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 to the manager's house. They reached it with difficulty—and heard news. Levigne and Janet Clagne had visited Malcolmson about six o'clock on the night before last; they wanted him to witness their signatures to what Levigne said were some legal documents; that done, they had stayed awhile, talking about the colliery; they had gone away together about seven, Levigne remarking that he had a cab coming to the Grange at eight as he wanted to catch the night train to London. The storm was getting bad, said Malcolmson, about the time they left, but he had lent them lanterns, and he could see no reason why they shouldn't have reached Mortover Grange in safety. Of course, if they'd got lost and gone wandering about that was a different matter—he'd heard nothing of them. Yesterday, and that morning, however, he had never been out—the storm had stopped all work, and he had kept to his fireside. But there were cottages near the new colliery, and there were huts, where the navvies lived who were engaged in sinking the shafts, and he turned out now with Wedgwood and the Superintendent and went with them to these places to make enquiries.

It was the middle of the afternoon when Wedgwood got back, still in company of the Superintendent, to Mortover Grange. They