He went to the window and looked out. If it had been on the second floor the difficulty would have been less, but it was an attic window, and over twenty feet from the ground. There was no ell part beneath; but the distance to the ground was unbroken.
A sudden thought struck John. He turned up the bed, and found that it rested upon an interlacing cord. Why could he not detach this cord, and, fastening it to some fixed object in the chamber, descend with safety to the ground? The plan no sooner occurred to John than he determined to carry it into execution.
The rope proved to be quite long enough for his purpose. He fastened one end securely, and dropped the other over the sill. Looking down, he saw that it nearly reached the ground. He had no fear of trusting himself to it. He had always been good at climbing ropes, and was very strong in the arms.
"After all," he thought, "this is better than to have gone downstairs. I might have stumbled over something in the dark, and Mr. Huxter would have been roused by the noise."
He got out of the window, and swung out. He let himself down as noiselessly as possible. In less than a minute he stood upon the ground, under the gray morning sky.
He looked up to Mr. Huxter's window, but everything was still. Evidently no one had heard him.
"So far, so good," thought John. "Now I must travel as many miles as possible between now and six o'clock. That will give me a good start if I am pursued."
John hoped he would meet no one who would recognize him. But in this he was disappointed. He had walked six miles, when he heard his name called from behind. Startled, he looked back hastily, and to his relief discovered that the call came from David Wallace, who had taken him up on his first journey to Milbank.
"Where are you going, John?" asked David. "Don't you want to ride?"
He jumped on board the wagon, and took a seat beside David.
"You are travelling early, David," he said.
"Just what I was going to say to you," said David, laughing. "Are you walking for your health?"
"Not exactly," said John. "I've a great mind to tell you. You won't tell?"
"Then, I've left Mr. Huxter without bidding him good-by."
"Good!" said David. "I don't blame you a bit. Tell me how it happened."