“How did you know it was he?” asked Nick.

“He had on his dressing-gown and cap,” Haskell replied.  “I guess pretty near everybody who lives up this way knows those things.”

“What did you do?”

“I watched him a couple of minutes.  He seemed to be hard at work digging a hole.  I never thought then that it was a grave.”

“Could you see how big a hole he was making?”

“No; he was under the shadow of the trees.  I could hardly see him at all there, but just as I got on the top of the wall, he came out for a second or two into the moonlight.  Then I saw the old cap and dressing-gown.”

“Did you see any object lying upon the ground which looked like a body?”

“No; it was dark under the tree.  The body was probably there.”

“Why do you say that?”

“Well, it couldn’t have been anywhere else.”

“How do you know there was any body ?”

“Mr. Deever has told me about his brother.  I take it for granted that the doctor was burying him.”

“Did you tell anybody about this occurrence?”

“No.”

“Why not?  It was strange enough.”

“I didn’t think it was strange for him.  Everybody knows that the doctor is a sort of crank.  When I saw who it was, I just slid down off the wall and went home.  I never would have thought of it again if Mr. Deever hadn’t spoken to me about his brother.”

“You can point out the spot where the doctor was digging?”

“Sure.”

“We will make an examination at once.”

“I thought you’d find out that murder had been done,” said Deever. 
“You’ll find out, if you stick to me, that I pretty generally know what
I’m talking about.”

“That’s right,” said Haskell.

“Here come your friends,” said Chick, who had not spoken up to that time.

Two men were seen coming from St. Nicholas avenue.  They carried spades and pickaxes.

Thus reinforced, the party proceeded to scale the wall.  Just as they did so, the moon, which had been very bright, was obscured by a heavy cloud.

It was in darkness, then, that they descended into the garden.

But Haskell seemed to be in doubt about the direction to be followed.  He started off at once.

They had gone less than a hundred feet when suddenly Haskell shrank back.  Deever, who was next to him, ran against him violently.

“What’s the matter?” whispered Deever, in an anxious tone.

“There’s somebody here ahead of us.”

All looked where Haskell pointed, and they were able to make out the figure of a man standing in one of the numerous paths which wound through the garden.  He appeared not to have noticed the advancing party.

“He isn’t ten feet from the grave,” whispered Haskell.  “It’s under that tree right beside him.”

At this moment the moon broke through the cloud.  Its light fell round the figure in the path.