noon
This was an agricultural district , the road led to a market town , and teams going by in the early dawn were the rule and not the exception ; but on that especial morning a furiously driven cart was significant . Jonathan Beers , who farmed the Jenks land , had heard the wheels and caught an indistinct glimpse of the vehicle as he was feeding the cattle , but with a reticence purely rustic had not been moved to mention the circumstance before . `` Taggett has got a clew , '' said Stillwater under its breath . By noon Taggett had got the man , cart and all . But it was only Blufton 's son Tom , of South Millville , who had started in hot haste that particular morning to secure medical service for his wife , of which she had sorely stood in need , as two tiny girls in a willow cradle in South Millville now bore testimony . `` I have n't been cutting down the population _ much , '' _ said Blufton , with his wholesome laugh . Thomas Blufton was well known and esteemed in Stillwater , but if the crime had fastened itself upon him it would have given something like popular satisfaction .