"Good heavens! man, that is the very hour the woman was
killed!"

"Yes. And for that reason I held my tongue; particularly as I
got over the wall near the cottage."

"Where do you mean?"

"Well, there's a field of corn nearly ready to be cut near the
cottage. It's divided from the garden by a fence. I came
along the foot-path that leads from the station and jumped the
fence."

"Did you enter Miss Loach's grounds?"

"No. I had no right to. I saw a light in the basement, but I
did not take much notice. I was too anxious to find the
ghost. Well, I ran along the fence--on the field-of-corn
side, remember, and got over the wall. Then I dodged through
the park, scratching myself a lot. I could find nothing. The
house seemed quiet enough, so after a quarter of an hour I had
enough of it. I got out over the wall on the other side and
came home. I caught a cold which necessitated my wearing a
great-coat the next day. So there you have my ghost-hunting,
and a fine fool I was to go."

"I wish you had told me this before, Mallow."

"If I had, you would have thought I'd killed the old woman.
But I tell you now, as I want this matter sifted to the