The boys found that the alley climbed up a steep slope, and they stumbled up the ascent with breathless haste. The man who pursued them was shorter, older, and less agile, so, although he was carrying nothing, and Sidney, at least, was well loaded, the boys managed to keep ahead. Raymond, however, stepped on a loose stone and floundered along, barely saving himself, with his hands on the rising ground, from a complete fall. He felt, rather than saw, that their pursuer was close upon him. He made up his mind that if it came to a grapple he would call out to Sidney for help, and run the risk of bringing others whom they would not want. But with a supreme effort he recovered his balance in time to save himself from the grasp of the man behind. Up, up, they struggled until their pounding hearts and panting lungs nearly suffocated them. The walls continued along the sides with no change that was perceptible in the darkness, and the boys wondered on what plan the village could be constructed. At last Sidney came to the end of the alley and found there was an opening, a similar narrow passageway, to the left. Around that corner the alley extended on a level, and having made the turn, Sidney’s road was much easier. He soon came to a blind wall across the passage, and groping along its face, in the corner between that wall and the wall of the alley, he felt a ladder. Sidney hesitated for a moment, wondering where the ladder could lead, but as he could find no opening in the wall, and as he could not well turn back, he went up it. After climbing eight or ten feet he stepped over the top of the ladder to a level surface that was apparently a dozen feet or so wide. At the left there seemed to be only space, but on the right rose a wall in which dimly showed an opening. He stood and listened. From down in the alley came the noise of Raymond and his pursuer running. Then for a moment there was a pause in the sound, followed by a heavy thud, and in another moment the sound of a blow. Sidney strained his eyes to see into the gloom below, to discover, if possible, what was happening there. Failing in that he threw his blankets down on the ground and grasped the ladder to descend, fearing that harm had come to his brother. As he did so, one person instead of two came running along the darkness below, and the figure blundered into the wall at the end. “Is that you, Ray?” Sidney whispered. “Yes,” was the reply from below. “There is a ladder, a little to your left,” he directed.