"I knew the man was a knave--that is public property--but I did not think that he was capable of this.
Well, I am glad that, at any rate, no suspicion can fall upon Ciceley in the matter; but it is serious, lad, very serious.

We do not know how long this fellow has been prying and listening, or how much he may have learnt.

I don't think it can be much.

We talked it over, and my friends all agreed with me that they do not remember those curtains having been drawn before.

To begin with, the evenings are shortening fast, and, at our meeting last week, we finished our supper by daylight; and, had the curtains been drawn, it would have been noticed, for we had need of light before we finished.