"I suppose you know that you are the subject of a great deal of discussion in St. Issey?" he said presently.
"I'm very flattered," was my reply.
"Well, for a man to come to St. Issey with a man-servant, and take up his abode in old Father Abraham's cottage, has set all the gossips in the village working overtime."
"Mrs. Grundy lives here, then?"
"Well, you know what we country people are. St. Issey is out of the beaten track of tourists, although there isn't a prettier spot in England, and no healthier for that matter. As for the coast scenery round here, it is, in my opinion, the most beautiful in the whole country. Anyhow, a stranger attracts a great deal of notice. Then, you see, this hut is a mystery."
"Yes, I have heard all about that," I replied, "but I dare say a great deal of the mystery has been magnified. Anyhow, it suits me entirely; it is situated in one of the most lovely spots in the vicinity. It is utterly quiet, and yet it is not altogether out of the world."
"Might one ask, Mr. Erskine," he said, turning to me suddenly, "why you came to this part of the world?"
"I came here to die," I replied.
He stared at me curiously.
"To die, Mr. Erskine?" he said.