The manner of their escape had cost them much thought.
Should they slip out of the front door instead of going to bed?
But the woodwork of the farm was old and creaking, and the bolts and bars heavy.

They were generally secured before supper by Hannah herself, and, though they might be surreptitiously oiled, the children despaired--considering how close the kitchen was to the front door--of getting out without rousing Hannah's sharp ears.
Other projects, in which windows and ropes played a part, were discussed.

David held strongly that he alone could have managed any one of them, but he declined flatly to attempt them with a 'gell.' In the same way he alone could have made his way up the Scout and over the river in the dark.

But who'd try it with a 'gell'?
The boy's natural conviction of the uselessness of 'gells' was never more disagreeably expressed than on this occasion.

But he could not shake Louie off.