"I have never seen a fire;" and he broke into a run.
Others were running in the same direction, and as he passed the "Elephant and Castle" the crowd became thicker, and when within fifty yards of the house he could no longer advance.

He could see the flames now rising high in the air.

A horrible fear seized him.
"It must be," he exclaimed to himself, "either our house or the one next door." It was in vain that he pressed forward to see more nearly.

A line of policemen was drawn up across the road to keep a large space clear for the firemen.

Behind the policemen the crowd were thickly packed.