CHAPTER II
UP IN THE TOP STORY
One bright morning in May, a portly gentleman, leaning heavily on a
gold-headed cane, was walking up the narrow city street. The houses
here were so high that the upper windows could scarcely be seen from
below. A steep rise in the street caused the gentleman to stop from
time to time to get his breath. Scrutinizing the house numbers, he
said to himself several times: "Not yet, not yet." Then, climbing up
still higher, he at last reached a house beside whose open door six
bells were hanging.
The gentleman now began to study the names under the bells, meanwhile
gravely shaking his head, for he did not seem to find the name he was
seeking.
"Oh dear, at last! and the highest one up, too," he sighed, while he
entered the house. Now the real climbing began. At first the steps,
though rather high, were white and neat. But after a while they became
dark and narrow, and in the end the way led over worn, uneven steps
to a narrow door. The only standing room was on the last small step.
Pages:
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
25
26
27
28
29
30
31
32
33
34
35