Be calm and keep perfectly quiet." And I would say no more.
In a very short time I heard the window below us open softly,
and I knew the burglar was entering the parlour from the side
porch. I counted twenty, which I had figured would be the time
required for him to reach the dining-room, and then, when I was
sure he must have seen the silver shining in the glass case, I
slowly pulled on the steel cable and raised case and silver to
the hall above. Sarah began to whisper to me, but I silenced her.
What I had expected happened. The burglar, seeing the silver
rise through the ceiling, left the dining-room and went into the
hall. There, from the foot of the stairs, he could see the case
glowing in the hall above, and without hesitation he mounted the
stairs. As he reached the top I had a good view of him, for he
was silhouetted against the light that glowed from the silver
case. He was a most brutal looking fellow of the prize-fighting
type, but I almost laughed aloud when I saw his build. He was
short and chunky. As he stepped forward to grasp the silver case,
I let the steel cable run through my fingers, and the case and
its precious contents slid noiselessly down to the dining-room.
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