shoulders which detracted considerably from his height. He had a long, thin face, a high ridged, prominent nose, thoughtful, deep set eyes, and a profusion of straw colored hair parted down the middle.

His clothes, generally more or less worn and threadbare--not from necessity, but because he was both indifferent to appearances and parsimoniously inclined--hung loosely on his lean and bony frame. By strangers he was often taken for the village schoolmaster.

As he advanced into the glade, any one familiar with his customary phlegmatic and unemotional manner would have seen at once that he was the bearer of no ordinary tidings.

"Thank Heaven I have found you!" were his first words, and there could be no doubt of the sincerity with which they were spoken.

"It is a small mercy to be thankful for," replied the other, with the ghost of a smile.

"A terrible discovery has been made at the Towers."

"Those are strong words, my dear Rodd, but they fail to convey any definite idea to my mind. They may mean much or they may mean very little."

"Mrs. Drelincourt has been murdered in her sleep."

"Murdered!" Drelincourt staggered back a pace or two, and then, putting forth his right hand, he caught hold of an oak sapling and gripped it hard. For a few seconds his body rocked like that of a man whose brain has been stunned and dizzied by some great shock.

"That is indeed a terrible discovery to have made," he went on, after a pause. "Kate dead! It seems incredible; altogether beyond belief."

"For all that, it is true."

"But what possible motive could any one have for the commission of such a crime?"

Roden's thin lips tightened. Evidently the question was one which he either would not or could not answer.

"When and by whom was the discovery made?" asked Mr. Drelincourt, after a brief pause.

"It was made by Lucille, nearly a couple of hours ago. She went as usual to take her mistress an early cup of chocolate, and--and found her dead in bed."

"Go on. Tell me all the particulars known to you."

 Prev. P 4/107 next