uld receive would prevail upon me to tell of him
what I am going to tell now.

But I say he is mad, and therefore not accountable for what he has
done--mad for love of a young woman. If I could have my way, I should
like to twist her neck, though she _is_ a lady, and a great heiress
into the bargain. Before she came between them, my master and Mr.
Varleigh were more like brothers than anything else. She set them at
variance, and whether she meant to do it or not is all the same to me.
I own I took a dislike to her when I first saw her. She was one of
the light-haired, blue-eyed sort, with an innocent look and a snaky
waist--not at all to be depended on, as I have found them.

I hear I am not expected to give an account of the disagreement between
the two gentlemen, of which this lady was the cause. I am to state what
I did in Maplesworth, and what I saw afterward in Herne Wood. Poor as
I am, I would give a five-pound note to anybody who could do it for me.
Unfortunately, I must do it for myself.

On the 10th of July, in the evening, my master went, for the second time
that day, to Mr. Varleigh's lodgings.

I am certain of the date, because it was the day of publication of the
town newspaper, and there was a law report in it which set everybody
talking. There had been a duel with pistols, a day or two before,
between a resident in the town and a visitor, caused by some dispute
about horses. Nothing very serious came of the meeting. One of the men
only was hurt, and the wound proved to be of no great importance. The
awkward part of the matter was that the constables appeared on the
ground, before the wounded man had been removed. He and his two seconds
were caught, and the prisoners were committed for trial. Dueling (the
magistrates said) was an inhuman and unchristian practice, and they were
determined to put the law in force and stop it. This sentence made a
great stir in the town, and fixed the date, as I have just said, in my
mind.

Having been accidentally within hearing of some of the disputes
concerning Miss Laroche between my master and Mr. Varleigh, I had my
misgivings about the Captain's second visit to the friend with whom he
had quarreled already. A gentleman called on him, soon after he had gone
out, on important business. This gave me an excuse for following him
to Mr. Varleigh's rooms with the visitor's card, and I took the
opportunity.

I heard them at high words on my way upstairs, and waited a lit