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Manston now stretched his arreat bulk, and let it slide to the ground The woman atched him could see the object plainly It was a common corn-sack, nearly full, and was tied at the mouth in the usual way

The steward had once or twice started up, as if he had heard sounds, and his motions now becaht Anne had n noise of so portion of the house She heard it 'One of the rats,' she thought

He seeed his tactics co on with his work in the dark She had only sounds to go by now, and, judging as well as she could fro up the bricks which closed the oven's mouth as they had been before he disturbed them The query that had not left her brain all the interval of her inspection--how should she get back into her bedroo the cupboard, she would glide across the brewhouse, take the key from the top of the copper, run upstairs, unlock the door, and bring back the key again: if he returned to bed, which was unlikely, he would think the lock had failed to catch in the staple This thought and intention, occupying such length of words, flashed upon her in an instant, and hardly disturbed her strong curiosity to stay and learn thesideways through the first door and closing it behind her, she advanced into the darkness towards the second, reatest care, lest the fragments of rubbish on the floor should crackle beneath her tread She soon stood close by the copper, and not more than a foot from the door of the room occupied by Manston himself, from which position she could distinctly hear hih it was far too dark to discern anything of him

To secure the key of her chaly she cautiously reached out with her hand to where it lay Instead of touching it, her fingers ca

She drooped faint in a cold sweat It was the foot either of a -copper where the key had lain A warm foot, covered with a polished boot