The Stories of the Three Burglars | Page 8

each gave a start and a little scream, and huddled themselves
close to me, and the three burglars gazed at them with faces that
expressed more astonishment than any I had ever seen before. The stout
fellow gave vent to a smothered exclamation, and the face of the young
man flushed, but not one of them spoke.
"Are you sure they are tied fast?" whispered my Aunt Martha to me.
"Perfectly," I answered; "if I had not been sure I should not have
allowed you to come down."
Thereupon the ladies picked up courage and stepped further into the
room.
"Did you and David catch them?" asked my aunt; "and how in the
world did you do it?"
"I'll tell you all about that another time," I said, "and you had better go
upstairs as soon as you two have seen what sort of people are these
cowardly burglars who sneak or break into the houses of respectable
people at night, and rob and steal and ruin other people's property with
no more conscience or human feeling than is possessed by the rats
which steal your corn, or the polecats which kill your chickens."
"I can scarcely believe," said Aunt Martha, "that that young man is a
real burglar."
At these words the eyes of the fellow spoken of glowed as he fixed
them on Aunt Martha, but he did not say a word, and the paleness

which had returned to his face did not change.
"Have they told you who they are?" asked my wife.
"I haven't asked them," I said. "And now don't you think you had better
go upstairs?"
"It seems to me," said Aunt Martha, "that those ropes must hurt them."
The tall man now spoke. "Indeed they do, madam," he said in a low
voice and very respectful manner, "they are very tight."
I told David to look at all the cords and see if any of them were too
tightly drawn.
"It's all nonsense, sir," said he, when he had finished the examination;
"not one of the ropes is a bit too tight. All they want is a chance to pull
out their ugly hands."
"Of course," said Aunt Martha, "if it would be unsafe to loosen the
knots I wouldn't do it. Are they to be sent to prison?"
"Yes," said I; "as soon as the day breaks I shall send down for the
police."
I now heard a slight sound at the door, and turning, saw Alice, our maid
of the house, who was peeping in at the door. Alice was a modest girl,
and quite pretty.
"I heard the noise and the talking, sir," she said, "and when I found the
ladies had gone down to see what it was, I thought I would come too."
"And where is the cook," asked my wife; "don't she want to see
burglars?"
"Not a bit of it," answered Alice, very emphatically. "As soon as I told
her what it was she covered up her head with the bedclothes and
declared, ma'am, that she would never get up until they were entirely
gone out of the house."
At this the stout man grinned.
"I wish you'd all cover up your heads," he said. The tall man looked at
him severely, and he said no more.
David did not move from his post near the three burglars, but he turned
toward Alice and looked at her. We knew that he had tender feelings
toward the girl, and I think that he did not approve of her being there.
"Have they stolen anything?" asked Aunt Martha.
"They have not had any chance to take anything away," I said; and my
wife remarked that whether they had stolen anything or not, they had
made a dreadful mess on the floor, and had broken the table. They

should certainly be punished.
At this she made a motion as if she would leave the room, and an
anxious expression immediately came on the face of the tall man, who
had evidently been revolving something in his mind.
"Madam," he said, "we are very sorry that we have broken your table,
and that we have damaged some of your glass and your carpet. I assure
you, however, that nothing of the kind would have happened but for
that drugged wine, which was doubtless intended for a medicine, and
not a beverage; but weary and chilled as we were when we arrived,
madam, we were glad to partake of it, supposing it ordinary wine."
I could not help showing a little pride at the success of my scheme.
"The refreshment was intended for fellows of your class, and I am very
glad you accepted it."
The tall man did not answer me, but he again addressed my wife.
"Madam," he said, "if you