It was easier to scamper up the pathway than climb the wooden steps, and the dog hurried to reach the top; but a slight noise made him pause and look at the thick brush near him.  There was nothing to be seen, but Jan’s ears listened sharply while his sensitive nose sniffed the air suspiciously.  One sniff was enough to make the hair bristle along his back.  William, his old enemy, was near.

Jan whirled quickly, his eyes shining with fury and hate, and his hair formed a stiff ridge along his back while his teeth gleamed in a snarl.  Something slipped over his head and despite his struggles, it twisted tightly around his neck.  A strange odor made him sick and weak when he tried to breathe.  His paws clawed in his attempts to tear the sack from his head, so that he could breathe and fight, but his legs grew limp, a noise sounded inside his ears, something seemed to be hammering at the top of his head.  He made one more effort, staggered a few steps, then crumpled down on the sand.  But he knew it was William’s boot that kicked him, and William’s voice that said, “Guess that will settle you.”  Jan tried to growl but he was too sick to make a sound.

The next thing he knew was when he woke in a strange dark place.  His whole body was stiff and sore, he felt sick all over and something hurt his nose terribly.  His paws clawed at the thing that hurt.  It was made of wire that cut deeply in his flesh.  He knew it was a muzzle, for he had seen other dogs suffer from them.  The more he clawed, the worse it hurt.

Then he rubbed his head sideways on the floor, but this made matters worse, so he gave up fighting and lay with his nose against the floor until he could stand the pain no longer.  When he staggered to his feet, he found a rope held him, but when he tried to chew the rope the muzzle kept his jaws closed so that he was barely able to thrust the tip of his swollen tongue between his front teeth.

Jan suffered torture, not only because the wire cut his flesh, but also because any dog, when frightened, sick, or too hot, becomes feverish and his tongue hangs from his mouth.  That is the way a dog sweats, and Prince Jan’s mouth was clamped together by the muzzle.  He could not hear any noise in the room, so he lay down and kept very quiet.  There was really nothing else he could do, except howl.  He knew that William had something to do with all this trouble, and he hated William more than ever.

A door opened.  Jan sprang to his feet, hoping he might be able to break the rope and escape before the door was closed.  He crouched and leaped with all his strength, but the rope was too strong and he fell with a thud to the floor, where he panted heavily.  A flash of light almost blinded him, but he saw William and snarled defiance.  Another man was in the room.  Jan caught a glimpse of him, gave a sniff, and knew that this other man was the one who had been with William in the Pixley stable.  He felt that he had two enemies now to fight.