Outside the office, the soldiers, led by the hermit and Woodward continued to batter at the door.
"Now—go down that stairway—ahead of me," ordered Del Mar.
Elaine obeyed tensely, and he followed into his emergency exit, closing the trap.
"Beat harder, men," urged the hermit, as the soldiers battered at the door.
They redoubled their efforts and the door bent and swayed.
At last it fell in under the sheer weight of the blows.
"By George—he's gone—with Elaine," cried the hermit, looking at the empty office.
Feverishly they hunted about for a means of escape but could find none.
"Pound the floor and walls with the butts of your guns," ordered
Arnold. "There must be some place that is hollow."
They did so, going over all inch by inch.