"He said nothing, sir," answered Ralph sadly. "It is all a mystery to me. But now we are here we may as well learn all that we can."
"What more can we learn, Ralph?" asked Mr. St. Clive. "This silent spot will not speak and tell us what happened."
"Not to you perhaps, but it will speak to me, sir. I have been brought up on the plains, remember, and grass and trees may tell me more than they can tell to you. First, sir, is this a direct road to anywhere? I mean, is it a general thoroughfare?"
Mr. St. Clive shook his head.
"No, Ralph. It is a rarely frequented spot. The village people are half afraid of it. It is a short cut from Stow Ormond to Great Stow, and it would argue that your father must have been familiar with the place for him to have taken it."
"Where else besides Great Stow does it lead to, sir?"
"Why, my lad, to nowhere in particular. It takes you out the other side of Stow Common, and, of course, from there you can go where you will."
Ralph nodded.
"So that we may suppose that any one crossing here would be going to Great Stow?"