Purchase of this book includes free trial access to www.million-books.com where you can read more than a million books for free.This is an OCR edition with typos.Excerpt from book:CHAPTER III. For a couple of hours, maybe, after the time of Hugh's going, Frank sat warming his thoughts in the glow of the peat fire; at last, finding his eyelids heavy, rose, lighted the candle, blew out the lamp, and started for bed. The hall was in darkness ; his steps rang on the flags; uncannily harsh came the shrilling of crickets from the kitchen hearth; the white steps of the stairs creaked and started beneath his feet; solemnly the clock on the landing ticked out the flying hours : with his candle raised, Frank hastened along the corridor, escaping, so you might think, from the silence and the ghosts. Deep among the feathers in the mahogany four-poster, he slept well and long; woke at last in the fulness of the morning light. Across the bed-foot the sunshine fell golden ; through the open window the air streamed wholesome ; the house hummed with work and hurry; outside the cattle were lowing, the pigs squealing, the cocks tossing their shrill notes to the sky. For a while Frank lay staring at the ceiling, thinking of Nan and her oval face, of Hugh and the exploits of the Prodigal; then fell to reading the texts on the wall, then to admiring the simplicity and cleanliness of his room—the shining plaster walls, the white floor with its strip of carpet, the wondrouspatchwork counterpane, the spotless curtains, blinds, linen; at last, nine o'clock sounding from the clock on the landing, sprang out, dressed quickly and hastened downstairs. At the parlour door he paused ; turned to the left and into the kitchen. On the hearth burned a great fire below a row of pots and kettles. Here and there about the cement floor were stools, painted chairs, chests, a large deal table, a high dresser shining in its array of tin and crockery ware; on the smoke- browned walls