much annoyed, as I knew they had been cautioned to keep quiet, and even the maid had not been allowed to enter my room.  This morning, when Miss Moore went to see the housekeeper, the butler came in and asked if we had heard any noises last night, about a quarter to eleven o’clock, he thought, after every one had gone up to bed; adding, “It was two bangs like a fist on a door, and I said, ’If that isn’t Miss Moore or Miss Langton, I’ll believe in the noises they all talk about,’—­it’s just like what the gentlemen told me.”

   His wife had also heard the bangs, but had waited for him to
   speak to her of them, and the maids on the other side of the
   house had been roused to come to their door and listen.

The footman, who sleeps in the basement, and the Colonel, who was in the smoking-room in the wing till 11.30, heard nothing; but Miss Langton, in No. 4, to whom Miss Moore mentioned the servants’ story, had heard noises “between 10.30 and 10.45,” but had not been disturbed, thinking, as we had done, that they were probably made by the servants.

On inquiry we found that the cook had gone to bed directly after the servants’ supper, the two under maids were up by ten o’clock (Miss Moore heard their voices when she came to my room at ten o’clock), and the upper housemaid had gone up a few minutes after the hall clock struck, following Miss Moore up the stairs.  The butler had come up directly after, only waiting to put out the hall lamp, and all were in bed before 10.30.  We ourselves noticed the striking of the hall clock after we heard the noise—­it had gone wrong, and only struck nine instead of eleven o’clock—­so there seems little doubt that we all heard the same sound, and all describe it as coming from below.

In discussing the occurrence with the butler and his wife, Miss Moore learned that they had lately heard a story [from a local resident] which was new to us.  A maid of Mrs. S——­, who, though married to the butler, still lived in the house, and performed her duties as usual, was one night coming up the back-stairs with a tray for Mrs. S——­, when, on reaching the top, by the door of No. 3, she met the figure of a nun, which so frightened her that she dropped the tray and broke all the plates on it.  Mrs. S——­ explained it away by saying it was “only ——­” (they could not remember her name) “come to pray with her.”  It was Sunday night, but they knew there was no one there who could in the least account for the appearance.  The only explanation offered by the narrator of the story was that “there had been a Miss S——­, a nun, who had died.”

   March 14th, Sunday.—­I called on Mrs. S——­, and had a long
   talk with her.