“’That is true. But what could he have to do with this old family custom of ours, and what does this rigmarole mean?’
“’I don’t think that we should have much difficulty in determining that,’ said I; ‘with your permission we will take the first train down to Sussex, and go a little more deeply into the matter upon the spot.’
“The same afternoon saw us both at Hurlstone. Possibly you have seen pictures and read descriptions of the famous old building, so I will confine my account of it to saying that it is built in the shape of an L, the long arm being the more modern portion, and the shorter the ancient nucleus, from which the other had developed. Over the low, heavily-lintelled door, in the centre of this old part, is chiseled the date, 1607, but experts are agreed that the beams and st
