that of Springett, being hoarse and deep, like
his suspicions to any one, resolved from that
one who was suffering from a cold. It was
argued, also, by the prisoners that it would
have been impossible for them to induce
Doctor Graves to accompany either of them
in the way described, as he did not know
anything of Bate, save by name; and that,
disapproving of the second marriage of Mrs.
Springett, he had always endeavoured to avoid
her husband, and had never communicated
with him, save by letter. These facts afforded
so strong a presumption of the innocence of
the prisoners, that, although it was suspected
that they had reason to be glad of the
Doctor's death, they were discharged; after
having been frequently remanded and kept
in prison during nearly two months.

Full a year after these events, when the
subject of the murder had ceased to be talked
about at the Three Crowns, there arrived at
that house one night, a tall, elderly man,
attired like a clergyman, and wearing an
old-fashioned, full-bottomed wig, who brought
with him some trunks, and stated that he
had just come by coach from the West of
England, having business connected with a
lawsuit in London. He desired to be
accommodated with a sleeping-room, saying that
he should probably remain there some time.
Mallet, the waiter, showed him a room which
was vacant; but he made some objection to
it, and inquired if they had no other. The
waiter then showed him another room, which
he also found fault with, on account of its
being near the top of the house – he being, as
he said, naturally afraid of fire; but being
informed that they had then no other
bedroom unoccupied, he at length consented to
sleep in the room which he had first seen.

His objections to the sleeping-rooms were
regarded as the whims of a naturally prim
and fastidious man; but there was a strangeness
in his manner which attracted the
attention of Mallet. He wore at all times a
pair of spectacles with broad black rims, and
had several patches upon his face; and his
clothes were large and ill-fitting. He
absented himself during the day-time, and
when there at night, he invariably sat apart
from the rest of the company, and appeared
to be deeply engaged in the perusal of an
ancient volume, which he carried with him.
He seldom spoke, and his voice was singularly
harsh anddisagreeable; but Mallet was
several times struck with the idea that he
had heard a voice somewhat like it before.
He watched him, and one evening, when he
supposed that he had retired to rest, he met
him up-stairs in a passage that had no
connection with his own room. He was so near
the door of the chamber in which Mallet
himself slept, that he could divest
himself of a suspecion that he had intended to
enter there, but had found the door fastened.
He exused himself by saying that he was
about to descend, and had missed his way;
but Mallet, though unwilling to communicate
his suspecions to any one, resolved from that
time to watch him more closely.

Mallet's bedroom had a long window opening
on to the leaded roof of a building which
formed part of the tavern. It was the very
room in which the two men had slept who
had been suspected of the murder of Dr.
Graves. One night, being unable to sleep,
and having his eye fixed upon this window,
he suddenly perceived the figure of some
person who appeared to be intently examining
the room through the glass. The bed was in
a dark recess at the other side of the apartment;
so that he knew that no one at that
distance could see whether he was awake or
sleeping. Mallet, therefore, stretched out his
hand, and taking a loaded pistol which he
had placed by the bedside since the night
when he had met their singular guest in the
passage, he continued to watch the figure in
silence. He was a courageous man, and was
determined to ascertain what the object of
his visitor was, before giving any alarm.

A moment after, he perceived that the
window, which reached to the ground, and
was divided lengthways, slowly opened,
and he heard the footfall of a man cautiously
stepping into the room. The intruder
closed the window gently behind him, and
then stopped a moment to listen. Mallet
breathed loudly, to convey the impression
that he was asleep ; and expecting
that he intended to do him some injury, or
perhaps to endeavour to possess himself of
the contents of a box in which some persons
might know that the waiter kept money, he
determined to spring upon him the moment
he approached the bed. But, after remaining
motionless for some moments, he perceived to
his surprise that the man went directly to the
fire-place, and groping about there, seemed to
have discovered that it was closed up by a
wind-board. He forced the board in,
apparently by pressing it at the edges ; and having
thus made a slight noise, he paused to listen
again. Finding that the inmate of the
chamber was still breathing deeply, he
appeared to grope for a while inside the lower
part of the chimney ; after which, having
gently replaced the wind-board, he walked
noiselessly again towards the window.

At this moment Mallet sprang from the
bed, seized the stranger, and demanded his
business there. The man made no answer,
but struck him several violent blows in the
face, hoping to overcome him and make his
escape. Mallet, however, grappled with him,
and determined not to quit his hold. He was
himself of strong make ; but the intruder was
a man of extraordinary muscular power. He
pressed his antagonist heavily against the
wall; and, seizing his neckcloth with one
hand, endeavoured to throttle him. Mallet
had been unwilling to fire his pistol, but in
the struggle it was accidentally discharged,
the bullet passing through the pane of glass
without injury to either; and the noise of