The Project Gutenberg EBook of The Bittermeads Mystery, by E. R. Punshon

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Title: The Bittermeads Mystery

Author: E. R. Punshon

Posting Date: September 21, 2008 [EBook #1888]
Release Date: September, 1999

Language: English

Character set encoding: ASCII

*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK THE BITTERMEADS MYSTERY ***

Produced by An Anonymous Project Gutenberg Volunteer

THE BITTERMEADS MYSTERY

By E. R. Punshon

CONTENTS

I THE LONE PASSENGER

II THE FIGHT IN THE WOODS

III A COINCIDENCE

IV A WOMAN WEEPS

V A WOMAN AND A MAN

VI A DISCOVERY

VII QUESTION AND ANSWER

VIII CAPTIVITY CAPTURE

IX THE ATTIC OF MYSTERY

X THE NEW GARDENER

XI THE PROBLEM

XII AN AVOWAL

XIII INVISIBLE WRITING

XIV LOVE-MAKING AT NIGHT

XV THE SOUND OF A SHOT

XVI IN THE WOOD

XVII A DECLARATION

XVIII ROBERT DUNN'S ENEMY

XIX THE VISIT TO WRESTE ABBEY

XX ELLA'S WARNING

XXI DOUBTS AND FEARS

XXII PLOTS AND PLANS

XXIII COUNTER PLANS

XXIV AN APHORISM

XXV THE UNEXPECTED

XXVI A RACE AGAINST TIME

XXVII FLIGHT AND PURSUIT

XXVIII BACK AT BITTERMEADS

XXIX THE ATTIC

XXX SOME EXPLANATIONS

XXXI CONCLUSION

CHAPTER I. THE LONE PASSENGER

That evening the down train from London deposited at the little country
station of Ramsdon but a single passenger, a man of middle height,
shabbily dressed, with broad shoulders and long arms and a most unusual
breadth and depth of chest.

Of his face one could see little, for it was covered by a thick growth
of dark curly hair, beard, moustache and whiskers, all overgrown and
ill-tended, and as he came with a somewhat slow and ungainly walk along
the platform, the lad stationed at the gate to collect tickets grinned
amusedly and called to one of the porters near:

"Look at this, Bill; here's the monkey-man escaped and come back along
of us."

It