Get up with yer, and be off while your shoes are good." He took his great boot off my chest, and I started up.
"I wouldn't give much for yer," he growled, "if yer showed yer face here agen." He accompanied this with such a menacing look that I involuntarily shrank away, but recovering myself directly I seized the coil of rope and made for the door.
"What!" roared the great ruffian, snatching the rope, and, as I held on to it, dragging me back.

"Trying to steal, are you ?" "It's mine--it's ours," I cried passionately.
"Oh! I'll soon let yer know about that," he cried.

"Look here, mates; this is our rope, ain't it ?" "Yes," said one of them: "I'll swear to it." "It's mine," I cried, tugging at it angrily.
"Let go, will yer--d'yer hear; let go." He tugged and snatched at it savagely, and just then the boy leaped upon me, butting at me, and striking with all his might, infuriating me so by his cowardly attack, that, holding on to the rope with one hand, I swung round my doubled fist with the other and struck him with all my might.
It must have been a heavy blow right in the face, for he staggered back, caught against a chair, and then fell with a crash, howling dismally.
"Look at that, now," cried the big ruffian.

"Now he shall have it." "Serves him right!" said the woman passionately.
"Let the boy go, Ned, or you'll get into trouble." "I'll get into trouble for something then," cried the fellow savagely, as he hurt me terribly by jerking the rope out of my hand and catching me by the collar, when I saw the two men at the open door look round, and I heard a familiar growl on the stairs that made my heart leap with joy.
"Ike!--Here!--Ike!" I shouted with all my might.
"Hold yer row," hissed the great ruffian in a hoarse whisper, and clapping one hand behind my head he placed the other upon my mouth.
He dragged me round, half-choked and helpless, and then he said something over his shoulder to the woman, while I fought and struggled, and tried hard to shout again to Ike, whose heavy feet I could hear in the midst of a good deal of altercation on the stairs.
As I struggled to get free I saw that the window was opened and the rope thrown out.

Then the window was quickly shut, and I was dragged towards the door.
"Here, you be off outer this," whispered the great ruffian, with his lips close to my ear.