me of the
numerous flower-beds which were in the way.

"Yes," said the doctor, exultingly, "it must be Varney; and now I have
but to watch him, and not to resist him; for what good on earth is it to
stop him in what he wishes to do, and, by such means, never wrest his
secret from him. The only way is to let him go on, and that will I do,
most certainly."

Now he heard the indistinct muttering of the voice of some one, so low
that he could not catch what words were uttered; but he fancied that, in
the deep tones, he recognised, without any doubt, the voice of Sir
Francis Varney.

"It must be he," he said, "it surely must be he. Who else would come
here to disturb the solitude of an empty house? He comes! he comes!"

Now the doctor could see a figure emerge from behind some thick beeches,
which had before obstructed his vision, and he looked scrutinisingly
about, while some doubts stole slowly over his mind now as to whether it
was the vampyre or not. The height was in favour of the supposition that
it was none other than Varney; but the figure looked so much stouter,
that Mr. Chillingworth felt a little staggered upon the subject, and
unable wholly to make up his mind upon it.

The pausing of this visitor, too, opposite that window where Sir Francis
Varney had made his attempts, was another strong reason why the doctor
was inclined to believe it must be him, and yet he could not quite make
up his mind upon the subject, so as to speak with certainty.

A very short time, however, indeed, must have sufficed to set such a
question as that at rest; and patience seemed the only quality of mind
necessary under those circumstances for Mr. Chillingworth to exert.

The visitor continued gazing either at that window, or at the whole
front of the house, for several minutes, and then he turned away from a
contemplation of it, and walked slowly along, parallel with the windows
of that dining-room, one of which had been broken so completely on the
occasion of the admiral's attempt to take the vampyre prisoner.

The moment the stranger altered his position, from looking at the
window, and commenced walking away from it, Mr. Chillingworth's mind was
made up. It was not Varney--of that he felt now most positively assured,
and could have no doubt whatever upon the subject.

The gait, the general air, the walk, all were different; and then arose
the anxious question of who could it be that had intruded upon that
lonely place, and