Nobodymentionedhimthatevening;butonceoldFord，afterstaringalongtimeatPasiance，mutteredaproposofnothing，"Undutifulchildren！"Shewassofterthanusual;listeningquietlytoourtalk，andsmilingwhenspokento。Atbedtimeshewentuptohergrand—
　　father，withoutwaitingfortheusualcommand，"Comeandkissme，child。"
　　Dandidnotstaytosupper，andhehasnotbeenheresince。ThismorningIaskedMotherHopgoodwhoZacharyPearsewas。She’satrueDevonian;ifthere’sanythingshehates，itistobecommittedtoadefinitestatement。Sheambledroundheranswer，andatlasttoldmethathewas"sonofoldCap’enJanPearsetoBlackMill。’TesanoldfamilytoDartymouthan’Plymouth，"shewentoninacommunicativeoutburst。"TheydusayFrancisDraketukefiveo’theyPearseswith’entofighttheSpaniards。Atleastthat’swhatI’veheardMr。
　　Zacharyzay;butHa—apgoodcantellyu。"PoorHopgood，theamountofinformationshesaddleshimwithinthecourseoftheday！Havinggivenmethustounderstandthatshehadrundry，sheatoncewenton:
　　"Cap’enJanPearsemadeadaleofventures。He’soldnow——theydusaynighan’undred。Ha—apgoodcantellyu。"
　　"Buttheson，Mrs。Hopgood？"
　　Hereyestwinkledwithsuddenshrewdness:Shehuggedherselfplacidly。
　　"An’whatwouldyutakefordinnerto—day？There’sduck;oryumightlike’toadinthehole，’withanappletart;orthen，there’s——Well！
　　we’llseewhatwecandulike。"Andoffshewent，withoutwaitingformyanswer。
　　To—morrowisWednesday。Ishan’tbesorrytogetanotherlookatthisfellowPearse……
　　III
　　"Friday，29thJuly……Whydoyouaskmesomanyquestions，andeggmeontowriteaboutthesepeopleinsteadofmindingmybusiness？Ifyoureallywanttohear，I’lltellyouofWednesday’sdoings。
　　Itwasasplendidmorning;andDanturnedup，tomysurprise——thoughImighthaveknownthatwhenhesaysathing，hedoesit。JohnFordcameouttoshakehandswithhim，then，rememberingwhyhehadcome，breathedloudly，saidnothing，andwentinagain。NothingwastobeseenofPasiance，andwewentdowntothebeachtogether。
　　"Idon’tlikethisfellowPearse，George，"Dansaidtomeontheway;
　　"IwasfoolenoughtosayI’dgo，andsoImust，butwhat’sheafter？
　　Notthemantodothingswithoutareason，mindyou。
　　Iremarkedthatweshouldsoonknow。
　　"I’mnotsosure——queerbeggar;Ineverlookathimwithoutthinkingofapirate。"
　　Thecutterlayinthecoveasifshehadnevermoved。TheretoowasZacharyPearseseatedontheedgeofhisdinghy。
　　"Afive—knotbreeze，"hesaid，"I’llrunyoudowninacoupleofhours。"HemadenoinquiryaboutPasiance，butputusintohiscockleshellandpulledforthecutter。Alantern—Jawedfellow，namedPrawle，withaspiky，prominentbeard，long，clean—shavenupperlip，andtannedcomplexion——aregularhard—weatherbird——receivedus。
　　Thecutterwasbeautifullyclean;builtforaBrixhamtrawler，shestillhadhernumber——DH113——uneffaced。Wedivedintoasortofcabin，airy，butdark，fittedwithtwobunksandasmalltable，onwhichstoodsomebottlesofstout;therewerelockers，too，andpegsforclothes。Prawle，whoshowedusround，seemedveryproudofasteamcontrivanceforhoistingsails。Itwassomeminutesbeforewecameondeckagain;andthere，inthedinghy，beingpulledtowardsthecutter，satPasiance。
　　"IfI’dknownthis，"stammeredDan，gettingred，"Iwouldn’thavecome。"Shehadoutwittedus，andtherewasnothingtobedone。
　　Itwasaverypleasantsail。Thebreezewaslightfromthesouth—
　　east，thesunwarm，theairsoft。PresentlyPasiancebegansinging:
　　"Columbusisdeadandlaidinhisgrave，Oh！heigh—ho！andlaidinhisgrave;
　　Overhisheadtheapple—treeswaveOh！heigh—ho！theapple—treeswave……
　　Theapplesareripeandreadytofall，Oh！heigh—ho！andreadytofall;
　　Therecameanoldwomanandgatheredthemall，Oh！heigh—ho！andgatheredthemall……
　　Theapplesaregathered，andlaidontheshelf，Oh！heigh—ho！andlaidontheshelf;
　　Ifyouwantanymore，youmustsingforyourself，Oh！heigh—ho！andsingforyourself。"
　　Hersmall，highvoicecametousintrillsandspurts，asthewindletit，likethesingingofaskylarklostinthesky。Pearsewentuptoherandwhisperedsomething。Icaughtaglimpseofherfacelikeastartledwildcreature’s;shrinking，tossingherhair，laughing，allinthesamebreath。Shewouldn’tsingagain，butcrouchedinthebowswithherchinonherhands，andthesunfallingononecheek，round，velvety，redasapeach……
　　WepassedDartmouth，andhalfanhourlaterputintoalittlewoodedbay。Onalowreddishcliffwasahousehedgedroundbypine—trees。
　　Abitofbrokenjettyranoutfromthebottomofthecliff。Wehookedontothis，andlanded。Anancient，fish—likemancameslouchingdownandtookchargeofthecutter。Pearseledustowardsthehouse，Pasiancefollowingmortallyshyallofasudden。
　　Thehousehadadark，overhangingthatchoftherushreedsthatgrowinthemarsheshereabouts;Iremembernothingelseremarkable。Itwasneitherold，nornew;neitherbeautiful，norexactlyugly;
　　neitherclean，norentirelysqualid;itperchedtherewithallitswindowsoverthesea，turningitsbackcontemptuouslyontheland。
　　Seatedinakindofporch，besideanimmensetelescope，wasaveryoldmaninapanamahat，witharattancane。Hispure—whitebeardandmoustache，andalmostblackeyebrows，gaveaverysingular，piercinglooktohislittle，restless，dark—greyeyes;alloverhismahoganycheeksandneckwasanetworkoffinewrinkles。Hesatquiteupright，inthefullsun，hardlyblinking。
　　"Dad！"saidZachary，"thisisPasianceVoisey。"Theoldmanturnedhiseyesonherandmuttered，"Howdoyoudo，ma’am？"thentooknofurthernotice。AndPasiance，whoseemedtoresentthis，soonslippedawayandwentwanderingaboutamongstthepines。Anoldwomanbroughtsomeplatesandbottlesandlaidthemcasuallyonatable;andwesatroundthefigureofoldCaptainPearsewithoutaword，asifwewereallunderaspell。
　　BeforelunchtherewasalittlescenebetweenZacharyPearseandDan，astowhichofthemshouldsummonPasiance。Itendedinbothgoing，andcomingbackwithouther。Shedidnotwantanylunch，wouldstaywhereshewasamongstthepines。
　　Forlunchwehadchops，wood—pigeons，mushrooms，andmulberrypreserve，anddrankwonderfulMadeiraoutofcommonwine—glasses。I
　　askedtheoldmanwherehegotit;hegavemeaqueerlook，andansweredwithalittlebow:
　　"Stoodmeintushillin’thebottle，an’thecountrygotnothingoutofit，sir。IntheearlyThirties;tushillin’thebottle;there’snosuchwinenowadaysand，"headded，lookingatZachary，"nosuchmen。"
　　Zacharysmiledandsaid:"Youdidnothingsobig，dad，aswhatI’mafter，now！"
　　Theoldman’seyeshadasortofdisdaininthem。
　　"You’regoingfar，then，inthePiedWitch，Zack？"
　　"Iam，"saidZachary。
　　"Andwheremightyubegoin’inthatoldtrampin’smutfactory？"
　　"Morocco。"
　　"Heu！"saidtheoldman，"there’snothingthere;Iknowthatcoast，asIknowthebacko’myhand。"Hestretchedoutahandcoveredwithveinsandhair。
　　Zacharybegansuddenlytopouroutafloodofwords:
　　"BelowMogador——afellowthere——friendofmine——twoyearsagonow。
　　Concessions——trade—gunpowder——cruisers——feuds——money——chiefs——Gatlingguns——Sultan——rifles——rebellion——gold。"Hedetailedareckless，sordid，boldscheme，which，onthepivotofatradingventure，wasintendedtospinawholewheelofpoliticalconvulsions。
　　"They’llneverletyougetthere，"saidoldPearse。
　　"Won’tthey？"returnedZachary。"Ohyes，theywill，an’whenI
　　leave，there’llbeanotherdynasty，andI’llbearichman。"
　　"Yu’llneverleave，"answeredtheoldman。
　　Zacharytookoutasheetofpapercoveredwithfigures。Hehadworkedthewholethingout。Somuch——equipment，somuch——trade，somuch——concessions，somuch——emergencies。"Mylastmag！"heended，"athousandshort;theship’sready，andifI’mnottherewithinamonthmychanceisasgoodasgone。"
　　Thiswasthepithofhisconfidences——anappealformoney，andwealllookedasmenwillwhenthatcropsup。
　　"Mad！"mutteredtheoldman，lookingatthesea。
　　"No，"saidZachary。Thatonewordwasmoreeloquentthanalltherestofhiswordsputtogether。Thisfellowisnovisionary。Hisschememaybedaring，andunprincipled，but——heknowsverywellwhathe’sabout。
　　"Well！"saidoldPearse，"youshallhavefive’undredofmymoney，ifit’sonlytolearnwhatyu’remadeof。Wheelmein！"Zacharywheeledhimintothehouse，butsooncameback。
　　"Theoldman’schequeforfivehundredpounds！"hesaid，holdingitup。"Mr。Treffry，givemeanother，andyoushallhaveathirdoftheprofits。"
　　IexpectedDantogiveapoint—blankrefusal。Butheonlyasked:
　　"Wouldthatclearyouforstarting？"
　　"Withthat，"saidZachary，"Icangettoseainafortnight。"
　　"Good！"Dansaidslowly。"Givemeawrittenpromise！Toseainfourteendaysandmyfairshareonthefivehundredpounds——nomore——
　　noless。"
　　AgainIthoughtPearsewouldhavejumpedatthis，butheleanedhischinonhishand，andlookedatDan，andDanlookedathim。Whiletheywerestaringateachotherlikethis，Pasiancecameupwithakitten。
　　"See！"shesaid，"isn’titadarling？"Thekittencrawledandclaweditswayupbehindherneck。Isawbothmen’seyesastheylookedatPasiance，andsuddenlyunderstoodwhattheywereat。ThekittenrubbeditselfagainstPasiance’scheek，overbalanced，andfell，clawing，downherdress。Shecaughtitupandwalkedaway。Someone，Idon’tknowwhichofus，sighed，andPearsecried"Done！"
　　Thebargainhadbeendriven。
　　"Good—bye，Mr。Pearse，"saidDan;"Iguessthat’sallI’mwantedfor。I’llfindmyponywaitinginthevillage。George，you’llseePasiancehome？"
　　Weheardthehoofsofhisponygallopingdowntheroad;Pearsesuddenlyexcusedhimself，anddisappeared。
　　Thisventureofhismaysoundromanticandabsurd，butit’smatter—
　　of—factenough。He’safterL。s。d。！ShadesofDrake，Raleigh，Hawkins，Oxenham！Thewormofsuspiciongnawsattheroseofromance。Whatifthosefellows，too，wereonlyafterL。s。d……？
　　Istrolledintothepine—wood。Theearththerewascoveredlikeabee’sbodywithblackandgoldstripes;therewastheblueseabelow，andwhite，sleepyclouds，andbumble—beesboomingabovetheheather;
　　itwasallsoftness，asummer’sdayinDevon。SuddenlyIcameonPearsestandingattheedgeofthecliffwithPasiancesittinginalittlehollowbelow，lookingupathim。Iheardhimsay:
　　"Pasiance——Pasiance！"Thesoundofhisvoice，andthesightofhersoft，wonderingfacemademefurious。Whatbusinesshasshewithlove，atherage？Whatbusinesshavetheywitheachother？
　　Hetoldmepresentlythatshehadstartedoffforhome，anddrovemetotheferry，behindanoldgreypony。Onthewayhecamebacktohisofferoftheotherday。
　　"Comewithme，"hesaid。"Itdoesn’tdotoneglectthePress;youcanseethepossibilities。It’soneofthefewcountriesleft。IfI
　　oncegetthisbusinessstartedyoudon’tknowwhereit’sgoingtostop。You’dhavefreepassageeverywhere，andwhateveryoulikeinreason。"
　　IansweredasrudelyasIcould——butbynomeansasrudelyasI
　　wanted——thathisschemewasmad。Asamatteroffact，it’smuchtoosaneforme;for，whateverthebodyofascheme，itssoulisthefibreoftheschemer。
　　"Thinkofit，"heurged，asifhecouldseeintome。"Youcanmakewhatyoulikeofit。Pressparagraphs，ofcourse。Butthat’smechanical;why，evenIcoulddoit，ifIhadtime。Asfortherest，you’llbeasfree——asfreeasaman。"
　　There，infivewordsofonesyllable，isthekernelofthisfellowPearse——"Asfreeasaman！"Norule，nolaw，noteventhemysteriousshacklesthatbindmentotheirownself—respects！"Asfreeasaman！"Noideals;noprinciples;nofixedstarforhisworship;nocoilhecan’tslideoutof！ButthefellowhasthetenacityofoneoftheoldDevonmastiffs，too。Hewouldn’ttake"No"forananswer。
　　"Thinkofit，"hesaid;"anydaywilldo——I’vegotafortnight……
　　Look！theresheis！"IthoughtthathemeantPasiance;butitwasanoldsteamer，sluggishandblackintheblazingsunofmid—stream，withayellow—and—whitefunnel，andnosignoflifeonherdecks。
　　"That’sher——thePiedWitcb！Dohertwelveknots;youwouldn’tthinkit！Well！good—evening！You’dbettercome。Awordtomeatanytime。I’mgoingaboardnow。"
　　AsIwasbeingferriedacrossIsawhimlollinginthestern—sheetsofalittleboat，thesuncrowninghisstrawhatwithglory。
　　IcameonPasiance，aboutamileuptheroad，sittinginthehedge。
　　Wewalkedontogetherbetweenthebanks——Devonshirebanks，ashighashouses，thickwithivyandferns，brambleandhazelboughs，andhoneysuckle。
　　"DoyoubelieveinaGod？"shesaidsuddenly。
　　"Grandfather’sGodissimplyawful。WhenI’mplayingthefiddle，I
　　canfeelGod;butgrandfather’sissuchastuffyGod——youknowwhatI
　　mean:thesea，thewind，thetrees，colourstoo——theymakeonefeel。
　　ButIdon’tbelievethatlifewasmeantto’begood’in。Isn’tthereanythingbetterthanbeinggood？WhenI’m’good，’Isimplyfeelwicked。"Shereachedup，caughtaflowerfromthehedge，andslowlytoreitspetals。
　　"Whatwouldyoudo，"shemuttered，"ifyouwantedathing，butwereafraidofit？ButIsupposeyou’reneverafraid！"sheadded，mockingme。IadmittedthatIwassometimesafraid，andoftenafraidofbeingafraid。
　　"That’snice！I’mnotafraidofillness，norofgrandfather，norofhisGod;but——Iwanttobefree。Ifyouwantathingbadly，you’reafraidaboutit。"
　　IthoughtofZacharyPearse’swords，"freeasaman。"
　　"Whyareyoulookingatmelikethat？"shesaid。
　　Istammered:"Whatdoyoumeanbyfreedom？"
　　"DoyouknowwhatIshalldoto—night？"sheanswered。"Getoutofmywindowbytheapple—tree，andgotothewoods，andplay！"
　　Weweregoingdownasteeplane，alongthesideofawood，wherethere’salwaysasmellofsappyleaves，andthebreathofthecowsthatcomeclosetothehedgetogettheshade。
　　Therewasacottageinthebottom，andasmallboysatoutsideplayingwithaheapofdust。
　　"Hallo，Johnny！"saidPasiance。"Holdyourlegoutandshowthismanyourbadplace！"Thesmallboyundidabandageroundhisbareanddirtylittleleg，andproudlyrevealedasore。
　　"Isn’titnasty？"criedPasianceruefully，tyingupthebandageagain;"poorlittlefeller！Johnny，seewhatI’vebroughtyou！"Sheproducedfromherpocketastickofchocolate，thesemblanceofasoldiermadeofsealing—waxandworsted，andacrookedsixpence。
　　Itwasanewglimpseofher。AllthewayhomeshewastellingmethestoryoflittleJohnny’sfamily;whenshecametohismother’sdeath，sheburstout:"Abeastlyshame，wasn’tit，andthey’resopoor;itmightjustaswellhavebeensomebodyelse。Ilikepoorpeople，butIhaterichones——stuck—upbeasts。"
　　Mrs。Hopgoodwaslookingoverthegate，withhercapononeside，andoneofPasiance’scatsrubbingitselfagainstherskirts。Atthesightofusshehuggedherself。
　　"Where’sgrandfather？"askedPasiance。Theoldladyshookherhead。
　　"Isitarow？"Mrs。Hopgoodwriggled，andwriggled，andoutcame:
　　"Didyougetyuretay，mypretty？No？Well，that’sapity;yu’llbefalin’low—like。"
　　Pasiancetossedherhead，snatchedupthecat，andranindoors。I
　　remainedstaringatMrs。Hopgood。
　　"Dear—dear，"sheclucked，"poorlamb。Sotospakeit’s——"andsheblurtedoutsuddenly，"chuckin’fullofwra—ath，heis。Well，there！"
　　Mycouragefailedthatevening。Ispentitatthecoastguardstation，wheretheygavemebreadandcheeseandsomeawfulcider。I
　　passedthekitchenasIcameback。Afirewasstillburningthere，andtwofigures，mistyinthedarkness，flittedaboutwithstealthylaughterlikespiritsafraidofbeingdetectedinacarnal—meal。
　　TheywerePasianceandMrs。Hopgood;andsocharmingwasthesmellofeggsandbacon，andtheyhadsuchanairoftenderenjoymentofthisdarkrevel，thatIstifledmanypangs，asIcrepthungryuptobed。
　　InthemiddleofthenightIwokeandheardwhatIthoughtwasscreaming;thenitsoundedlikewindintrees，thenlikethedistantshakingofatambourine，withthehighsingingofahumanvoice。
　　Suddenlyitstopped——twolongnotescamewailingoutlikesobs——thenutterstillness;andthoughIlistenedforanhourormoretherewasnoothersound……
　　IV
　　"4thAugust……ForthreedaysafterIwrotelast，nothingatallhappenedhere。Ispentthemorningsonthecliffreading，andwatchingthesun—sparksrainingonthesea。It’sgranduptherewiththegorseallround，thegullsbaskingontherocks，thepartridgescallinginthecorn，andnowandthenayounghawkoverhead。TheafternoonsI
　　spentoutintheorchard。Theusualroutinegoesonatthefarmallthetime——cow—milking，bread—baking，JohnFordridinginandout，Pasianceinhergardenstrippinglavender，talkingtothefarmhands;
　　andthesmellofclover，andcowsandhay;thesoundofhensandpigsandpigeons，thesoftdrawlofvoices，thedullthudofthefarmcarts;anddaybydaytheapplesgettingredder。Then，lastMonday，Pasiancewasawayfromsunrisetillsunset——nobodysawhergo——nobodyknewwhereshehadgone。Itwasawonderful，strangeday，askyofsilver—greyandblue，withadriftofwind—clouds，allthetreessighingalittle，theseaheavinginalong，lowswell，theanimalsrestless，thebirdssilent，exceptthegullswiththeiroldman’slaughterandkitten’smewing。
　　Asomethingwildwasintheair;itseemedtosweepacrossthedownsandcombe，intotheveryhouse，likeapassionatetunethatcomesdriftingtoyourearswhenyou’resleepy。Butwhowouldhavethoughttheabsenceofthatgirlforafewhourscouldhavewroughtsuchhavoc！Wewerelikeuneasyspirits;Mrs。Hopgood’sapplecheeksseemedpositivelytowitherbeforeone’seyes。Icameacrossadairymaidandfarmhanddiscussingitstolidlywithverydowncastfaces。EvenHopgood，ahard—bittenfellowwithimmenseshoulders，forgothisimperturbabilitysofarastoharnesshishorse，anddepartonwhatheassuredmewas"justawild—gusechaace。"ItwaslongbeforeJohnFordgavesignsofnoticingthatanythingwaswrong，butlateintheafternoonIfoundhimsittingwithhishandsonhisknees，staringstraightbeforehim。Heroseheavilywhenhesawme，andstalkedout。Intheevening，asIwasstartingforthecoastguardstationtoaskforhelptosearchthecliff，Pasianceappeared，walkingasifshecouldhardlydragonelegaftertheother。Hercheekswerecrimson;shewasbitingherlipstokeeptearsofsheerfatigueoutofhereyes。Shepassedmeinthedoorwaywithoutaword。Theanxietyhehadgonethroughseemedtoforbidtheoldmanfromspeaking。Hejustcameforward，tookherfaceinhishands，gaveitagreatkiss，andwalkedaway。Pasiancedroppedonthefloorinthedarkpassage，andburiedherfaceonherarms。
　　"Leavemealone！"wasallshewouldsay。Afterabitshedraggedherselfupstairs。PresentlyMrs。Hopgoodcametome。
　　"Notawordoutofher——an’notabitewillsheate，an’Ihadapieallready——scrumptious。ThegoodLordknowsthetruth——sheaskedforbrandy;haveyouanybrandy，sir？Ha—apgood’edon’tdrinkit，an’
　　MisterFord’edon’tallaowforanythingbutcaowslipwine。"
　　Ihadwhisky。
　　Thegoodsoulseizedtheflask，andwentoffhuggingit。Shereturnedittomehalfempty。
　　"Lappeditlikeakittenlapsmilk。Imisdaoubtit’sstraong，poorlamb，itlusened’ertonguepraaperly。’I’vea—doneit，’shesaystome，’Mums—I’vea—doneit，’an’shelaughedlikeamadthing;andthen，sir，shecried，an’kissedme，an’pusshedmethruthedoor。
　　GudeLard！Whatis’tshe’sa—done……？"
　　Itrainedallthenextdayandthedayafter。Aboutfiveo’clockyesterdaytherainceased;IstartedofftoKingswearonHopgood’snagtoseeDanTreffry。Everytree，bramble，andferninthelaneswasdrippingwater;andeverybirdsingingfromthebottomofhisheart。IthoughtofPasianceallthetime。Herabsencethatdaywasstillamystery;oneneverceasedaskingoneselfwhatshehaddone。
　　Therearepeoplewhonevergrowup——theyhavenorighttodothings。
　　Actionshaveconsequences——andchildrenhavenobusinesswithconsequences。
　　Danwasout。Ihadsupperatthehotel，androdeslowlyhome。Inthetwilightstretchesoftheroad，whereIcouldtoucheitherbankofthelanewithmywhip，IthoughtofnothingbutPasianceandhergrandfather;therewassomethinginthehalflightsuitedtowonderanduncertainty。IthadfallendarkbeforeIrodeintothestraw—
　　yard。Twoyoungbullockssnuffledatme，asleepyhengotupandranoffwithatremendousshrieking。Istabledthehorse，andwalkedroundtotheback。Itwaspitchblackundertheapple—trees，andthewindowswerealldarkened。Istoodtherealittle，everythingsmelledsodeliciousaftertherain;suddenlyIhadtheuncomfortablefeelingthatIwasbeingwatched。Haveyoueverfeltlikethatonadarknight？Icalledoutatlast:"Isanyonethere？"Notasound！
　　Iwalkedtothegate—nothing！Thetreesstilldrippedwithtiny，soft，hissingsounds，butthatwasall。Islippedroundtothefront，wentin，barricadedthedoor，andgropeduptobed。ButI
　　couldn’tsleep。Ilayawakealongwhile;dozedatlast，andwokewithajump。Astealthymurmurofsmotheredvoiceswasgoingonquiteclosesomewhere。Itstopped。Aminutepassed;suddenlycamethesoftthudasofsomethingfalling。Isprangoutofbedandrushedtothewindow。Nothing——butinthedistancesomethingthatsoundedlikefootsteps。Anowlhooted;thenclearascrystal，butquitelow，IheardPasiancesinginginherroom:
　　"Theapplesareripeandreadytofall。
　　Oh！heigh—ho！andreadytofall。"
　　Irantoherdoorandknocked。
　　"Whatisit？"shecried。
　　"Isanythingthematter？"
　　"Matter？"
　　"Isanythingthematter？"
　　"Ha—ha—ha—ha！Good—night！"thenquitelow，Iheardhercatchherbreath，hard，sharply。Nootheranswer，noothersound。
　　Iwenttobedandlayawakeforhours……
　　ThiseveningDancame;duringsupperhehandedPasiancearollofmusic;hehadgotitinTorquay。Theshopman，hesaid，hadtoldhimthatitwasa"corker。"
　　ItwasBach’s"Chaconne。"Youshouldhaveseenhereyesshine，herfingersactuallytremblewhilesheturnedoverthepages。SeemsoddtothinkofherworshippingattheshrineofBachasoddastothinkofawildcoltrunningofitsfreewillintotheshafts;butthat’sjustitwithheryoucannevertell。"Heavenly！"shekeptsaying。
　　JohnFordputdownhisknifeandfork。
　　"Heathenishstuff！"hemuttered，andsuddenlythunderedout，"Pasiance！"
　　Shelookedupwithastart，threwthemusicfromher，andresumedherplace。
　　Duringeveningprayers，whichfolloweverynightimmediatelyonfood，herfacewasastudyofmutiny。Shewenttobedearly。Itwasratherlatewhenwebrokeup——foronceoldFordhadbeentalkingofhissquatter’slife。Aswecameout，Danhelduphishand。Adogwasbarking。"It’sLass，"hesaid。"She’llwakePasiance。"
　　Thespanielyelpedfuriously。Danranouttostopher。Hewassoonback。
　　"Somebody’sbeenintheorchard，andgoneoffdowntothecove。"Heranondownthepath。I，too，ran，horriblyuneasy。Infront，throughthedarkness，camethespaniel’sbark;thelightsofthecoastguardstationfaintlyshowed。Iwasfirstonthebeach;thedogcametomeatonce，hertailalmostinhermouthfromapology。Therewasthesoundofoarsworkinginrowlocks;nothingvisiblebutthefeatheryedgesofthewaves。Dansaidbehind，"Nouse！He’sgone。"
　　Hisvoicesoundedhoarse，likethatofamanchokingwithpassion。
　　"George，"hestammered，"it’sthatblackguard。IwishI’dputabulletinhim。"Suddenlyalightburnedupinthedarknessonthesea，seemedtoswinggently，andvanished。Withoutanotherwordwewentbackupthehill。JohnFordstoodatthegatemotionless，indifferent——nothinghaddawnedonhimasyet。IwhisperedtoDan，"Letitalone！"
　　"No，"hesaid，"I’mgoingtoshowyou。"Hestruckamatch，andslowlyhuntedthefootstepsinthewetgrassoftheorchard。"Look——
　　here！"
　　HestoppedunderPasiance’swindowandswayedthematchovertheground。Clearasdaylightwerethemarksofsomeonewhohadjumpedorfallen。Danheldthematchoverhishead。
　　"Andlookthere！"hesaid。Theboughofanapple—treebelowthewindowwasbroken。Heblewthematchout。
　　Icouldseethewhitesofhiseyes，likeanangryanimal’s。
　　"Dropit，Dan！"Isaid。
　　Heturnedonhisheelsuddenly，andstammeredout，"You’reright。"
　　ButhehadturnedintoJohnFord’sarms。
　　Theoldmanstoodtherelikesomegreatforce，darkerthanthedarkness，staringupatthewindow，asthoughstupefied。Wehadnotawordtosay。Heseemedunconsciousofourpresence。Heturnedround，andleftusstandingthere。
　　"Followhim！"saidDan。"Followhim——byGod！it’snotsafe。"