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"This aroused my curiosity, so when I went out for a walk in the

grounds with my charge, I strolled round to the side from which I

could see the windows of this part of the house. There were four

of them in a row, three of which were simply dirty, while the

fourth was shuttered up. They were evidently all deserted. As I

strolled up and down, glancing at them occasionally, Mr. Rucastle

came out to me, looking as merry and jovial as ever.

"'Ah!' said he, 'you must not think me rude if I passed you

without a word, my dear young lady. I was preoccupied with

business matters.'

"I assured him that I was not offended. 'By the way,' said I,

'you seem to have quite a suite of spare rooms up there, and one

of them has the shutters up.'

"He looked surprised and, as it seemed to me, a little startled

at my remark.