got away with the loot: then you
can go on the burst till all's blue. Each man wants his wits about him,
for the present."

"You mean the bank," said Carnac.

The leader of the gang nodded.

"I've fossicked around the premises," continued the gentleman in the
velvet coat, "and I must confess that they're the most trifling push _I_
ever saw. There's the manager, a feeble rat of a man; another fellow
that's short-sighted and wears specs.; a boy, and the teller, a swell
who wears gloves on his boots and looks as if he laced himself up in
stays."

"I reckon there's a rusty old revolver hanging on a nail somewheres,"
remarked Garstang.

"Most likely," said Dolphin, "but our plan is to walk in comfortable and
easy just before closing-time. I'll present a faked-up cheque which'll
cause a consultation between the teller and the short-sighted party. In
the meantime, Carnac will interview the manager about sending a draft to
his wife in England. You, Garstang, will stand ready to bar the front
door, and William will attend to the office-boy and the door at the
back. Just as the clerks are talking about the cheque, I'll whip out my
weapon and bail 'em up, and then the scheme will go like clock-work."

"But suppose there's a mob of customers in the place?" asked Garstang.

"A lot of harmless sheep!" replied Dolphin. "It'll be your duty to bail
them up. There's a big strong-room at the back, well-ventilated,
commodious, and dry. We'll hustle everybody into that, and you and
William will stand guard over them. Then Carnac will bring the manager
from his room, and with the persuasion of two pistols at his head the
little old gentleman will no doubt do the civil in showing us where he
stows his dollars. There'll be plenty of time: the bank will be closed
just as in the ordinary course of things. We'll do the job thoroughly,
and when we've cleaned the place out, we'll lock all the parties up in
the strong-room, and quit by the back door as soon as it's dusk."

"Sounds O.K.," remarked Sweet William, "but there'll be a picnic before
morning. I reckon we'll need to get away pretty sudden."

"That can be arranged in two ways," said Dolphin. "First, we can choose
a day when a steamer is leaving port early in the evening, say, eight
o'clock; or we can take to the bush, and make our way across country.
I've turned over both plans in my mind, and I rather prefer the latter.
But that is a point I leave to you--I'll fall in with the op