And far away at the Fort the gong chimed the hours regularly up to twelve, and begun at one again.
But there was no fuss, no noise. The crowd stood their ground, giving no inch, and authority stood its ground and yielded none, since in that lay safety for all.
So, with a horrible slowness, the day dragged on, until at last the red sun sank behind the levels beyond the gaol; and the strain was over!
"I'll take a biscuit in my pocket next time," said the police officer, cheerfully, as, bit by bit, the stones of the courtyard began to show between the golden-shod feet. "Inspector! send your men to quarters, and let them eat their food." Then he walked over and looked down into the deep empty tank.
"It might have been full up," he said. "We couldn't have stopped them for a moment if they had had any sort of a lead over. And from what you told the Commissioner, sir,"--he turned to Father Ninian--"I was afraid of one."
The old priest stood watching the crowd disperse for a moment in silence.
"So was I," he said, "but I was mistaken, so far. Still, there is danger in the air. I feel it. I hear it."
And as he spoke, above the hum of the crowd, silent no longer, rose that insistent throbbing of the old God-maker's drum.