130 THE STORY OF JAGKO II 



On entering the studio Tony was pleased to find all 

 in good order and Jacko peacefully asleep on his cushions. 

 He went to bed and was soon fast asleep too. 



Not long after midnight he was roused by such a 

 rattling of old irons that anyone might have thought that 

 all the ghosts in Mrs. Radcliffe's novels were dragging 

 their chains about the room. Tony did not much believe 

 in ghosts, but fearing some one might be breaking in to 

 steal his wood he stretched out his hand towards an 

 antique halberd which hung on the wall. But in an 

 instant or two he discovered the cause of all this noise, 

 and shouted to Jacko to lie down and be quiet. 



Jacko obeyed, and Tony made all haste to fall asleep 

 again. At the end of half an hour he was once more 

 aroused by smothered groans and cries. As the house 

 stood in an out-of-the-way part of the town Tony thought 

 some one was being murdered under his very windows. 

 He jumped out of bed, seized a pair of pistols, and ran to 

 open the window. The night was still, the street quiet, not 

 a sound disturbed the peace of the neighbourhood ; so he 

 closed the window and realised that the groans came from 

 inside the room. Now, as he and Jacko w r ere its only 

 occupants, and as he certainly had not uttered a sound 

 himself, he went straight to Jacko, who, not knowing what 

 to do, had amused himself running round and round the 

 leg of the table till his chain shortened, and as he continued 

 turning round he found himself suddenly pulled up short 

 by the collar. It never occurred to him to run round the 

 other way, so he only choked more and more with each 

 attempt to free himself. Hence the groans which had 

 disturbed his master. 



Tony promptly unwound the chain from the leg of 

 the table, and Jacko, happy to be able to breathe once 

 more, retired humbly and quietly to bed. Tony also 

 lay down hoping for a good sleep at last ; but he reckoned 

 without Jacko, who had been disturbed in his regular 

 habits. He had slept his usual eight hours early in the. 



