in
the kingdom were looking for him. Had Nellie known that, her sleep would
have been little and her dreams few.

There was little rest at the Hall that night. When Reynolds had driven
John back to the great house he found his way to the kitchen and got his
beer, and he became at once a centre of interest, being overwhelmed with
questions concerning the events of the evening. But he was able to say
very little except that while waiting before the cottage he had heard
strange noises from the park, that Master John had run up the avenue,
that Mrs. Goddard had taken Miss Nellie into the house and had then
insisted upon being driven towards the Hall, that they had met Master
John and the squire and that Mrs. Goddard had been "took wuss."

Meanwhile John entered the room where Mr. Juxon was watching over Walter
Goddard. John looked pale and nervous; he had not recovered from the
unpleasant sensation of being left alone with what he believed to be a
dead body, in the struggling moonlight and the howling wind. He was by no
means timid by nature, but young nerves are not so tough as old ones and
he had felt exceedingly uncomfortable. He stood a moment within the room,
then glanced at the bed and started with surprise.

"Why--he is not dead after all!" he exclaimed, and going nearer he looked
hard at Goddard's flushed face.

"No," said Mr. Juxon, "he is not dead. He may be dying for all I know. I
have sent for the doctor."

"Was he much hurt?" asked John, still looking at the sick man. "He looks
to me as though he were in a fever."

"He does not seem so badly hurt. I cannot make it out at all. At first I
thought he was badly frightened, but I cannot bring him to consciousness.
Perhaps he has a fever, as you say. This is a most unpleasant experience,
Mr. Short--your first night at the Hall, too. Of course I am bound to
look after the man, as Stamboul did the damage--it would have served him
right if he had been killed. It was a villainous blow he gave me--I can
feel it still. The moral of it is that one should always wear a thick
ulster when one walks alone at night."

"I did not know he struck you," said John in some surprise.

"Jumped out of the copse at the turning and struck at me with a
bludgeon," said Mr. Juxon. "Knocked my hat off, into the bargain, and
then ran away with Stamboul after him. If I had not come up in time
there would have been nothing left of him."

"I should say the dog saved your life," remarked