WEBVTT 00:00.000 --> 00:12.000 Tired of the everyday routine? Ever dream of a life of romantic adventure? Want to get 00:12.000 --> 00:19.120 away from it all? We offer you Escape! 00:20.960 --> 00:26.680 Escape! Designed to free you from the four walls of today for a half hour of 00:26.680 --> 00:36.240 high adventure. Tonight we escape to a lonely lighthouse off the steaming 00:36.240 --> 00:42.240 jungle coast of French Guiana and a nightmare world of terror and violence. As 00:42.240 --> 00:59.520 George Tudus describes it in his hair-raising tale, Three Skeleton Key. 00:59.520 --> 01:05.880 Picture this place, a gray tapering cylinder welded by iron rods and 01:05.880 --> 01:13.840 concrete to the key itself. A bare black rock 150 feet long, maybe 40 wide. That's 01:13.840 --> 01:20.840 at low tide. At high tide just the light rising 110 feet straight up out of the 01:20.840 --> 01:29.280 ocean. And all about it the churning water. Gray-green scum dappled, warm as 01:29.280 --> 01:35.040 soup and swarming with gigantic bat-like devil fish, great violet schools of 01:35.040 --> 01:43.920 Portuguese man-o-war and yes sharks, the big ones, the 15 footers. And as if this 01:43.920 --> 01:50.320 wasn't enough there was a hot, dank, rotten smelling wind that came at us day 01:50.320 --> 01:57.880 and night off the jungle swamps of the mainland. A wind that smelled like death. 01:57.880 --> 02:05.800 Set in the base of the light was a watertight bronze door and in you went 02:05.800 --> 02:15.200 and up, yes up and up and round and round, past the tanks of oil and the coils of 02:15.200 --> 02:22.520 rope, cases of wicks, racks of lanterns, sacks of spuds and cartons and cans and 02:22.520 --> 02:32.240 up and up and up, round and round. Over the light store room was the food store room and 02:32.240 --> 02:36.600 over the food store room was the bunk room where the three of us slept and 02:36.600 --> 02:41.120 over the bunk room was the living and cooking room and over the living and 02:41.120 --> 02:45.400 cooking room was the light. 02:45.400 --> 02:56.160 She was a beauty, balanced like a ballerina on the glistening steel axle of 02:56.160 --> 03:05.960 her rotary mechanism. At night you'd lie there on the stone deck of the gallery 03:05.960 --> 03:11.320 with the light revolving smoothly and quietly over your head, easing her bright 03:11.320 --> 03:18.200 white eye 360 degrees around the horizon. You'd lie there watching to see that the 03:18.200 --> 03:24.640 feeders kept working, that everything ran right. It wouldn't be bad. The other two 03:24.640 --> 03:30.040 fellows snoring in their sacks two levels down. You'd smoke your pipe to 03:30.040 --> 03:35.640 kill the stink of the wind and it wouldn't be bad. 03:35.640 --> 03:47.840 About those other two, Louis and Auguste. What a pair. Louis, he was head man, was a 03:47.840 --> 03:54.000 big fellow from the Basque Country. Black beard, little hard black eyes and a pair 03:54.000 --> 04:00.520 of arms that, I tell you, those arms were as big around as my legs. Yes, head man he 04:00.520 --> 04:06.640 was and what word he let go was law. Silent fellow and although I spent my 04:06.640 --> 04:10.960 first two weeks trying to strike up a real conversation, the most I could ever 04:10.960 --> 04:15.940 get out of him was... I took up this profession because I don't like people. 04:15.940 --> 04:23.800 They talk too much. It's quiet work, light tending. Let's keep it that way. 04:23.800 --> 04:29.140 You're getting to be as bad as Auguste. I thought maybe for once they'd send me 04:29.140 --> 04:34.240 somebody who was Louis and when he accused me of becoming like Auguste, I 04:34.240 --> 04:39.160 quieted down because Auguste was the talkingest man I've ever met. The 04:39.160 --> 04:44.480 talkingest and the ugliest. He was hunchbacked, stood four feet high, had 04:44.480 --> 04:49.840 red hair and big blue eyes. It seems he'd been an actor in Paris. Over 200 04:49.840 --> 04:54.880 different productions, dear boy, at the Grand Guignol. Oh, but it was monstrous, 04:54.880 --> 05:00.200 horrible. The way we used to scare the audience, I was hated. Yes, yes, they used 05:00.200 --> 05:05.000 to throw things and his and bare their teeth. That may finally have got too bad. 05:05.000 --> 05:10.800 I couldn't stand it any longer. I gave up the theater. My nerves, you understand. 05:10.800 --> 05:14.000 Yes, gave it up completely. I really did. 05:18.000 --> 05:24.640 It all started one morning at 2.30. I was on watch, lying on the cool stone 05:24.640 --> 05:30.400 deck, pulling on my pipe, staring out at the blackness, the phosphorescent comers 05:30.400 --> 05:36.880 and the big yellow stars. When out of the corner of my eye, I noticed something 05:36.880 --> 05:42.480 show up for a second, something the light had touched, far off. I waited for her to 05:42.480 --> 05:46.840 come around again and when she did, there it was. 05:46.840 --> 05:55.000 A three master, a big one, about a half mile off and coming down out of the 05:55.000 --> 05:59.400 north-northwest, coming straight for us. You must understand our light was where 05:59.400 --> 06:03.800 it was for a very good reason. Dangerous submerged reefs surrounded us and ships 06:03.800 --> 06:09.400 kept clear, but this one, this sailing vessel, was coming straight on. I went over 06:09.400 --> 06:11.640 to the gallery door and yelled down. 06:11.640 --> 06:17.640 Louis, Louis! Ship, headed for the reefs. I'm coming right up. 06:17.640 --> 06:22.840 I had the glasses out now. I couldn't read her name, but I could see her quite 06:22.840 --> 06:28.440 plainly. All sails set, the foam creaming away under her bow, her beautiful lines. 06:29.160 --> 06:34.280 A Dutch ship, I guessed her. Why didn't she turn? Every time it passed, our light 06:34.280 --> 06:39.080 hit her with a glare of day. Ship, where? North-northwest. The light will touch her 06:39.080 --> 06:44.680 in a moment. Well, can't she see us? Look at her. She just keeps coming on. The 06:44.680 --> 06:48.040 square heads. What is it? What is it? Watch, north-northwest. 06:49.240 --> 06:55.800 Ah, I know, I know what it is. What? The Dutchman, the flying Dutchman. We did a 06:55.800 --> 07:02.200 play about her. What a performance, you ghastly galleon, Hagridon, curse-driven, 07:02.200 --> 07:03.880 muston. Oh, shut up, will you? 07:03.880 --> 07:11.080 Oh, she's laughing. Yes. It's a sloppy way to come about. 07:12.440 --> 07:16.840 She's derelict, that's it. Derelict? Abandoned. Crew left her for some reason or 07:16.840 --> 07:21.080 another. But instead of sinking, she's gone on, running before every wind. She'll not 07:21.080 --> 07:27.480 run long. Not with his reefs to break her up. A beautiful ship. Now, why would men 07:27.480 --> 07:36.520 leave a beautiful ship like that? She didn't ram us, although we all expected 07:36.520 --> 07:41.640 it. But as we waited for the crash, she left again, caught some odd gust and went 07:41.640 --> 07:51.320 about. We watched her the rest of those black hours, healing and rocking, pushed 07:51.320 --> 07:57.640 and pulled by every stray wind, every freak current. Watched her until the dawn came, 07:58.360 --> 08:04.680 until the sea turned from black to pearly gray. And on she came again, heading for us. 08:05.400 --> 08:11.480 We all had our glasses trained on her now. August, you can kill the light. Right, chief. 08:11.480 --> 08:16.760 She doesn't look so good by daylight. Think she'll ground this time? I say, do you think 08:16.760 --> 08:25.000 she'll ground this time? This is impossible. Absolutely impossible. What? Here, take my 08:25.000 --> 08:33.400 glasses. They're better than yours. All right. What is it, your... I had to focus. And then, 08:34.680 --> 08:42.840 my breath froze in my throat. The decks were swarming with a dark brown carpet that looked 08:42.840 --> 08:50.280 like a gigantic fungus, but undulating. And on the masts and yards, the guys and all 08:51.160 --> 09:01.320 were hundreds, no thousands, no... I don't know. An inestimable number of tremendous rats. 09:01.320 --> 09:14.440 Yes. See them? Yes, I see them. Now we know why she's derelict. Yes, now we know. What 09:14.440 --> 09:21.960 are you two doing? Here, give me a look. Yes, give him the glasses. Take a good look, chatterbox. 09:21.960 --> 09:25.800 Give you something to talk about. She's still heading for us. Yes. 09:25.800 --> 09:29.960 If she's going to turn, she'd better turn soon. Suppose she doesn't. You mean suppose she piles 09:29.960 --> 09:36.520 up on the key? It's low tide. Yes, yes it is. Well, where's all the conversation, August? 09:37.560 --> 09:42.120 Here, you want the glasses again? You want another look? No, no. She's still coming on. 09:42.120 --> 10:00.120 Go away! Go away! Turn, will you? Turn, I say! I pray you turn. Cracked her. The rats. Look, 10:00.120 --> 10:04.120 on the water, like a carpet. They're swimming. Sure, they're swimming. Those are ship's rats. 10:04.120 --> 10:13.080 But they're swimming for the rocks. The door below, it's open. Well, come on. And down we went, 10:13.080 --> 10:19.320 racing down the stone stairs, taking them three and four at a time. Scared? You bet we were scared. 10:19.320 --> 10:23.560 August, you get the windows. Maybe they can climb. We don't know. Right, Chief. But hurry, hurry. 10:27.240 --> 10:32.120 You see them? No. Oh, yes, I do. Up at the other end of the rock. Look at them. 10:32.120 --> 10:43.720 Millions. They smell us. Here they come. Close the door. I can't. It's stuck. Here, let me. 10:49.480 --> 10:57.000 Made it. Holy, that was close. One got in. Look, there. Watch it. Kick him. 10:57.000 --> 11:04.920 What a brute. He was as big as a tomcat. Bigger. And his eyes were wild and red. His teeth long 11:04.920 --> 11:11.000 and sharp and yellow. He went for us, starving ravenous. And we fought him. Fought that one rat 11:11.000 --> 11:16.520 all over the room. It was, oh, believe me, I don't exaggerate. It was like fighting a panther. 11:19.960 --> 11:22.040 I got it. We better get aloft. 11:22.040 --> 11:29.400 After as we ran up the winding staircase, we passed the tiny windows of the various levels. 11:29.400 --> 11:36.120 And at every one was a thick, wriggling, screaming curtain of brown fur. I was ahead of Louis and I 11:36.120 --> 11:41.080 dreaded each successive level. Suppose they had found a way in. Look at them. Oh, will you look 11:41.080 --> 11:48.440 at them? It's a nightmare. Will you look at them? The air of the gallery was thick and fetid with 11:48.440 --> 11:54.600 a stink of them. The light was dim, brown, filtered through the crawling mass that swarmed over the 11:54.600 --> 12:01.720 glass. All about us. We couldn't see the sky. Nothing. Nothing but them. Their red eyes, 12:01.720 --> 12:09.320 their claws, their wriggling, hairy snouts, and their teeth. The rats. They screamed and howled 12:09.320 --> 12:19.000 and threw themselves against the glass. They were starving. And we three, we stood very quietly. Oh, 12:19.000 --> 12:28.600 very, very quietly in the center of the glass room under our beautiful light. And we waited. 12:31.160 --> 12:38.440 What can we do? What can we do, Chief? Take it easy. Take it easy. I can't. I just can't. 12:38.440 --> 12:44.360 Won't do any good. It won't do any good to stand here and shake. That's right. Go away. 12:45.400 --> 12:54.520 Go away. Do you hear me? Go away this instant. They won't go away. Not until. Finish it, Chief. 12:54.520 --> 13:14.440 Not until what? Not until they've been fed. You can take just so much horror 13:15.400 --> 13:21.000 and then you get used to it. And they were interesting to watch, you know. They couldn't 13:21.000 --> 13:26.840 understand the glass. They could see us and they could rush at us. But that thin invisible 13:26.840 --> 13:32.280 barrier held them off, stopped them. From time to time, we caught a glimpse of the rocks below. 13:33.160 --> 13:38.920 More rats down there, swarming brown velvet in the bright tropical sunlight. 13:39.960 --> 13:41.640 And then the tide began to rise. 13:41.640 --> 13:51.240 Yes. If only it had drowned some of them. 13:51.240 --> 13:58.760 Yeah. Ships rats don't drown. No, sir. You can't drown one of them. They're all climbing up the 13:58.760 --> 14:04.040 tower. This bunch around us is getting thicker. Say, what's the time? Quarter of six. 14:04.680 --> 14:09.720 You've got first watch, Sean. All right. Awake me at 10. I will. Come along, August. 14:09.720 --> 14:16.280 It was getting dark. One side of the room was lit a soft filtered red 14:17.320 --> 14:28.200 sunset through the rats. Oh, very pretty. I set the wicks, checked my fuel, and then lit the lamp. 14:30.280 --> 14:35.800 It caught them, lit them in their gigantic wriggling web of pale hairless bellies, 14:35.800 --> 14:41.160 twitching red tails, bright eyes. And then I started the rotary motor. 14:43.400 --> 14:49.240 The light drove them mad. As she swung slowly and smoothly about, she blinded them in the 14:49.240 --> 14:54.920 fierce stabbing bar of light, moving continually about, ever turning, ever touching, ever moving 14:54.920 --> 15:01.800 around and around. And they, twitching and shuddering, eyes flaming when they were struck 15:01.800 --> 15:08.840 by the light, the bright light moving. And behind, on the dark side of the room, so close, so close, 15:09.560 --> 15:14.360 I dared not turn my back. But you can't help turning your back when you're in a room made of glass. 15:15.160 --> 15:22.680 On the dark side of the room, you couldn't see them, but only their eyes, thousands of points 15:22.680 --> 15:32.520 of blank red light, blinking and twinkling like the stars of hell. 15:39.640 --> 15:46.280 Louis relieved me at 10, but I didn't get much sleep that night. And when I came up into the gallery 15:46.280 --> 15:53.560 early the next morning, there stood August, his back to me. He was bowing to the rats, 15:53.560 --> 15:55.800 waving his arms and making a speech. 15:55.800 --> 16:01.320 And my dear, dear audience, I am going to play once again that magnificent role which made me the 16:01.320 --> 16:09.000 toast of the Paris theater. Preilotti, the evil genius of the medieval underworld. I am he who 16:09.000 --> 16:12.360 did guide the dark soul of Maréchal into the Nether Park. 16:12.360 --> 16:17.720 I stood staring at him, horror-struck, but he didn't notice me. The man had gone mad. 16:17.720 --> 16:22.680 He kept turning, telling his stories to all the rats, leaving no one out. August! August! 16:22.680 --> 16:27.560 Ah, another one, a late comer. Take a seat on the aisle, dear patron. 16:27.560 --> 16:29.080 August, stop it, stop it! 16:29.080 --> 16:33.000 Stingray, the blood-stained monster, was my partner in equity. 16:33.000 --> 16:38.120 He went on bowing and scraping to the rats, his big blue eyes rolling and winking, 16:38.120 --> 16:43.720 his wild red hair waving about him. I grabbed him by the arms and slapped his face. 16:44.760 --> 16:50.120 He looked at me like a child, and then his face screwed up. He looked as though he were about to 16:50.120 --> 16:52.760 cry. Go below, go on. 16:53.560 --> 16:59.560 Oh, very well then. Later, my dear audience, later. Matinee today. 16:59.560 --> 17:07.160 Sure, he was crazy, but I guess we all were. A few hours later, he came back up and caught 17:07.160 --> 17:13.960 Louis and me teasing the rats. Yes, sounds horrible. It was fun. 17:18.760 --> 17:23.720 We would get right up against the glass and make faces at them. It drove them crazy. 17:23.720 --> 17:26.760 They would scratch their faces and make them laugh. 17:26.760 --> 17:31.720 It drove them crazy. They would scratch away, trying to get at our eyes. 17:31.720 --> 17:36.280 Louis was even cuter about it. He'd pull a piece of bread out of his pocket and press it against 17:36.280 --> 17:42.040 the glass. The rats would scramble into a solid ball, biting each other, clustering like grapes. 17:42.760 --> 17:48.840 From time to time, a whole knot of them would slip and fall, 110 feet to the surf below. 17:51.240 --> 17:53.640 Look, look at the sharks. They're eating them. 17:53.640 --> 18:00.280 Those sharks are our friends. Here, here, I'll get another bunch together. 18:01.640 --> 18:07.000 Here, my beauties. That's it. File up. Kill each other. 18:09.000 --> 18:16.280 There they go. August joined in too. Very ingenious, August. He learned that if he 18:16.280 --> 18:20.680 spread-eagled himself against the glass, they'd bunch and bundle against his figure. 18:20.680 --> 18:24.680 Then he'd leap back. Look, my portrait in rats. 18:31.720 --> 18:42.040 It went on all day. And then, I was lying in bed. It was about midnight. I was very tired and I was 18:42.040 --> 18:47.880 just beginning to fall off to sleep when I became conscious of a new sound. 18:47.880 --> 18:52.680 I couldn't figure it at first. I got up, lit the lamp, and went to the window. 18:53.400 --> 18:58.200 Even as I looked out, I saw one of the panes begin to sag in. 18:59.320 --> 19:03.080 They had eaten the wood away. Louis, come quick. 19:03.080 --> 19:05.400 What? What is it? They found a way in. 19:06.200 --> 19:10.840 I held the glass with my hand. Now they were all going crazy and assured of the success of this 19:10.840 --> 19:15.920 maneuver, were all nibbling away at the wood. Louis ran below and then returned with a 19:15.920 --> 19:20.920 large sheet of tin. We spread it against the window and hammered it into place. 19:20.920 --> 19:25.880 Even as we did so, we felt the heavy bodies thudding against the other side as the window 19:25.880 --> 19:32.840 gave way. There. That ought to hold. If it doesn't, we're done for. 19:32.840 --> 19:37.880 Rats can't eat tin. No, they can't. But what was that? 19:37.880 --> 19:39.880 I don't know. It came from below. 19:39.880 --> 19:47.880 The storeroom window. They're in. They're swarming up the stairs. 19:47.880 --> 19:49.880 Drop the trap. Right. 19:51.880 --> 19:53.880 Two of them got in. Let's go after them. 19:53.880 --> 20:01.880 We didn't have to go after them. They came at us. I leaped to one side and grabbed a Marlin spike, swung, and smashed one in midair. 20:01.880 --> 20:07.880 I whirled to see Louis with the other. It had ripped his hand open and the blood was pouring out. 20:07.880 --> 20:13.880 He held his hand aloft and kicked at the snarling rat. I stepped and swung and got him. 20:13.880 --> 20:17.880 Ow, my hand. He got my hand. 20:17.880 --> 20:20.880 That's both of them, Louis. I'll get you something to tie that up. 20:20.880 --> 20:24.880 Blood! Look at it, my blood! I'm bleeding! 20:24.880 --> 20:30.880 Don't worry about it, Louis. Here. I'll wind this kerchief around it. It'll be okay. 20:30.880 --> 20:37.880 There. There, that's not bad. Just the flesh. 20:37.880 --> 20:42.880 And then I became conscious of a new sound. 20:42.880 --> 20:47.880 They were gnawing their way through the wooden trap door. 20:47.880 --> 20:53.880 I watched the wood, fascinated. And even as I did, it began to give way. 20:53.880 --> 20:56.880 And a bristling, whiskery nose showed through. 20:56.880 --> 20:59.880 Louis! We've got to go up! 20:59.880 --> 21:09.880 The next level was the living quarters and kitchen. 21:09.880 --> 21:13.880 I slammed the trap there, but it too was wood. 21:13.880 --> 21:18.880 Oh, my blood. What are we going to do? 21:18.880 --> 21:21.880 I don't know. They'll be through this one in a minute. 21:21.880 --> 21:25.880 To the gallery. The trap door in the gallery is metal. 21:25.880 --> 21:30.880 Good. Come on! 21:30.880 --> 21:34.880 We made it. 21:34.880 --> 21:41.880 We lay across the trap door, exhausted, while below us the rats took over the entire tower. 21:41.880 --> 21:46.880 I could hear them howling and fighting over our food supply, our water, our leather. 21:46.880 --> 21:51.880 And all about us, the others screamed and glared in at us, swayed in a tangled mass, 21:51.880 --> 21:57.880 hypnotized by the ever-turning light. 21:57.880 --> 22:03.880 By morning, the air in the little room was horrible. 22:03.880 --> 22:07.880 Until now, we'd been getting air from the tower below. 22:07.880 --> 22:12.880 Now that was sealed off, and so was all our food and water. 22:12.880 --> 22:17.880 We lay exhausted, panting, waiting, waiting. 22:17.880 --> 22:20.880 And the hours crawled on. 22:20.880 --> 22:27.880 I was almost dozing from fatigue when I saw a sight that brought me too fast. 22:27.880 --> 22:30.880 Would you like to come in, my beauties? Would you? 22:30.880 --> 22:35.880 I hold the powers of life and death, and I can let you in, you know. 22:35.880 --> 22:41.880 August was standing by the glass, and in one hand he held a big wrench. 22:41.880 --> 22:46.880 He was tapping the glass gently, not quite hard enough to break it. 22:46.880 --> 22:53.880 I eased myself to my feet, and slowly, very slowly, tiptoed toward him. 22:53.880 --> 23:00.880 All I have to do is tap just a little harder, and... 23:00.880 --> 23:04.880 I found a coil of wire in the tool kit, and I thrust him up, 23:04.880 --> 23:07.880 fastened him to a stanchion in the center of the room. 23:07.880 --> 23:09.880 Louis was of no help. 23:09.880 --> 23:14.880 He lay on his side, looking at his bloody hand, weak and sick as a baby. 23:14.880 --> 23:19.880 So there I was, a lunatic and a coward for company, 23:19.880 --> 23:25.880 and all about watching our little drama, The Rats. 23:31.880 --> 23:33.880 The day dragged by. 23:33.880 --> 23:36.880 The supply boat wasn't due for another 12 days. 23:36.880 --> 23:39.880 I don't know what they could have done if they had come, 23:39.880 --> 23:41.880 and we had only one way of summoning them. 23:41.880 --> 23:44.880 That was to shoot off distress rockets. 23:44.880 --> 23:49.880 But the rockets were four floors below. 23:49.880 --> 23:52.880 And even if they'd been right there in the gallery, 23:52.880 --> 23:56.880 I couldn't have opened a window to fire them. 24:01.880 --> 24:07.880 That night, I tended the light, but its flame was devouring our oxygen. 24:07.880 --> 24:13.880 The following day, we lay, thirst-tormented, starving, waiting. 24:13.880 --> 24:17.880 And the following night, I again tended the light. 24:17.880 --> 24:22.880 But the small supply of spare wicking we kept in the gallery had become exhausted. 24:22.880 --> 24:27.880 And quite suddenly, at about midnight, the light went out. 24:29.880 --> 24:31.880 There was nothing I could do. 24:31.880 --> 24:34.880 Wicks were stored three levels below. 24:34.880 --> 24:37.880 Nothing I could do, nothing. 24:37.880 --> 24:41.880 From time to time, I'd strike a match to see the clock. 24:41.880 --> 24:46.880 When I did, it lit up the million red eyes about us. 24:46.880 --> 24:51.880 All about watching, waiting. 24:51.880 --> 24:54.880 Below, it had grown quiet. 24:54.880 --> 24:58.880 They'd cleaned us out, and now they, too, were waiting. 24:58.880 --> 25:00.880 All waiting. 25:00.880 --> 25:07.880 And then, the rats, quite suddenly, were silent. 25:08.880 --> 25:11.880 And then I heard it. 25:17.880 --> 25:21.880 And then I saw the sky and the stars. 25:21.880 --> 25:23.880 The rats were gone. 25:23.880 --> 25:25.880 I went to the glass. 25:25.880 --> 25:32.880 Out there on the water, a small freighter, a banana boat, showing a few lights, 25:32.880 --> 25:37.880 came softly and innocently towards us. 25:39.880 --> 25:41.880 Our light was out. 25:41.880 --> 25:43.880 They didn't know. 25:43.880 --> 25:48.880 I wanted to open the windows, to call out to them, to warn them somehow. 25:48.880 --> 25:51.880 But I was afraid. 25:51.880 --> 25:55.880 What if the rats were hiding from me, tricking me? 25:55.880 --> 25:58.880 So I waited. 26:01.880 --> 26:07.880 She grounded very softly on a reef not 200 yards from the quay, 26:07.880 --> 26:11.880 grounded so gently that the man playing the cornet, 26:11.880 --> 26:16.880 was he a passenger, crewman, off watch, didn't even stop playing. 26:16.880 --> 26:19.880 They tried washing her back off. 26:19.880 --> 26:22.880 I could have told them to save their fuel. 26:22.880 --> 26:26.880 The tide was rising, would have floated her free. 26:26.880 --> 26:47.880 And I waited. 26:47.880 --> 26:49.880 That's all. 26:49.880 --> 26:51.880 That's the story. 26:51.880 --> 26:56.880 The sun came up and there wasn't a rat on the whole quay. 26:56.880 --> 27:03.880 Every last one of that terrible army had left us, gone back to sea on their new ship. 27:08.880 --> 27:11.880 August, insane asylum. 27:11.880 --> 27:13.880 He never recovered. 27:13.880 --> 27:19.880 And Louis, they took him into Cayenne, where he died of blood poisoning from his bite. 27:19.880 --> 27:23.880 Yes, that's the whole of it. 27:23.880 --> 27:28.880 And if you'll excuse me now, I must go set my traps. 27:28.880 --> 27:31.880 No, no, mouse traps. 27:31.880 --> 27:34.880 No rats in this lighthouse. 27:34.880 --> 27:36.880 I should say not. 27:36.880 --> 27:39.880 Life in the lights isn't bad. 27:39.880 --> 27:47.880 But sometimes, when I see a strange vessel approaching, I get a little nervous. 27:47.880 --> 27:55.880 Sure, somewhere on the seas, there's a little banana boat without a crew. 27:55.880 --> 27:59.880 That is, without a human crew. 28:10.880 --> 28:14.880 Escape is produced and directed by William N. Robson. 28:14.880 --> 28:21.880 Tonight, we have presented Three Skeleton Key by George Tuduz, adapted for radio by James Poe. 28:21.880 --> 28:27.880 Featured in the cast were Elliot Reed as Jean, Bill Conrad as Louis, and Harry Bartel as August. 28:27.880 --> 28:32.880 Special music was arranged and conducted by Del Castillo. 28:32.880 --> 28:34.880 Next week. 28:34.880 --> 28:40.880 You are standing on the deck of a ship headed on an illegal mission to Central America. 28:40.880 --> 28:53.880 Before you, holding a gun in your stomach is a desperate man who has just given you the choice between being killed or becoming a murderer yourself. 28:57.880 --> 29:05.880 Next week, we escape with John and Gwen Bagne's exciting tale of a murderous trio of gun runners in Central America, Maracas. 29:05.880 --> 29:10.880 Goodbye then until the same time next week, when once again we offer you Escape. 29:15.880 --> 29:19.880 Stay tuned now for Life with Luigi, which follows over most of these CBS stations. 29:19.880 --> 29:36.880 This is CBS, the Columbia Broadcasting System.