his; and if I don't wake up to
find myself over the cliffs, it's no thanks"--bitterly--"to them we
might have relied on. But I don't believe it's the church bell, not if
you went on your bended knees."

"Then, what do you say to this?" announced Miss Gabriel, triumphantly.

Mrs. Pope would reserve her opinion until she saw what Miss Gabriel had
hold of.

"Railings," said Miss Gabriel. "We are at the corner of Church Lane,
and here's the railing close alongside of us. Now we have only to keep
by the railing and feel our way--if you'll follow me--and we must find
the churchyard gate. The man ringing the bell will certainly have a
lantern, and will take us home."

"I don't fancy churchyards at this time of night," said Mrs. Pope; "and
what's more, I never did."

"You must make up your mind to one, then; that is, unless you prefer to
wait here till morning."

They advanced, feeling their way by the rails, Mrs. Pope close behind
Miss Gabriel's heels. The bell continued tolling, not far away; yet
somehow after three minute's progress they appeared to be no nearer to
it.

"Church Lane was never so long as all this," asserted Mrs. Pope, coming
to a desperate halt; "and you needn't try to persuade me."

"It does seem a long way," Miss Gabriel conceded; "but no doubt the fog
magnifies things."

"You had the same tale just now, about the church bell. For my part, I
don't believe in your church bell, and--listen!"

"Eh?"

"It has stopped ringing!"

So it had. It was too much, perhaps, to say that Miss Gabriel's blood
ran cold, there in the darkness, as Mrs. Pope clutched and clung to
her; but certainly her heart sunk.

"All the better," she said, bravely, clenching her jaw that her teeth
might not be heard to chatter. "Whoever was ringing the bell will be
returning this way presently, and we can ask his help."

But here inspiration came to Mrs. Pope.

"It's my belief," she said, "we are not in Church Lane at all, but in
the churchyard; and these rails don't belong to Church Lane, but to old
Bonaday's grave."

"My dear Charlotte! When we've been following them for at least two
hundred yards!"

"My dear Elizabeth, that's just it. We've been following round and
round them, and at this rate there's no reason why ever we should stop,
in this world."

"You don't say.... But, after all, there's an easy way of proving if
you are right. You walk to the left, feeling round them, and I'll walk
to the right, and then,