lease; but, to his great relief, the baron declined taking any wine,
merely washing down his repast with a tumbler of cool water; and then,
although the hour was very early, he retired at once to rest.

The landlord was not disposed to disregard the injunction which the
baron had given him to attend carefully on his servants and horses, and
after giving orders that nothing should be stinted as regarded the
latter, he himself looked to the creature-comforts of the former, and he
did this with a double motive, for not only was he anxious to make the
most he could out of the baron in the way of charges, but he was
positively panting with curiosity to know more about so singular a
personage, and he thought that surely the servants must be able to
furnish him with some particulars regarding their eccentric master.

In this, however, he was mistaken, for although they told him all they
knew, that amounted to so little as really not to be worth the learning.

They informed him that they had been engaged all in the last week, and
that they knew nothing of the baron whatever, or where he came from, or
what he was, excepting that he paid them most liberal wages, and was not
very exacting in the service he required of them.

This was very unsatisfactory, and when the landlord started on a
mission, which he considered himself bound to perform, to a Mr. Leek, in
the town, who had the letting of Anderbury-on-the-Mount, he was quite
vexed to think what a small amount of information he was able to carry
to him.

"I can tell him," he said to himself as he went quickly towards the
agent's residence; "I can tell him the baron's name, and that in the
morning he wants to look at Anderbury-on-the-Mount; but that's all I
know of him, except that he is a most extraordinary man--indeed, the
most extraordinary that I ever came near."

Mr. Leek, the house agent, notwithstanding the deficiency of the facts
contained in the landlord's statement, was well enough satisfied to hear
that any one of apparent wealth was inquiring after the large premises
to let, for, as he said truly to the landlord,--

"The commission on letting and receiving the rentals of such a property
is no joke to me."

"Precisely," said the landlord. "I thought it was better to come and
tell you at once, for there can be no doubt that he is enormously rich."

"If that be satisfactorily proved, it's of no consequence what he is, or
who he is, and you may depend I shall be