'Come, my beauties, it is time for us to be off, so wake up and come along.' I stood nearest the door, so he came to me first, patting me as he came in.

The next thing I heard was James' voice, quiet and cheery, as it always was. Then I heard a cry of 'Fire!' outside, and the old hostler quietly and quickly came in he got one horse out, and went to another, but the flames were playing round the trapdoor, and the roaring overhead was dreadful. The fresh air that had come in through the open door made it easier to breathe, but the rushing sound overhead grew louder, and as I looked upward through the bars of my empty rack I saw a red light flickering on the wall. No doubt we were very foolish, but danger seemed to be all round, and there was nobody we knew to trust in, and all was strange and uncertain. He tried us all by turns and then left the stable. He came to me next and tried to drag me out of the stall by force of course that was no use. The first horse would not go with him he tried the second and third, and they too would not stir. The other horses were all awake some were pulling at their halters, others stamping.Īt last I heard steps outside, and the hostler who had put up the traveler's horse burst into the stable with a lantern, and began to untie the horses, and try to lead them out but he seemed in such a hurry and so frightened himself that he frightened me still more. I did not know what it was, but there was something in the sound so strange that it made me tremble all over. I listened, and heard a soft rushing sort of noise and a low crackling and snapping. The trapdoor had been left open, and I thought that was the place it came through. I heard Ginger coughing and one of the other horses seemed very restless it was quite dark, and I could see nothing, but the stable seemed full of smoke, and I hardly knew how to breathe. I got up the air seemed all thick and choking. I cannot say how long I had slept, nor what time in the night it was, but I woke up very uncomfortable, though I hardly knew why. James came in to look at us the last thing, and then the door was locked. 'All right,' said the other, and went up through the trapdoor and I heard him step across the floor overhead and put down the hay. 'I say, Towler,' said the hostler, 'just run up the ladder into the loft and put some hay down into this horse's rack, will you? only lay down your pipe.' Later on in the evening a traveler's horse was brought in by the second hostler, and while he was cleaning him a young man with a pipe in his mouth lounged into the stable to gossip.

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