He never eats or drinks, and he never says a word about the flowers they put upon his table; and what he does all day long nobody knows, except that he has a lot of books with him.

Widow Shanks, who has the best right to know all about him, has made up her mind that his head has been turned by the troubles of his family, except for his going without dinner, which no lunatic ever does, according to her knowledge.

And he seems to have got 'Butter Cheeseman,' as they call him, entirely at his beck and call.

He leaves his black horse there every morning, and rides home at night to his ancestral ruins.

There, now, you know as much as I do." "There is mischief at the bottom of all this," said Faith; "in these dangerous times, it must not be neglected.