rant for. Charge of murder,
sir."

"Man or woman?"

"Man, sir."

"Will you tell me his name?"

"Horne, sir."

Max thought a moment.

"Why are you pottering about here, instead of going straight up to the
house?"

"Well, sir, I'm obeying orders."

"Come with me," said Max suddenly. "There's an old hag hiding in the
barn now, who knows more about this business than Mr. Horne."

Behind the young gentleman's back the detective smiled, but he professed
to be ready to follow him.

"There's only one way out of this barn," explained Max, as he approached
the door, beside which a groom was standing. "By this door, which is
never locked. There is a window, but it's too high up for anybody to get
out by."

Telling the groom to guard the door, Max went into the barn, followed by
the detective. There was still light enough for them to find their way
about among the lumber.

"Where's the window, sir?" asked the detective.

Max pointed to a speck of light high in the south wall of the barn.

"She couldn't get out there," said he, "even if she could climb up to
it. Unless she could swarm a rope."

And he touched one of the ropes which dangled from a huge beam.

The detective, however, walked rapidly past him, and stopped short,
pointing to something which was lying on the floor under the window.

It was the body of a man, lying in a heap.

CHAPTER XXV.

THE MYSTERY EXPLAINED.

Max helped the detective raise the man from the ground. He was quite
dead, and from the position in which they had found him, both men
concluded that he had been in the act of climbing up to the high window,
when the rope by which he was holding broke under his weight. It was
evident that he had fallen upon an old millstone which was among the
lumber on the floor beneath, and that the shock of the fall had broken
his neck.

They had found out all this before Max could form any opinion as to the
identity of the dead man. He was short of stature, and apparently
between fifty and sixty years of age, slightly built, but muscular. The
body was dressed in the clothes of a respectable mechanic.

There was very little light in the barn by this time, and Max directed
the groom, who had been standing outside, and who had entered, attracted
by Max's shout of discovery, to bring a lantern.

"I suppose we'd better send for a doctor," said Max, "though the man's
as dead as a doornail. In the meantime, just give a look around and see
whe