stable I thought
I would come and tell you. So I came downstairs without any noise and
slipped out."

"Then he was not absolutely gone when you left?"

"No. Will you, dear Cousin Clym, go and try to persuade him not to go?
He takes no notice of what I say, and puts me off with the story of
his going on a journey, and will be home tomorrow, and all that; but I
don't believe it. I think you could influence him."

"I'll go," said Clym. "O, Eustacia!"

Thomasin carried in her arms a large bundle; and having by this time
seated herself she began to unroll it, when a baby appeared as the
kernel to the husks--dry, warm, and unconscious of travel or rough
weather. Thomasin briefly kissed the baby, and then found time to
begin crying as she said, "I brought baby, for I was afraid what might
happen to her. I suppose it will be her death, but I couldn't leave
her with Rachel!"

Clym hastily put together the logs on the hearth, raked abroad the
embers, which were scarcely yet extinct, and blew up a flame with the
bellows.

"Dry yourself," he said. "I'll go and get some more wood."

"No, no--don't stay for that. I'll make up the fire. Will you go at
once--please will you?"

Yeobright ran upstairs to finish dressing himself. While he was gone
another rapping came to the door. This time there was no delusion
that it might be Eustacia's: the footsteps just preceding it had been
heavy and slow. Yeobright thinking it might possibly be Fairway with
a note in answer, descended again and opened the door.

"Captain Vye?" he said to a dripping figure.

"Is my granddaughter here?" said the captain.

"No."

"Then where is she?".

"I don't know."

"But you ought to know--you are her husband."

"Only in name apparently," said Clym with rising excitement. "I
believe she means to elope tonight with Wildeve. I am just going to
look to it."

"Well, she has left my house; she left about half an hour ago. Who's
sitting there?"

"My cousin Thomasin."

The captain bowed in a preoccupied way to her. "I only hope it is no
worse than an elopement," he said.

"Worse? What's worse than the worst a wife can do?"

"Well, I have been told a strange tale. Before starting in search of
her I called up Charley, my stable lad. I missed my pistols the other
day."

"Pistols?"

"He said at the time that he took them down to clean. He has now
owned that he took them because he saw Eustacia looking curiously at
them; and she afterwards own