"Ralph! Oh, my son!" cried Mr. Rexworth, as he saw the peril in which the brave lad stood. And the boy turned and looked at his father.  
"I cannot hold on here much longer, father," he said. "I shall have to drop, and take my chance with the dogs."
 
"Wait—wait a moment, Ralph!" answered the agonized man. "Let me get down and attract their attention, and then you will have a chance."
 
"Don't, don't father," implored Ralph. "What chance will you have with them with your arm hurt? I may manage it."
 
"I will do it," volunteered Mr. Charlton; "I am uninjured. You stay here, sir."
 
"Don't either of you do it!" cried Ralph, shifting his position a little so as to avoid the smoke if he could. "I am going to try and creep back a bit. I may find a better place."
 
"It is useless, Ralph," was his father's answer. "The wall is cracking behind you. I can see the smoke coming through. Oh, if we only had a rope!"
 
[Pg 287]
 
"A rope!" cried Mr. Charlton. "If a rope can aid in such an extremity, I can supply that; for I have kept a long one on my person in case I might be in need of it to escape from my own enemies."
 
As he spoke he threw off his coat and waistcoat, and there, wound round his body, was a long but fine line, one quite long enough to serve the purpose of reaching to where Ralph clung, though he could not see of what avail it would be.
 
But Mr. Rexworth saw. And, shouting to Ralph to keep up his courage and to look out, he threw one end of the rope—not to the boy—but up over another branch of the tree that was some height above them. Then he caught this end as it fell, and gave the other to Mr. Charlton, bidding him give one turn round the trunk and hold on with all his might. The other end he whirled round his head, and, with practised aim, he sent it to Ralph, who gripped at it with one hand, having to risk falling to earth as he did so.
 
With practised aim, he sent the rope to Ralph
"With practised aim, he sent the rope to Ralph, who gripped it
with one hand." p. 287
 
But, having got it, the rest was easy. He was able to swing across that fiery gulf which separated him from safety, and the next moment was safely beside his father, while the dogs ran to the tree and leaped against its trunk in vain rage. And almost at that moment the wall to which he had been clinging collapsed and fell in fiery ruin. A few moments sooner, and it would have carried the brave boy with it to his death.
 
Safe so far, but still held prisoners by those dogs;[Pg 288] and still with the flame and smoke blowing upon them. If the walls fell in their direction death might claim them after all.
 
"If we only had some weapon to beat these brutes off with," said Mr. Charlton, as he looked down. But Mr. Rexworth replied—
 
"We had better remain here. The fire is sure to be seen, and help will arrive soon."
 
Help! Yes, help for Ralph and his father. But what would that help mean to poor Mr. Charlton—what but being taken prisoner again? He sighed, but said nothing. He had done his best to help the boy who had helped him, and if that must be the price paid he would pay it.
 
But Ralph had little idea of remaining perched in a tree. He saw that there was a weapon, and one which, in skilful hands, would prove very effective—one which he excelled in the use of.
 
The rope was coiled in his hands, and a running noose was formed at one end. He crawled far out on the branch, and got a firm hold with his legs; then he gave his rope a whirl, and sent it flying downwards. And soon one of those great dogs was jerked into mid-air, and when it touched earth again it was dead—its neck was broken.
 
They hauled it up and loosened the noose, letting the body fall heavily to the earth. And ere long the second animal had shared its fate, and there was nothing to hinder them from descending.
 
[Pg 289]
 
Nothing! No, that was not quite right. There was a desperate man, who had remained hidden, to see the result of his wicked work—a man whose face was dark with wrath, and whose heart was maddened with fear. For if these escaped unscathed, it meant the ruin of everything for him.
 
Mr. Charlton and Ralph had helped Mr. Rexworth to the ground, and either from weakness, or from the reaction of feeling, Mr. Rexworth staggered and sunk half swooning at the foot of the tree; while the other two bent over him anxiously.
 
That was the chance. Lord Elgert and his brutal follower suddenly dashed from the shelter of the trees and rushed upon them. The man was armed with a rugged stick, and Lord Elgert had a heavily-loaded whip. It seemed as if the others were at their mercy; but Ralph's quick ear caught the sound of their approach, and with a cry of warning he started up. The others were almost upon them, and they were unarmed. The lad glanced around; at his feet one of the dead dogs lay; he seized it, he put out all his strength, and sent the heavy body direct at the pair, who, quite unprepared for such an unexpected assault, received it full in their faces.
 
The man fell heavily, Lord Elgert turned and fled. And Ralph, with an eager cry, darted after him, rope in hand. The............