movements?" I asked.

"Yes; but nothing that can clear him. As a matter of fact, his tools
were nowhere to be seen on the line, nor did he bring them home with
him. His own story is that being considerably the worse for drink, he
had fallen down in one of the fields and slept there till morning."

"Things look black against him," I said.

"They do; but listen, I have something more to add. Here comes a very
queer feature in the affair. Lucy Ray, the girl who had caused the feud
between Pritchard and Wynne, after hearing the news of Pritchard's
death, completely lost her head, and ran frantically about the village
declaring that Wynne was the man she really loved, and that she had only
accepted Pritchard in a fit of rage with Wynne for not himself bringing
matters to the point. The case looks very bad against Wynne, and
yesterday the magistrate committed him for trial at the coming assizes.
The unhappy Lucy Ray and the young man's parents are in a state
bordering on distraction."

"What is your own opinion with regard to Wynne's guilt?" I asked.

"Before God, Mr. Bell, I believe the poor fellow is innocent, but the
evidence against him is very strong. One of the favourite theories is
that he went down to the tunnel and extinguished the light, knowing that
this would bring Pritchard out of his box to see what was the matter,
and that he then attacked him, striking the blow which fractured the
skull."

"Has any weapon been found about, with which he could have given such a
blow?"

"No; nor has anything of the kind been discovered on Wynne's person;
that fact is decidedly in his favour."

"But what about the marks on the rocks?" I asked.

"It is possible that Wynne may have made them in order to divert
suspicion by making people think that Pritchard must have fallen, and so
killed himself. The holders of this theory base their belief on the
absolute want of cause for Pritchard's trying to scale the rock. The
whole thing is the most absolute enigma. Some of the country folk have
declared that the tunnel is haunted (and there certainly has been such a
rumour current among them for years). That Pritchard saw some
apparition, and in wild terror sought to escape from it by climbing the
rocks, is another theory, but only the most imaginative hold it."

"Well, it is a most extraordinary case," I replied.

"Yes, Mr. Bell, and I should like to get your opinion of it. Do you see
your way to elucidate the mystery?"

"No