"You may accompany your mistress; if I find myself in need of you I will call." "I's afeard you won't t'ink yourself in need ob me, if some more ob dem scamps come pokin' round de doah up dere." "Well, I will try to take care of them myself, but I give you my word if your help is needed it will be asked." This was the most that the servant could get from her master, and she had no choice but to do as directed. Mrs. Shirril led the way down the ladder, followed by her servant, and they quickly found themselves on the lower floor. Enough smoke remained in the room to cause Dinah another fit of sneezing, but the shattered window and the opening of the door at the head of the primitive stairs gave such good vent that a rapid improvement took place. "I don't see that there is much for us to do," remarked the mistress, taking her place near the door, and out of range of either of the windows, "but they may try something of which we have no suspicion, and, if so, we shall have the chance to do better service here than above stairs." "Poserbly, but it doesn't strike me dat way; seems to me dat fiah am 'ginning to flare up again." The smothering blanket by this time was so far consumed that the embers showed beneath, though with less strength than at first. They diffused a slight illumination through the room, and enabled the two women to see each other's figures dimly, as they moved silently about, alert, listening, and watchful. The embers could have been extinguished by making use of the same means as before, but the certainty of a denser volume of strangling smoke, to say nothing of the loss of the valuable article, prevented any use of the remedy. "Bress my soul, if dar isn't anoder warmint!" Dinah, rifle in hand, had stationed herself by the heavy door, against which she slightly leaned. As she did so, she felt an almost insensible yielding on its part, as though a powerful pressure on the outside was being exerted to force it inward. "How can you know that?" asked her mistress, stepping to her side. "Jes put your hand right here and feel for yourself." The delicate hand of the lady was placed against the structure, and there could be no doubt that someone was pushing strongly against the other side. "Yes," said she in a low voice, "they are there, but they can do no harm, as long as they confine themselves to that." "S'pose dey butt dar heads agin it?" "It will be worse for their heads than for the door, but I think your people are the only ones who work that way." "Dat's 'cause we hab de hardest kind ob heads," was the truthful response; "but mebbe dey's usin' somethin' else to break in de door." "It can do no injury if they do," replied Mrs. Shirril, who could not shake off a feeling of uneasiness because of the discovery.