She said that a number of men, sailors and estate men, were packing up and removing all the most valuable things in the house--the finest pictures, the old silver, the famous collection of china which Stephen John Greyle made--and spent thousands upon thousands of pounds in making!--the rarest and most valuable books out of the library--all sorts of things of real and great value.

Everything was being taken down to the _Pike_--and the estate carpenter, who was in charge of all this, said it was by the Squire's orders, and produced to Mrs.Peller his written authority.

Of course, Mrs.Peller could do nothing against that, but she came hurrying to tell us, because she, like everybody else, is much exercised by these recent events.

And so Audrey and I pocketed our pride, and went to see Peter Chatfield.

But Peter Chatfield, like his master, had gone! He had left home the previous evening, and his house was locked up." Copplestone and Vickers exchanged glances, and the young solicitor signed Mrs.Greyle to proceed.
"Then," she added, "to add to that, as we came away from Chatfield's house, we met Mr.Elkin, the bank-manager from Norcaster.