The life had probably not been of the most vivid order: for long periods, no doubt, it had fallen as noiselessly into the past as the quiet drizzle of autumn fell, hour after hour, into the green fish-pond between the yews; but these back-waters of existence sometimes breed, in their sluggish depths, strange acuities of emotion, and Mary Boyne had felt from the first the occasional brush of intense memory.
-- Narrator (Page 3)

Importance: This quote is significant because it is the first indication readers receive from Mary that she recognizes a supernatural energy at Lyng. The narrator does not explicitly say that Mary feels the presence of a ghost, but instead expresses Mary's keen observations that the house itself holds memories and very nearly has a life of its own. This notion of the house as a living breathing thing will be important as the story unfolds and more questionable encounters with what...