extended from the opposite
corner. The foliage was so dense that no part of the wing itself was
visible. He moved quickly across the back of the house, and reached the
trees. As he passed under them, it seemed that he was feeling his way
among monstrous sentinels of a dark mystery.

A thick hedge loomed up in front of him. It appeared to surround the
entire wing. He walked round, trying to find a place thin enough to
allow him to push his way through--but the hedge was evidently there for
the express purpose of defeating such an intention. It was impossible to
penetrate it, to creep under it, or to climb over it. At the extremity
of the wing, about which the trees were thickest, he saw a faint light,
escaping round the edge of a blind.

He stopped beneath it. It was a meager, unpleasant light, too dim to be
of any greater use in the room than to afford the barest relief from
complete darkness. The window was half overgrown with ivy, and he could
see that it was filthily dirty. The light continually flickered, and
once or twice it seemed to have died out altogether. An eerie sensation
began to possess him. He felt very strongly the evil influence of the
house. Curiosity to discover what sinister secret it really harbored
increased and nerved him.

Again he tried to force a way through the hedge, but everywhere it was
an impassable barrier. Slowly and noiselessly he worked his way round
the wing, only to find it completely enclosed on all sides. He returned,
and stood looking up at the window. Either the light was brighter, or
the gap at the edge of the blind had widened. He thought he saw a faint
shadow pass and re-pass.

It was not until, in moving to one side, he struck his head against a
massive bough of one of the great trees that the possibility of
utilizing them as a means of access to the forbidden enclosure occurred
to him. He examined the bough. It extended well over the hedge, and
would form a perfectly secure bridge. By creeping a few feet along it,
he would be able to drop down on the other side of the hedge. Finding
the main trunk, he tested his weight on a smaller bough, and swung
himself up into the tree.

A few minutes later he stood within the barrier. The window was some
twelve or fifteen feet above him. But the walls were thickly clad with
ivy, and ivy is an excellent ladder. Carefully he began to climb.

He reached the window, found himself a secure footing, and peered round
the edge of the bl