There was a rush for the door.
True enough, the uniform-case was outside.
Jonah and I had its cords off in twenty seconds.
One hinge was broken and some khaki was protruding.
Adèle thrust the key into the lock. This was too stiff for her fingers, so after a desperate struggle, she let me have at the wards….
After an exhausting two minutes we sent for a cold-chisel….
As the lock yielded, Berry appeared upon the scene.
For a moment he stared at us. Then—
"But why not gun-cotton?" he inquired. "That's the stuff to open a broken box with, if you don't like the look of the key. You know, you're thwarting me. And don't try to turn the lid back, because there aren't any hin——"
The sentence was never finished.