as if a cellar door opened close by your elbow. Well, one Sunday, at a
time that William was in very good health to all appearance, the bell
that was ringing for church went very heavy all of a sudden; the sexton,
who told me o't, said he had not known the bell go so heavy in his hand
for years--it was just as if the gudgeons wanted oiling. That was on the
Sunday, as I say.

"During the week after, it chanced that William's wife was staying up
late one night to finish her ironing, she doing the washing for Mr and
Mrs Hardcome. Her husband had finished his supper, and gone to bed as
usual some hour or two before. While she ironed she heard him coming
downstairs; he stopped to put on his boots at the stair-foot, where he
always left them, and then came on into the living-room where she was
ironing, passing through it towards the door, this being the only way
from the staircase to the outside of the house. No word was said on
either side, William not being a man given to much speaking, and his
wife being occupied with her work. He went out and closed the door
behind him. As her husband had now and then gone out in this way at
night before when unwell, or unable to sleep for want of a pipe, she
took no particular notice, and continued at her ironing. This she
finished shortly after, and, as he had not come in, she waited awhile
for him, putting away the irons and things, and preparing the table for
his breakfast in the morning. Still he did not return, but supposing him
not far off, and wanting to go to bed herself, tired as she was, she
left the door unbarred and went to the stairs, after writing on the back
of the door with chalk: _Mind and do the door_ (because he was a
forgetful man).

"To her great surprise, and I might say alarm, on reaching the foot of
the stairs his boots were standing there as they always stood when he