Page 251 - DRACULA

Dracula

‘owling stopped. Just before twelve o’clock I just took a
look round afore turnin’ in, an’, bust me, but when I kem
opposite to old Bersicker’s cage I see the rails broken and
twisted about and the cage empty. And that’s all I know

for certing.’
‘Did any one else see anything?’
‘One of our gard‘ners was a-comin’ ‘ome about that
time from a ‘armony, when he sees a big gray dog comin’
out through the garding ‘edges. At least, so he says, but I
don’t give much for it myself, for if he did ‘e never said a
word about it to his missis when ‘e got ‘ome, and it was
only after the escape of the wolf was made known, and we
had been up all night a-huntin’ of the Park for Bersicker,
that he remembered seein’ anything. My own belief was
that the ‘armony ‘ad got into his ‘ead.’
‘Now, Mr. Bilder, can you account in any way for the
escape of the wolf?’
‘Well, Sir,’ he said, with a suspicious sort of modesty, ‘I
think I can, but I don’t know as ‘ow you’d be satisfied
with the theory.’
‘Certainly I shall. If a man like you, who knows the
animals from experience, can’t hazard a good guess at any
rate, who is even to try?’

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