“Open this door!” he shouted, pounding upon the panels. “It will be the better for you.”

No attention was paid to this. Dave continued to hammer on the door.

“You’re a thief!” he cried. “I’ll rouse the whole hotel and leave you publicly disgraced if you don’t come out. I want back the property you stole from me, and I’m bound to have it.”

Dave made a spring. His foot landed on the outside door knob. He caught at the tilted transom to steady himself. Just then a figure came hurrying down the corridor. Dave’s foot was seized and he was dragged to the floor.

“Here, what you up to, with all this noise?” demanded his captor, a hall man of the hotel, by his uniform.

“There’s a thief in that room,” cried Dave breathlessly.

“A thief?”

“Yes.”

“How do you know?”

“He robbed me. He just slammed the door in my face. Have you a key to that room?”