72 The Naturalist of Cumbrae. 



These little matters being settled, Robertson com- 

 menced his studies under Dr. Hunter, the professor 

 of anatomy, by whose advice he had adopted his 

 new career. 



The three students managed very well in their new 

 quarters. If they had none to help, neither had they 

 any to disturb them. Each took his turn at cooking 

 and such domestic duties as fell to their several 

 shares. The rooms were very convenient, with water 

 on the stairhead. A little girl who lived on the same 

 landing went on any errand that they required. 



There was one difficulty for them in the circum- 

 stance that there was only one key to the door, and 

 they mostly came in at different hours. To obtain 

 two other keys to fit the lock would have been 

 some trouble and expense. To meet this difficulty, 

 Robertson thought of a plan that would answer the 

 purpose as well as additional keys, and that would 

 be more secure against pick-locks. On the inner side 

 of the door there was a wooden bar that could be 

 shot into a keeper attached to the doorpost. To two 

 points of this bar he attached cords, by which it could 

 be drawn into and out of the keeper. The ends of 

 the cords he put through holes in the door, so that 

 the bar could be worked from outside. A piece of 

 wood for a latch was also arranged to fall behind the 

 bar when in the keeper, and this latch had to be 

 drawn up by a cord of its own before the bar itself 

 could be drawn back out of the keeper. Under this 

 arrangement, unless the latch were raised, it was of 

 no use to pull at the bar, and, even with the latch 

 raised and held up, pulling the wrong cord would 



