Carrying the lad to some little distance from the house, to be out of
the way of the firemen when they arrived and set to work with their
apparatus, Doctor Halleck laid his burden on the ground. Then he
called for some water, and the old man told one of the boys how to get
a supply from the well close by.

When this was fetched, the physician, who had already been holding a
small phial containing ammonia, Jack suspected, to the cripple's nose,
set to work to bathe his patient's face with the cool liquid.

"Oh! tell me the worst, Doctor, please!" begged old Mr. Adkins,
wringing his hands as, by the light of the fire, he looked at the
white face of little Carl, seemingly so corpse-like. "Is he dead, my
poor, poor boy?"

"Nonsense, Mr. Adkins, he will be all right inside of five minutes,"
said the doctor, brusquely, for like many other people he had never
liked the old miser. "He has inhaled considerable of the smoke, and
must have fainted away up there in his room, after calling out for
help without being heard. I give you my word, sir, there is nothing
serious the matter with him; though had he remained in that terrible
atmosphere a short time longer all efforts to resuscitate him would be
in vain. You owe a lot to the boy who brought him out in time, let me
tell you, sir."

At that the old man turned upon Jack Winter, and clutched his hand
almost fiercely. He was about to pour out a torrent of words telling
how grateful he felt, when to the great relief of the boy a shout
arose that drowned everything else out.