One boy in the village, Johnny Milne, was employed by the shop to fetch the papers from the train.
So if the train were punctual he would have passed this spot on his way back about twenty minutes later; that was at seven minutes to eight.
[Illustration: "Mrs. Sharp is ill, and Johnny Milne has brought the newspapers from the station.">[
Now, the bicycle track showed that the machine was ridden up the hill (the track zig-zagged along the road, whereas if it had been running downhill it would have gone pretty straight), the rider getting very tired (more zig-zag) near the top. There the bicycle had stopped (sharp turn and slither of the wheels in the sand), and the rider had got off to rest. It was a woman (small foot, no nail marks, small, sharp heel).
She had stood a short time (footmarks on top of each other), and had then remounted and ridden on. She had passed this spot between 7.15 and ten minutes to eight. (The bicycle tracks had passed over Johnny Milne's outgoing track of 7:15, but his returning footmarks of ten minutes to eight overtrod the cycle tracks, so they had been made since it passed.)
What lady would be cycling along this road at that hour of the morning? (A rather stout lady, too, judging from the breadth of her foot and the fact that she had to rest on arriving at the top of the hill.)
The road led to a cottage where lived Mrs. Sharp, who was not very well.
The lady must surely be Mrs. Clarke, the matronly district nurse on her bicycle going to see Mrs. Sharp and she was still there (as there were no return wheel marks).
That is how a Scout can read news from the ground, and, though this morning's news was not important, it is always worth while to practise reading, because some day you will probably want to pick up some important information, and it is only everyday practice that will enable you to do it.