Funny thing, ain't it?"
"Yus," responded Cleek shortly. "Damn funny." It certainly was.
Unless ... he sucked in his breath and his lips pursed themselves
up to whistle. But no sound came.
And the work of unloading began.
CHAPTER XXV
THE WEB OF CIRCUMSTANCE
For a few days there was no more overtime to be earned by Cleek or
Dollops, so that they were free to spend their evening as they wished,
and though the "Pig and Whistle" got its fair share of their time--for
the sake of appearances--there were long hours afterward, between the
last tattered remnants of the night and the day's dawning, when they did
a vast amount of exploration.
That they made good use of this time was proved by the little note-book
that rested in Cleek's pocket, and in which a rough chart of the country
and the docks was drawn--though there were still some blanks to be filled
in--while opposite it was a rude outline of the secret passage into which
they had blundered three nights before.
"Got to explore that hole from end to end, Dollops," said Cleek on the
fourth evening, as they struck off together toward that gap in the hedge,
soon after the clock in the village had chimed out ten, and the little
bar of the "Pig and Whistle" was slowly emptying itself of its
_habitues_.
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