our. It was too dark to see anything at all.

"Who's there?" he cried.

Light footsteps shifted their position in the porch, and he could just
distinguish in a plaintive female voice the words, "O Clym, come down
and let me in!"

He flushed hot with agitation. "Surely it is Eustacia!" he murmured.
If so, she had indeed come to him unawares.

He hastily got a light, dressed himself, and went down. On his
flinging open the door the rays of the candle fell upon a woman
closely wrapped up, who at once came forward.

"Thomasin!" he exclaimed in an indescribable tone of disappointment.
"It is Thomasin, and on such a night as this! O, where is Eustacia?"

Thomasin it was, wet, frightened, and panting.

"Eustacia? I don't know, Clym; but I can think," she said with much
perturbation. "Let me come in and rest--I will explain this. There
is a great trouble brewing--my husband and Eustacia!"

"What, what?"

"I think my husband is going to leave me or do something dreadful--I
don't know what--Clym, will you go and see? I have nobody to help me
but you! Eustacia has not yet come home?"

"No."

She went on breathlessly: "Then they are going to run off together! He
came indoors tonight about eight o'clock and said in an off-hand way,
'Tamsie, I have just found that I must go a journey.' 'When?' I said.
'Tonight,' he said. 'Where?' I asked him. 'I cannot tell you at
present,' he said; 'I shall be back again tomorrow.' He then went and
busied himself in looking up his things, and took no notice of me at
all. I expected to see him start, but he did not, and then it came to
be ten o'clock, when he said, 'You had better go to bed.' I didn't
know what to do, and I went to bed. I believe he thought I fell
asleep, for half an hour after that he came up and unlocked the oak
chest we keep money in when we have much in the house and took out a
roll of something which I believe was bank-notes, though I was not
aware that he had 'em there. These he must have got from the bank
when he went there the other day. What does he want bank-notes for,
if he is only going off for a day? When he had gone down I thought of
Eustacia, and how he had met her the night before--I know he did meet
her, Clym, for I followed him part of the way; but I did not like to
tell you when you called, and so make you think ill of him, as I did
not think it was so serious. Then I could not stay in bed; I got up
and dressed myself, and when I heard him out in the