“And it was also you who first saw the body in the water,” observed the coroner, regarding the reluctant witness curiously.  “How came you to see that?  Were you looking for something of the sort?”

The witness shivered.  He didn’t know how he come to see it.  He was on the strade, not looking for nothing, when he saw some’at dark among the reeds, and told the harvesters when they come by.  They said it was a man, got him out, and then found it was his lordship.

There was only one peculiarity about the boy’s evidence—­his manner.  All he said was feasible enough; indeed, what would be most likely to happen under the circumstances.  But whence arose his terror?  Had he been of a timid temperament, it might have been natural; but the miller had spoken the truth—­he was audacious and hardy.  Only upon one or two, however, did the manner leave any impression.  Pike, who made one of the crowd in the inquest-room, was one of these.  His experience of human nature was tolerably keen, and he felt sure the boy was keeping something behind that he did not dare to tell.  The coroner and jury were not so clear-sighted, and dismissed him with the remark that he was a “little fool.”

“Call George Gorton,” said the coroner, looking at his notes.

Very much to Lord Hartledon’s surprise—­perhaps somewhat to his annoyance—­the man answering to this name was the one who had originally come to Calne on a special mission to himself.  Some feeling caused him to turn from the man whilst he gave his evidence, a thing easily done in the crowded room.

It appeared that amidst the stirring excitement in the neighbourhood on the Tuesday night when the death became known, this stranger happened to avow in the public-house which he made his quarters that he had seen Lord Hartledon in his skiff just before the event must have happened.  The information was reported, and the man received a summons to appear before the coroner.

And it may be as well to remark now, that his second appearance was owing to a little cowardice on his own part.  He had felt perfectly satisfied at the time with the promise given him by Lord Hartledon to see the debt paid—­given also in the presence of the Rector—­and took his departure in the train, just as Pike had subsequently told Mr. Elster.  But ere he had gone two stages on his journey, he began to think he might have been too precipitate, and to ask himself whether his employers would not tell him so when he appeared before them, unbacked by any guarantee from Lord Hartledon; for this, by a strange oversight, he had omitted to ask for.  He halted at once, and went back by the next return train.  The following day, Tuesday, he spent looking after Lord Hartledon, but, as it happened, did not meet him.