The
rescuer had seated himself on one of the pots, and was about to
lower on Biffen's side a ladder which had enabled him to ascend
from the other. Biffen planted the lowest rung very carefully on
the ridge of the roof, climbed as lightly as possible, got a
footing between two pots; the ladder was then pulled over, and
both men descended in safety.
'Have you seen a coat lying about here?' was Biffen's first
question. 'I threw mine over.'
'What did you do that for?'
'There are some valuable papers in the pockets.'
They searched in vain; on neither side of the roof was the coat
discoverable.
'You must have pitched it into the street,' said the man.
This was a terrible blow; Biffen forgot his rescue from
destruction in lament for the loss of his manuscript. He would
have pursued the fruitless search, but his companion, who feared
that the fire might spread to adjoining houses, insisted on his
passing through the trap-door and descending the stairs.'If the
coat fell into the street,' Biffen said, when they were down on
the ground floor, 'of course it's lost; it would be stolen at
once.
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