He received few visitors in
the house and no tradespeople were permitted to come in. There
seemed no reason for this seclusion except the eccentricities of
the man that had grown more pronounced with advancing years.
It was the custom of the butler to leave the house at eight
o'clock in the evening and return in the morning at seven. On
the morning of the third of February, when the butler entered the
house, as he was accustomed to do at eight o'clock in the
morning, he found his master dead.
The woman continued with her narrative, speaking slowly. Every
detail was vividly impressed upon her memory and she gave it
accurately, precisely.
There was a narrow passage or hall, not more than three feet in
width, leading from the butler's pantry into a little
dining-room. This dining-room the old man had fitted up as a
sort of library. It was farther than any other room from the
noises of the city. His library table was placed with one end
against the left wall of the room and he sat with his back toward
the passage into the butler's pantry. On the morning of the
third of February he was found dead in his chair.
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