"I will," he returned, and dropping her jewel casket and her money box in her lap, he made again for the burning building.
"No use of trying to go up there," cried one of the firemen. "The stairs is burning already."
"Then why not get a ladder and put it up to the window?" asked Robert.
"Aint got no ladder," came from another man. "Maybe she had better jump."
"She'll break her neck if she jumps," said Robert. He looked up at the window and then at a tree which grew nearby. One of the branches of the tree was within four feet of the opening.
"Please save me!" shrieked the girl. "The room is full of smoke already!"
"Don't jump!" answered Robert. He turned to the firemen. "Give me a boost up into the tree."
"You can't reach the window from there," said one of the men.
"I think I can. But hurry, or it will be too late."
The firemen did as requested, and up the tree went Robert with the agility of a cat. He felt that it was a veritable climb for life.