still more wonderful thing. The shutters of the drawing-room window

were flung open violently, and the housemaid in her outdoor hat and

garments, appeared struggling in a frantic manner to throw up the

sash. Suddenly a man appeared beside her, helping her--Dr. Kemp!

In another moment the window was open, and the housemaid was

struggling out; she pitched forward and vanished among the shrubs.

Mr. Heelas stood up, exclaiming vaguely and vehemently at all these

wonderful things. He saw Kemp stand on the sill, spring from the

window, and reappear almost instantaneously running along a path in

the shrubbery and stooping as he ran, like a man who evades

observation. He vanished behind a laburnum, and appeared again

clambering over a fence that abutted on the open down. In a second

he had tumbled over and was running at a tremendous pace down the

slope towards Mr. Heelas.

"Lord!" cried Mr. Heelas, struck with an idea; "it's that Invisible

Man brute! It's right, after all!"

With Mr. Heelas to think things like that was to act, and his cook

watching him from the top window was amazed to see him come pelting

towards the house at a good nine miles an hour. There was a

slamming of doors, a ringing of bells, and the voice of Mr. Heelas

bellowing like a bull. "Shut the doors, shut the windows, shut

everything!--the Invisible Man is coming!" Instantly the house was

full of screams and directions, and scurrying feet. He ran himself

to shut the French windows that opened on the veranda; as he did so

232

The Invisible Man