"There was great confusion," said Mrs. Leigh.
"There always is. Now if I was the captain of a fire company, I'd manage differently. I'd say to this man, go here, and to that man, go there, and they should not dare to utter a word. Then the fires would be put out."
"Who was that in the hall, Jack?" inquired Bessy.
"A big dog; a most tremendous fellow. He came running alongside of me on the street, and turned up the steps as I did. Somebody's lost him, I suppose. I put him in the yard till daylight, and then I can see him and look up his owner."
"Was he a pretty dog?" said Bess eagerly.
"How could I tell? I told you I didn't see him. As he brushed by me, I felt that he was a strapping fellow. The hall's as dark as pitch."
"You didn't fix him with your eye, then?"
Jack said nothing, but lighted his candle and went to bed.
The next morning he was awakened by a thumping at the door, and in rushed Bessy, wild with excitement, the morning newspaper in her hand.
"O, Jack, listen to this!" jumping on the bed and beginning to read breathlessly: