I sprang from the chair, drew the bed back to the centre of the room, and began my assault on the wall.

There was no necessity now for silence, and I dug recklessly into the mortar with my broken knife blade, wrenching forth the loosened stones, until I had thus successfully opened a space amply sufficient for my purpose.

A glance down the chimney was not reassuring, no gleam of light being visible, yet I was desperate enough to take the chance of discovering some opening below.

There remained but this one means of attaining the lower floor, and no time for hesitation.

I tore both sheets from the bed, binding them securely together, and twisting them into a rope strong enough to sustain my weight.