Harvest

lay, to the level of the plain, was blowing fiercely on the square of buildings which stood naked and undefended against weather from that quarter of the heaven, while protected by the hills and th

night, and crouch down shivering among the bed-clothes, pining for a sleep that would not come. Instead of sleep, she could do nothing but rehearse the scene with Ellesborough again and again. She watched the alterations in his face-she heard the changes in his voice-as she told her story. She was now as sorry for him as for herself! The tears came flooding i

lying with the vicar which Janet thought unkind. She had been able to find plenty of mind for her work, and for the ambitions of her new profession, and had spent many a careless hour steeped in the sheer physical pleasure of the harvest. Yet, from the beginning, his personality had laid its grip on hers. She had never been able to forget him for long. One visit from him

a wife; she would tell no hypocritical tale. She would make it plain that Roger had found in her no mere suffering saint, and that probably her intolerance and impatience had contribu

he had once heard the story, he could not forsake her! She already saw the pit

ng eyes, in the windy darkness, seemed to be penetrating to another-a phantom scene in a dim distance-drawn

bad woman!"-as she had said so passionately to Janet, when they joined hands. There was no lasting taint left in mind and soul-nothing to prevent her being a pure and faithful wife to George Ellesborough, and a good mother to his children. It was another Rachel to whom all that had happened, a Rachel she had a right to forget! She was weak in will-she had confessed it.

hat I am now-not what I was. And it wasn't I!-it was another woman-a miserable, battered creature who couldn't help herself." "It will rise up between you, and perhaps-after all

r in the dim light, a

he drew no malicious conclusion, he saw you-alone in that farm with Dick Tanner, and he probably knew your name." "How should he know my name?" "He had seen you before-you had seen him before." "I didn't know his name-I don't know it now." "No-but in passing yo

d, the hood of a covered wagon, a boy holding the reins, the heavy cape on his shoulders white with snow, the lamps of the wagon shining dimly on him, and making a kind of luminous mist round the cart. S

shutting out the storm-a man at her knees-

her in its grasp. It could never be wiped out from one human mind, which must bear the burden of it as best it could, till grad

ous dialogue

ugh-he is a reasonable man-he would understand." "I can't-I can't! I have deceived him up till now by passing as unmarried. If I confess this, too, there will

hrough which she had passed seemed to her now unreal, even a little absurd. Her nerves were quieted by sleep, and she saw plainly what she had to do. That "old, unhappy, far-off thing" lurking in the innermost depth of memory h

*

, the husbands? What would the change be like-the life after the war? If there were those who yearned and prayed for it-there were those who feared it. The war had done well for some, and hideously for others. And all through the play of individual interests and desires, and even in the dullest minds there ran the intoxicating sense of Victory, of an England greater and more powerful than even her own sons a

hrough the news of the recapture of Ostend, Zeebrugge, and Bruges, broke into the passionate, low-spoken comment: "The Lord is King-be the people never so unqu

s? Would it take him from her the sooner, or delay h

the child's deep velvety eyes were looking nearly as tired as Miss Henderson's. While Jenny, too, the timid, undeveloped Jenny had lately begun to take an interest in a "friend," a young fellow belonging to Ellesborough's forestry camp whom she had met in Millsborough the day of the Harvest Festival. They had hardly exchanged half an hour's real conversation. But he had bought her some sweets at Millsborough, and walked a bit of the way home with her. Then she had seen him in the village once or twice. He had some relations there-there was some talk of him, and that old murder at the farm-she didn't know rig

en did, at some point; and being sympathetic little souls, they worked especially hard in

Halsey, till he had very reluctantly yield

nder a hedge in the damp October sunshine. "When I wor a young man, I wouldn't ha' mind

he was now in such a gruff and gloomy mood. There was indeed a rumour in the village that old Halsey had seen "summat," but as Halsey had gone to bed immediately after Miss

I don't see as a man can be expected to deal with ghostisses. Anythin' else yer like in a small way-mad dog

said Betts, after a

s murdered sixty years since, 'at's what I

ch they had been working lay alternatively yellow in the stubbles and a rich brown purple in the new turned furrows under

aterally double up a bit if yo try to walk. Well-that's jes' how I saw 'im-crouchin' along. Yo remember it wor a dull evenin' yesterday-an' it wor gettin' dark, though it worn't dark. It wor not much after fower, by my old watch-but I couldn't see 'im at all plain. I wor in Top-End field-you know?-as leads up to that road. An' I watched 'im come along making for that outside cart-shed-that 'un

nly on his companion as t

lp himself. He gave an inter

't cough, as ev

y can do them other things they'd used to do when livi

hook hi

n it," he said,

I called to Jenny to come an' take the 'orses. An' then I went after 'im. But there was all the field

nd again looked doubt

ly, his philosophic atti

f them ole sacks lyin' near the cart," said Halsey slowly. "An'

d softly. Hal

he grass road, p'raps, without my seein' 'im, so I went that way, and there was nothin'-until-a little way up the road-there was blood again"-the old man's voice dropped

at each other. Betts

sure it w

asst me if I'd said anythin' to Miss Janet. And I said, no. So then he tole me I wasn't to say nothin' to the ladies, nor the girls, nor anybody. An' 'ee'd done summat wi' the sack-I dunno what. But 'ee m

ell Miss Janet?-a

e I got talkin' any more. But on the way 'ome, as I tellt y

tone. But he had been clearly much exercised by his companion's account, a

ld man, and I don't want no truck wi' things as I don't unnerstan'. It give me th

n't see

N

n't mind you

y hes

n one o' the same build-soomwhe

ly, "it's as curous as the coughin'. Did

two men smoked silently for a while. Then Betts said

ght o' tellin'

n't ha' told Miss Leighton what I did tell her, i

l John Dempsey. Why, i

n't yer seen

sman they are at least as valuable as brains. In the small world of Ipscombe they only meant that Halsey himself held rather scornfully aloof from the current village gossip, and got mocked at for his pains.

ent to Ralstone, which was only five miles from Ipscombe, he saw no reason to wait, and he had already given all the information he could to the superintendent of police at Millsborough. His grandfather had signed a written confession before his death, and John Dempsey had handed it over. The old man, it appeared, had "turned pious" during a long illness before his deat

nfession itself, rather than the crime confessed, confirmed the poor opinion he had always held of the elder Dempsey when they were young men in the village toget

derson. It was from Ellesborough-a few scribbled words. "I am prevented from coming this evening. The Chief Forestry Officer

, so disappointed and unnerved that she was on the brink of tears. Janet who had just come in from milking, was stand

ook overdone! You've bee

n the severe physical exertion the only relief from restlessness. She shook her head irritably and

n Janet in a tone of remonst

eak to you-pl

back, her eyes fixed on Janet. She was still in the graceful tunic and knee-breeches, in which her young and splend

Ellesborough and I had

t sm

of course I have my o

el slowly. "But-I'd better tell you-Cap

pa

t, laughing, and then stopped. The sudden contraction of p

mething-which made him wonder-whethe

jump. A score of past conjectures

d you te

nderson is my maiden name. I was a married woman for three years. I

to her cheeks. Janet sat sile

a story, didn't I?" sa

ance. It was you who-w

been awfully badly treated-it was no wonder I wanted-to get free. We

tically guessed it." She rose slowly, and going

a little from her touch, murmuring under her breath, "Because I wanted never to hear of it-or think of it again." The

remptorily. "I don't want to hear it. B

urally-it was a g

y and secretly preoccupied with spiritual things. Rachel seemed to her so much cleverer and more vigorous than herself in all matters of ordinary life. Only in the region of religious experience did Janet know herself the superior. But Rachel had never made any outward

is he

ng. I dare say h

p as this! She blamed herself for lack of perception. An ordinary love-affair, about to end in an ordinary way

e no tragedy! She put

! As if I hadn't seen! He wors

shoulder. When she raised it, it was wet. But she ki