Two more roofs were crossed in the same way, and then they prepared to descend.

They had, when they put on their disguises, tied knots in the rope at a distance of a foot apart.

They now adjusted the hook on the parapet.
"Shall I go first, master, or will you ?" "I will go first, though in fact it matters little which of us does it; but first I must warm my fingers.

I don't think that I could trust to them at present." He gathered a handful of snow, made it into a ball, and held it in his hands until the cold pained him, then he dropped the snow and thrust his hands up the sleeves of his doublet.

Paolo looked on in astonishment, but having great faith in his master imitated his example.
"That is a curious way of warming the hands," he said.
"I daresay you have made snowballs in your time, Paolo, and if you have you will remember that, although it made your hands bitterly cold at first, after you had done they soon became almost as hot as fire." "I do remember that, master, but I should never have thought of it as a way of warming our hands." For a minute or two there was a sharp pain as the blood began to rush into the fingers, and when this passed off their hands were in a glow.
Hector took the rope, lowered himself over the parapet, and then began to descend.