Page:Doctor Syn - A Smuggler Tale of the Romney Marsh.djvu/153

 Morgan Walters then gave his version of what happened in the night, which bore out certain points of the bo'sun's story.

He had soon fallen into a deep sleep, but was awakened with a feeling that something was wrong. He tried to move but couldn't; indeed, he could scarcely breathe. The only things that he could see were two dark forms moving about the room, but their faces were lit up by a curious light. These two things passed out of the room, and then for what seemed an interminable time Morgan Walters worked away at his bonds, and presently became aware that his companion was doing likewise. They couldn't talk, for they found that, just as soon as they tried to, the breath that they took in through the anæsthetic overpowered their senses. Presently Morgan Walters thought that he could hear the sound of horses. It sounded like a regiment of pack-ponies trotting on the highroad—"tlip tlop" they went, a slow "tlip tlop," and a lot of them, too. These were his very words. Then he heard a sigh of satisfaction from his companion, and saw him stand up, for he had partially unbound himself. Whether to let in the refreshing sea sir, or whether he had also heard the horses and wanted to locate them, Morgan Walters couldn't say, but Bill Spiker had got to the broken window and unbolted the shutters. He felt the cold air come into the room with a great gasp, and then he seemed to have dozed off again, but the next thing he heard was a great