"Yes, perhaps; but by dislodging part of the rubble you may cause a sort of landslide and bury us completely. I vote we exercise just a little more patience." They had been conversing in whispers, lest the sound of their voices might be heard by a sentry, for it was quite possible that the Germans might think they had not accounted for the whole garrison of the ruined farmhouse. They had good reason to believe that the British dispatch-rider had taken refuge there; the only chance was that they might have come to the conclusion that Rollo was one of the unrecognizable victims of the deadly shell. Slowly the hours of darkness passed, the silence broken only at intervals by the dull grinding of the subsiding debris and by a desultory, whispered conversation between the lads. Then Kenneth became aware that he could indistinctly discern his companion's face The long-hoped-for dawn had come at last. In another half-hour it was light enough to form a fairly accurate idea of the state of affairs. The prisoners were in a triangular-shaped space, two sides consisting of the adjoining walls of the cellar. The third was composed of a bank of broken bricks and stones, diminishing in thickness as it grew in height. Overhead a part of the vaulted roof had fallen, but the brickwork remained cemented together, forming a shield from the rubble above it. But for this mass of brickwork the lads would have been crushed to death by the immense weight of the ruined walls of the farm-house. Between the topmost bricks and the overhead protection quite a strong light penetrated into the cavity where they crouched. The early morning sun was shining directly upon the heap of debris. "I think we can shift this stuff," remarked Kenneth, cautiously feeling a loose brickbat. "All right, carry on," replied Rollo. "Only be careful to test each piece of rubble before you remove it. If we cannot make a hole through in that direction we must try cutting through the existing wall. It will be a tough job, but you have your knife." "I hope we won't have to do that. The cement is as hard as iron. It would take us a week. Let's hope for the best." Proceeding very cautiously, Kenneth removed enough of the debris to disclose an opening sufficiently large to thrust his head through. Upon attempting to enlarge the hole the mass began to slide; the overhead slab of brickwork rumbled. "Steady on!" cautioned Rollo in alarm. "The whole show's caving in." "It won't any more," declared Kenneth after a brief investigation. "See that wedge-shaped brick? It's acting as a keystone of an arch. All we have to do is to remove the rubbish from the lower part of the hole and squeeze out sideways." In another half-hour the gap through the mound of rubble was enlarged to roughly eighteen inches wide and two feet in height. To all appearances the danger of further subsidence was past.