldn't put it past the
colonel to have told them exactly how long he was going to be away.
He's pretty particular: look at the strips of paper to keep the dust
off his precious books!"

"Is he a colonel?" I asked, perceiving that Raffles referred to the
absentee householder.

"Of sappers," he replied, "and a V.C. into the bargain, confound him!
Got it at Rorke's Drift; prison governor or inspector ever since;
favorite recreation, what do you think? Revolver shooting! You can
read all about him in his own Who's Who. A devil of a chap to tackle,
Bunny, when he's at home!"

"And where is he now?" I asked uneasily. "And do you know he isn't on
his way home?"

"Switzerland," replied Raffles, chuckling; "he wrote one too many
labels, and was considerate enough to leave it behind for our guidance.
Well, no one ever comes back from Switzerland at the beginning of
September, you know; and nobody ever thinks of coming back before the
servants. When they turn up they won't get in. I keep the latch
jammed, but the servants will think it's jammed itself, and while
they're gone for the locksmith we shall walk out like gentlemen--if we
haven't done so already."

"As you walked in, I suppose?"

Raffles shook his head in the dim light to which my sight was growing
inured.

"No, Bunny, I regret to say I came in through the dormer window. They
were painting next door but one. I never did like ladder work, but it
takes less time than in picking a lock in the broad light of a street
lamp."

"So they left you a latch-key as well as everything else!"

"No, Bunny. I was just able to make that for myself. I am playing at
'Robinson Crusoe