where the rope hung down, and he thought it was the creaking
of the rope on the floor as the swaying of the bell raised and lowered
it. Looking up, however, he saw in the dim light the great rat
clinging to the rope and gnawing it. The rope was already nearly
gnawed through--he could see the lighter colour where the strands were
laid bare. As he looked the job was completed, and the severed end of
the rope fell clattering on the oaken floor, whilst for an instant the
great rat remained like a knob or tassel at the end of the rope, which
now began to sway to and fro. Malcolmson felt for a moment another
pang of terror as he thought that now the possibility of calling the
outer world to his assistance was cut off, but an intense anger took
its place, and seizing the book he was reading he hurled it at the
rat. The blow was well aimed, but before the missile could reach him
the rat dropped off and struck the floor with a soft thud. Malcolmson
instantly rushed over towards him, but it darted away and disappeared
in the darkness of the shadows of the room. Malcolmson felt that his
work was over for the night, and determined then and there to vary the
monotony of the proceedings by a hunt for the rat, and took off the
green shade of the lamp so as to insure a wider spreading light. As he
did so the gloom of the upper part of the room was relieved, and in
the new flood of light, great by comparison with the previous
darkness, the pictures on the wall stood out boldly. From where he
stood, Malcolmson saw right opposite to him the third picture on the
wall from the right of the fireplace. He rubbed his eyes in surprise,
and then a great fear began to come upon him.

In the centre of the picture was a great irregular patch of brown
canvas, as fresh as when it was stretched on the frame. The background
was as before, with chair and chimney-corner and rope, but the figure
of the Judge had disappeared.

Malcolmson, almost in a chill of horror, turned slowly round, and then
he began to shake and tremble like a man in a palsy. His strength
seemed to have left him, and he was incapable of action or movement,
hardly even of thought. He could only see and hear.

There, on the great high-backed carved oak chair sat the Judge in his
robes of scarlet and ermine, with his baleful eyes glaring
vindictively, and a smile of triumph on the resolute, cruel mouth, as
he lifted with his hands a _black cap_. Malcolmson felt as if the
blood was ru