The Irish priest puzzled and pondered and grew black in the face with his efforts to get to the solution of this problem, and at length succeeded—­to his own satisfaction, at any rate.  What is more, when he explained his plan to Ethel, she adopted it.  She started, it is true; she shuddered, she recoiled from it at first, but finally she adopted it.  Furthermore, she took it upon herself to persuade Hawbury to fall in with it.

So much with regard to Hawbury.  For Minnie and her sister the indefatigable priest had already concocted a plan before leaving home.  This was the very commonplace plan of a disguise.  It was to be an old woman’s apparel, and he trusted to the chapter of accidents to make the plan a success.  He noticed with pleasure that some women were at the place, and thought that the prisoners might be confounded with them.

When at length Ethel had explained the plan to Hawbury he made a few further objections, but finally declared himself ready to carry it out.

The priest now began to put his project into execution.  He had brought a screw-driver with him, and with this he took out the screws from the coffin one by one, as quietly as possible.

Then the lid was lifted off, and Hawbury arose and helped the priest to transfer the corpse from the coffin to the straw.  They then put the corpse on its side, with the face to the wall, and bound the hands behind it, and the feet also.  The priest then took Hawbury’s handkerchief and bound it around the head of the corpse.  One or two rugs that lay near were thrown over the figure, so that it at length looked like a sleeping man.

Hawbury now got into the coffin and lay down on his back at full length.  The priest had brought some bits of wood with him, and these he put on the edge of the coffin in such a way that the lid would be kept off at a distance of about a quarter of an inch.  Through this opening Hawbury could have all the air that was requisite for breathing.

Then Ethel assisted the priest to lift the lid on.

Thus far all had been quiet; but now a slight noise was heard below.  Some men were moving.  Ethel was distracted with anxiety, but the priest was as cool as a clock.  He whispered to her to go back to the room where she belonged.

“Will you be able to finish it?” she asked.

“Sure an’ I will—­only don’t you be afther stayin’ here any longer.”

At this Ethel stole back to Minnie’s room, and stood listening with a quick-beating heart.

But the priest worked coolly and dextrously.  He felt for the holes to which the screws belonged, and succeeded in putting in two of them.

Then there was a noise in the hall below.

The priest began to put in the third screw.

There were footsteps on the stairs.

He screwed on.

Nearer and nearer came the steps.

The priest still kept to his task.