She had very little time, he realized, which was all the more reason for his making time to read it to her.
As every country boy will, at every opportunity, so Dorian cut crosslots to his objective.

He now leaped the fence, and struck off through the meadow up into the corn field.

Mr.Duke had a big, fine field that season, the growing corn already reaching to his shoulder.

The night was dark, save for the twinkling stars in the clear sky; it was still, save for the soft rustling of the corn in the breeze.
Dorian caught sight of a light as of a lantern up by the ditch from which the water for irrigating was turned into the rows of corn and potatoes.

He stopped and listened.