t of Tom something like a
connected account of his troubles. The story as he told it was so
disjointed, and at times so incoherent, that I shall make no attempt to
repeat it in his own words, but rather give the sum and substance of
the narrative which was laid before us when we at length came to the
end of our inquiry.

Soon after his brother's death the servants had noticed some change in
Mr. Nicholas's manner and behaviour, which they regarded as the effect
of his sudden bereavement. He became preoccupied and silent, and of an
evening would lock the door of his sitting-room and stay there far into
the night, though hitherto he had been very regular in his habits, and
had almost invariably retired to bed soon after ten. One afternoon Tom
had gone on an errand to Tod's Corner, and being delayed did not return
till late. It was nearly eleven when he reached the farm. He saw a
light in the parlour as he approached the house, and on entering went
at once to inform his master of the result of his mission.

Proceeding to the sitting-room, he found the door standing ajar, and
the room unoccupied. The lamp was burning on the table, beside it was
a large brass-bound box, and a spirit decanter and glass stood hard by.
Tom lingered, note in hand, then determined to leave the message where
his master would be sure to see it on his return. To do this he
approached the table, but had hardly done so when Mr. Coverthorne burst
into the room in a towering rage.

"Who told you to come here?" he shouted, seizing Tom by the throat, as
though with the intention of strangling him. "I'll teach you to come
prying and meddling about my house when you ought to be in bed, you
rascal!"

Nicholas Coverthorne, as any one could have told at a glance, was a
powerful man, and the wonder was that in his blind rage he did not do
the lad some injury before the latter had time to explain that he had
merely stepped inside the room a moment before to deliver his message.

"You've been prying into the drawers and cupboards after tobacco, or
anything you could find, that's my opinion," cried his master. "If so,
you'd better speak the truth before I find it out for myself."

Tom, equally astonished at this unreasonable outburst, and at the fact
of his honesty being called in question--a thing which had never
occurred before--was for the time at a loss to find words in which to
excuse himself, a fact which seemed to increase all the more his
ma