After breakfast, I went to the bureau to ask for my account.  Whilst it was being made out, I observed casually that I had taken lodgings at Miss G.’s on Cliff Terrace, upon which the accountant looked quickly up and said:  “Oh, Miss G.’s,” and then as quickly went on with my bill.  I hardly noticed this at the moment, though I thought of it afterwards.

Eleven o’clock saw us comfortably ensconced in our rooms.  After lunch, we took a delightful expedition, the weather having greatly moderated.  We found that night, at dinner, that Miss G. was a first-rate cook, and we retired to rest much pleased with our quarters.

We soon made the acquaintance of the two maids, Jane, who waited upon us, and Mary, the housemaid; and two very pleasant and obliging young women we found them.

About the third morning of our stay, on going up to my bed-room after breakfast, I was surprised to find a strange maid in the room.  She was standing by the bed, smoothing down the bed-clothes with both hands and appeared to take no notice of me, but continued gazing steadily in front of her, while her hands went mechanically on smoothing the clothes.  I could not help being struck with her pale face, which wore a look of pain, and the fixed and almost stony expression of her eyes.  I left her in exactly the same position as I found her.  On coming down I said to my wife:  “I did not know Miss G. employed three servants.  There certainly is another making the bed in our room.”  I am short-sighted, and my wife would have it I had made a mistake; but I felt quite certain I had not.  Later on, whilst Jane was laying the lunch, I said to her:  “I thought that you and Mary were the only two servants in the house.”

“Yes, sir, only me and Mary,” was Jane’s reply, as she left the room.

“There,” said my wife, “I told you that you were mistaken.”  And I did not pursue the subject further.

Two or three days slipped away in pleasant occupations, such as driving, boating, etc., and we had forgotten all about the third maid.  We saw but little of Miss G., though her handiwork was pleasantly apparent in the cuisine.

On the sixth morning of our stay, which was the day before we were to leave, my wife after breakfast said she would go up and do a little packing whilst I made out our route for the following day in the Bradshaw; but was soon interrupted by the return of my wife with a rather scared look on her face.

“Well,” she said, “you were right after all, for there is another maid, and she is now in our bed-room, and apparently engaged in much the same occupation as when you saw her there.  She took no notice of me, but stood there with her body slightly bent over the bed, looking straight in front of her, her hands smoothing the bed-clothes.”  She described her as having dark hair, her face very pale, and her mouth very firmly set.  My curiosity was now so much awakened that I determined to question Miss G. on the subject.  But our carriage was now at the door waiting for us to start on an expedition that would engage us all day.