During the minute or more that I stood watching, no shadow fell on either blind.
Between me and the wall ran a ditch, into which the ground at my feet broke sharply away.

Setting my back to the storm again, I followed the lip of this ditch around the wall's angle.

Here it shallowed, and here, too, was shelter; but not wishing to mistake a bed of nettles or any such pitfall for solid earth, I kept pretty wide as I went on.
The house was dark on this side, and the wall, as before, had no opening.

Close beside the next angle there grew a mass of thick gorse bushes, and pushing through these I found myself suddenly on a sound high-road, with the wind tearing at me as furiously as ever.
But here was the front; and I now perceived that the surrounding wall advanced some way before the house, so as to form a narrow courtlage.
So much of it, too, as faced the road had been whitewashed, which made it an easy matter to find the gate.

But as I laid hand on its latch I had a surprise.
A line of paving-stones led from the gate to a heavy porch; and along the wet surface of these there fell a streak of light from the front door, which stood ajar.
That a door should remain six inches open on such a night was astonishing enough, until I entered the court and found it as still as a room, owing to the high wall.