He expected no doubt to find the coin in one great glittering heap,
but he was mistaken; for the cautious miser had twelve compartments
in the safe, each one of which was secured by two locks, no one of
which resembled the other.
'This,' thought the prying gentleman,' reminds one of the story of
the Sleepen Beauty--it was so hard to get near her. Drageens,
serpents, firey horses, and terrible birds with steel bills. But here
goes.'
One compartment was soon opened, and from this our friend drew a
little tin box which was also locked. It was very heavy, but The
Lifter had no mind to carry away possibly a bit of lead. So he opened
the box, and found a mass of sovereigns, shining as if they had just
come from the mint.
'All right,' he muttered, and laid them upon the floor.
At this instant, a mouse ran across the floor, and then about a
dozen others, shrieking like a sharp blast of autumn wind. The Lifter
rose to his feet and glanced about, and then shaded the feeble glim
with his hand.
Many of the locks that he found were very intricate, and more than
two hours passed away ere he secured the contents of five of the
lockers.
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