This would never do: socks cost money, and their absence meant sore feet and weariness; so he told the Major and Gertie to walk on slowly while he went back.

He would catch them up, he said, before they had gone half a mile.

He hid his bundle under a hedge--every pound of weight made a difference at the end of a day's work--and set off.
It was just at that moment between day and night--between four and five o'clock--as he came back into the yard.

He went straight through the open gates, glancing about, to explain matters to the farmer if necessary, but, not seeing him, went up the rickety stairs, groped his way across to the window, took down his socks from the nail an which he had hung them last night, and came down again.
As he came into the yard, he thought he heard something stirring within the open door of the stable on his right, and thinking it to be the farmer, and that an explanation would be advisable, looked in.
At first he saw nothing, though he could hear a horse moving about in the loose-box in the corner.

Then he saw a light shine beneath the crack of the second door, beside the loose-box, that led into the farm-yard proper; and the next instant the door opened, a man came in with a lantern obviously just lighted, as the flame was not yet burned up, and stopped with a half-frightened look on seeing Frank.