The thunderstorm passed away; but the rain continued to fall heavily.
Soon after eleven the guests at the inn retired for the night. There was
some little discussion between the two travelers, as to which of them
should take possession of the truckle-bed. It was put an end to by the
fair gentleman, in his own pleasant way. He proposed to "toss up
for it"--and he lost. The dark gentleman went to bed first; the fair
gentleman followed, after waiting a while. Mr. Rook took his knapsack
into the outhouse; and arranged on the table his appliances for the
toilet--contained in a leather roll, and including a razor--ready for
use in the morning.

Having previously barred the second door of the outhouse, which led into
the yard, Mr. Rook fastened the other door, the lock and bolts of which
were on the side of the kitchen. He then secured the house door, and the
shutters over the lower windows. Returning to the kitchen, he noticed
that the time was ten minutes short of midnight. Soon afterward, he and
his wife went to bed.

Nothing happened to disturb Mr. and Mrs. Rook during the night.

At a quarter to seven the next morning, he got up; his wife being still
asleep. He had been instructed to wake the gentlemen early; and he
knocked at their door. Receiving no answer, after repeatedly knocking,
he opened the door and stepped into the outhouse.

At this point in his evidence, the witness's recollections appeared to
overpower him. "Give me a moment, gentlemen," he said to the jury. "I
have had a dreadful fright; and I don't believe I shall get over it for
the rest of my life."

The coroner helped him by a question: "What did you see when you opened
the door?"

Mr. Rook answered: "I saw the dark man stretched out on his bed--dead,
with a frightful wound in his throat. I saw an open razor, stained with
smears of blood, at his side."

"Did you notice the door, leading into the yard?"

"It was wide open, sir. When I was able to look round me, the other
traveler--I mean the man with the fair complexion, who carried the
knapsack--was nowhere to be seen."

"What did you do, after making these discoveries?"

"I closed the yard door. Then I locked the other door, and put the
key in my pocket. After that I roused the servant, and sent him to the
constable--who lived near to us--while I ran for the doctor, whose
house was at the other end of our village. The doctor sent his groom, on
horseback, to the police-office in the town.