The rest were silent, respecting what they thought to be his grief.
They had, perhaps, half achieved the ascent, when they fell in with the Abercrombies, who were just returning from their excursion. They regarded the ascending party with surprise.
"What!" said Mr. Abercrombie to Sharpley, "are you just going up the mountain? You are very late."
"Where is Frank?" asked Henry Abercrombie, looking in vain among the party for our hero, to whom, as already said, he had taken a fancy.
There was silence at first, each of those in the secret regarding the rest. But it was to Sharpley that Mr. Abercrombie looked for a reply. The delay surprised him.
"What is the matter?" he asked, at length. "Has anything happened?"
"Somebody tell him," said Sharpley, in pretended emotion.
Baptiste was the one to respond.
"Monsieur," he said, gravely, "a terrible thing has happened. The poor boy has fallen into a ravine."