Nothing down here worth wrecking,€ she said, making for the stairs. Up through the dark house they went, until she paused outside a bolted door.

Now, if you really can undo that bolr!€ she said to Pongo, Goodness knows, I’ve tried often enough.

Oh, he’s splendid at bolts,€ said Missis proudly.

It was a nice chromium bolt, well oiled. It gave Pongo no trouble at all.

There was enough light from the lamps on the Outer Circle to show them a big room in which were many racks of fur coats.

Why, Cruella must own dozens of them!€ thought Missis. And there were many fur stoles, muffs, etcetera, too.

Pongo barked his orders. Four pups to a coat, two pups to a stole, one pup to a muff. Present teeth! Tear-r-r!!!€

There was not space enough in one room to finish the whole job, so the pups spread themselves throughout the house. After that the fur flew with a vengeance in every direction. Chinchilla, Sable, Mink, and Beaver, Nutria, Fox, Kolinsky, and many humbler skins from kitchen to attic the house was filled with a fog of fur. And the white cat did not forget the ermine sheets. She did good work on those herself, moving so fast that it was hard to see which was clawed white ermine and which was clawing white cat.

I’ve been slack,€ she said. I could have got at these years ago.€

One needs company for a job like this,€ said Pongo.

No more furs to tear now,€ said the Cadpig sadly. She had just shredded a little sable tippet all by herself.

Quiet! barked Pongo suddenly. Had his ears deceived him? No, there it was again a distant blast from the loudest motor-horn in England! The next instant, the pups outside barked the alarm.

Down, down to the coal cellar!€ barked Pongo.

There was a wild scurry of pups down the dark stairs. The white cat sprang to a window. You’ll have time,€ she cried. The car’s only just turned into the Outer Circle.€

But Pongo knew how fast that car could come. And pups were falling over one another in the darkness; there were bumps and yelps. Roly Poly fell through the banisters it was amazing that he was not hurt. But at last they were all streaming out of the coal cellar into the mews.

In your places for counting!€ barked Pongo. He had long ago invented a quick way of counting the army. Pups formed nine rows of ten, and one row of seven, which included the Cadpig in her cart. Swiftly he counted now. Ninety-three, ninety-four. There were three pups missing!

They must be somewhere in the house,€ cried Missis. We must rescue them!

Pongo dashed towards the coal cellar then stopped, gasping with relief. Lucky and the two loud-barked pups were just coming from the front of the house. Pongo had forgotten them in his counting. The army was complete!