“That doesn’t prevent you from speaking up if you get an idea.” [[135]]

My hand touched something on the roof building’s outside wooden wall. I felt around for a moment or two.

“All right,” I laughed. “I’ve got an idea.”

“I’m listening.”

“We’ll go down the office chimney. Santa Claus stuff.”

“Jinks!”

“Here’s ladder steps,” I told him, “leading to the roof. See? And you know how big the chimney is.”

That was another queer thing that Mr. Matson had done: The fireplace that he had built in his crazy roof office had a chimney as big as a sugar barrel.

Having suggested the idea, I led the way.

“Get the rope,” I whispered to Scoop from the small building’s roof, “and come up and let me down the chimney.”