being composed of velvet. Upon his head he wore a travelling
cap, and his fingers, as he grasped the cloak around him, were seen to
be covered with rings of great value.

Such a personage, coming in such style, was, of course, likely to be
honoured in every possible way by the landlord of the inn, and
accordingly he was shown most obsequiously to the handsomest apartment
in the house, and the whole establishment was put upon the alert to
attend to any orders he might choose to give.

He had not been long in the place when he sent for the landlord, who,
hastily scrambling on his best coat, and getting his wife to arrange the
tie of his neckcloth, proceeded to obey the orders of his illustrious
guest, whatever they might chance to be.

He found the Baron Stolmuyer reclining upon a sofa, and having thrown
aside his velvet cloak, trimmed with rich fur, he showed that underneath
it he wore a costume of great richness and beauty, although, certainly,
the form it covered was not calculated to set it off to any great
advantage, for the baron was merely skin and bone, and looked like a man
who had just emerged from a long illness, for his face was ghastly pale,
and the landlord could not help observing that there was a strange
peculiarity about his eyes, the reason of which he could not make out.

"You are the landlord of this inn, I presume," said the baron, "and,
consequently, no doubt well acquainted with the neighbourhood?"

"I have the honour to be all that, sir. I have been here about sixteen
years, and in that time I certainly ought to know something of the
neighbourhood."

"'Tis well; some one told me there was a little cottage sort of place to
let here, and as I am simple and retired in my habits I thought that it
might possibly suit me."

"A little cottage, sir! There are certainly little cottages to let, but
not such as would suit you; and if I might have presumed, sir, to think,
I should have considered Anderbury-on-the-Mount, which is now to let,
would have been the place for you. It is a large place, sir, and
belonged to a good family, although they are now all dead and gone,
except one, and it's he who wants to let the old place."

"Anderbury-on-the-Mount," said the baron, "was the name of the place
mentioned to me; but I understood it was a little place."

"Oh! sir, that is quite a mistake; who told you so? It's the largest
place about here; there are a matter of twenty-seven rooms in it, and it
stands