Page:Cornelia Meigs-The Pirate of Jasper Peak.djvu/151

 quick panting over by the inner doorway where the invading creature must be standing.

With a great effort Hugh managed to close the door against the fury of the wind. Still there was quiet, no movement from that corner whence  the quick breathing came. Very slowly he took up the lamp, managed to steady his shaking hand  and fumble for a match. He set the lamp on the table, lit the wick and turned the light full upon  his strange visitor. Even when he saw the creature clearly he could not, for a moment, grasp what it really was. It was a dog, but such an enormous dog as Hugh had never seen before. Its shaggy coat was white, and so wet with the rain that water dripped from it and ran pattering  to the floor. Motionless, it stood there, still panting from the effort of forcing its way in, and gazing steadily at Hugh with its great melancholy  black eyes. He had never seen such an animal before, still there was something familiar—yes,  he could have no doubt. It was the dog of the picture, Dick Edmonds’ dog, it was Nicholas!

The two stood long, staring at each other