f the house where
Naomi Penryn was. Most likely, too, dogs would be prowling around, and I
did not wish to place myself in the power of Richard Tresidder or his
son Nick. At the same time I vowed that I would see Naomi, even though I
waited there until morning.

So, tying Smiler to a tree, I crept quietly up to the house and looked
anxiously around. At first all seemed to be in darkness, but presently I
saw a light shining from one of the windows in the back part of the
house. Wondering what it might mean, I went toward it and looked through
the window. A blind had been drawn, but it did not fit the window well,
and there was an inch of glass between the window-frame and the blind
that was not covered. At first I could only see the room in a blurred
sort of way, for the leaded panes of glass were small, but presently I
saw more clearly. The room into which I looked was the kitchen, and by
the table sat a man and a woman. The man was Ikey Trethewy, whom I had
last seen in Granfer Fraddam's Cave, and who had promised to take my
letter to Naomi; the woman was the Pennington cook. The latter was a
sour and rather hard-featured woman of forty years of age. It had been a
joke of the parish that Tryphena Rowse never had a sweetheart in her
life, that she was too ugly, too cross-tempered. It was also rumoured,
however, that this was not Tryphena's fault, and that her great desire
was to get married and settle down. I soon saw that Ikey Trethewy was
there as Tryphena's sweetheart. The table was covered with tempting
eatables, of which Ikey partook freely, stopping between sups of ale and
mouthfuls of chicken pie to salute the object of his affections. I saw,
too, that these attentions were by no means disagreeable to the cook,
although she gave Ikey several admonitory taps. It was evident, too,
that Ikey's visit was clandestine. I knew that, except on special
occasions, it was the rule for Pennington doors to be closed at ten
o'clock, while it was now past midnight. Probably Ikey, who had the
reputation of being a woman-hater, did not care for his courtship to be
known, for I knew that he did not like being laughed at or joked in any
way.

I had not waited long when Ikey began to make preparations for his
departure, while Tryphena seemed to be trying to persuade him to stay a
little longer. No sound reached me, however, and I imagined that all
their conversation was carried on in whispers for fear the noise thereof
might reach