ing of the wind grew fainter and fainter on my ear. The last sounds
I heard before I fairly dozed off to sleep were the cheerful crackling
of the fire and the steady purring of the cat, as she basked luxuriously
in the warm light on the hearth. Those were the last sounds before I
fell asleep. The sound that woke me was one loud bang at the front door.

I started up, with my heart (as the saying is) in my mouth, with a
frightful momentary shuddering at the roots of my hair--I started up
breathless, cold and motionless, waiting in the silence I hardly knew
for what, doubtful at first whether I had dreamed about the bang at the
door, or whether the blow had really been struck on it.

In a minute or less there came a second bang, louder than the first. I
ran out into the passage.

"Who's there?"

"Let us in," answered a voice, which I recognised immediately as the
voice of Shifty Dick.

"Wait a bit, my dear, and let me explain," said a second voice, in the
low, oily, jeering tones of Dick's companion--the wickedly clever little
man whom he called Jerry. "You are alone in the house, my pretty little
dear. You may crack your sweet voice with screeching, and there's nobody
near to hear you. Listen to reason, my love, and let us in. We don't
want cider this time--we only want a very neat-looking pocketbook
which you happen to have, and your late excellent mother's four silver
teaspoons, which you keep so nice and clean on the chimney-piece. If you
let us in we won't hurt a hair of your head, my cherub, and we promise
to go away the moment we have got what we want, unless you particularly
wish us to stop to tea. If you keep us out, we shall be obliged to break
into the house and then--"

"And then," burst in Shifty Dick, "we'll _mash_ you!"

"Yes," said Jerry, "we'll mash you, my beauty. But you won't drive us to
doing that, will you? You will let us in?"

This long parley gave me time to recover from the effect which the
first bang at the door had produced on my nerves. The threats of the two
villains would have terrified some women out of their senses, but the
only result they produced on _me_ was violent indignation. I had, thank
God, a strong spirit of my own, and the cool, contemptuous insolence of
the man Jerry effectually roused it.

"You cowardly villains!" I screamed at them through the door. "You think
you can frighten me because I am only a poor girl left alone in the
house. You ragamuffin thieves, I defy yo