Here it was plain there was some special commotion. A noise
of laughter went up into the still night air, and with it now and
again the snarl and roar of a great beast, and now and again the
shriek of a hurt man. But whatever might be afoot, it was not a
scene to come upon suddenly. The entrance gates of our great
capital were designed by their ancient builders to be no less
strong than the walls themselves. Four pairs of valves were there,
each a monstrous block of stone two man-heights square, and a
man-height thick, and the wall was doubled to receive them,
enclosing an open circus between its two parts. The four gates
themselves were set one at the inner, one at the outer side of each
of these walls, and a hidden machinery so connected them, that of
each set one could not open till the other was closed; and as for
forcing them without war engines, one might as foolishly try to
push down the royal pyramid with the bare hand.

My escort made outcry with the horn which hung from the wall
inviting such a summons, and a warder came to an arrow-slit, and
did inspection of our persons and business. His survey was
according to the ancient form of words, which is long, and this was
made still more tedious by the noise from within, which ever and
again drowned all speech between us entirely.

But at last the formalities had been duly complied with, and
he shot back the massive bars and bolts of stone, and threw ajar
one monstrous stone valve of the door. Into the chamber within--a
chamber made from the thickness of the wall between the two
doors--I and my fellows crowded, and then the warder with his
machines pulled to the valve which had been opened, and came to me
again through the press of my escort, bowing low to the ground.