me, exactly my pace, and the man in it, I
could not help thinking, watching me.
This feeling made me uneasy, and I
quickened my pace. The punt shot after
me, and was presently alongside. I eased,
and paddled quietly. The punt dropped
back, and was again alongside my skiff.
And now I noticed that it passed over the
water noiselessly, that the man's punt-pole
made no sound as it was dropped into the
water, no sound as he recovered it and
dragged it through the water for a fresh
purchase. Its occupant now kept his head
towards the shore away from me, and
sometimes seemed to stop and listen, as if he
expected to hear some one in pursuit. But,
whether he stopped or whether he worked,
his punt, black against the black water,
kept on her noiseless way, and kept with
me. As we passed Greenlands the clock
struck half-past eleven, and, aroused by
the sound, I called to my unwelcome
companion, "What o'clock's that?" more, I
fancy, for the sake of breaking the
stillness that was oppressing me than for any
other reason, for I felt that I should get no
answer. As I expected, there was no
reply. The punt went on its way, stopping
when I stopped, keeping pace with me
when I rowed fast, its mysterious occupant
always apparently ignorant of my very
existence, continually pausing to listen for
something he appeared to expect.

I tried to persuade myself there was
nothing in all this, but I began to feel a
sense of terror creeping over me that I
found it impossible to resist. By this time
we were nearing Regatta Island, and while
I was watching with absorbed interest the
silent progress of the punt by my side, it
suddenly, apparently without any increased
exertion on the part of its occupant, shot
ahead of me, and, crossing my bows, made
over towards the Bucks shore. At this
moment, a bright flash of lightning lit up
the country with surprising distinctness,
and left everything so dark afterwards,
that, although I felt the punt was again
alongside, but this time on my left instead
of my right hand, I could hardly make it
out. The man's face was toward me now,
I knew, and I peered curiously through
the darkness to see what manner of man
this strange companion of mine might be.
It had grown very dark. The moon was
quite concealed by heavy storm-clouds. I
could not see the man's features, but could
make out that he was looking earnestly
and eagerly in the direction from which we
had come. So for a few strokes the punt,
although its occupant stood motionless,
and watching, still keeping its way, until
we were close on the bushes at the tail of
the island. Another vivid flash of lightning
showed the punt and man to me,
within a few yards, as clear as daylight
could have done. And, Heaven! what
a face that brief moment's light showed
me! An old man, with short grizzled hair,
that seemed to stand on end under the
influence of some frightful horror; his face
was ghastly pale, except where a livid scar
that seamed his cheek showed red across
the ashy skin; his throat was bare, and he
seemed to have been in a struggle, for his
shirt and loose velveteen jacket were torn
about his neck, and the shaggy whiskers
under his chin were in great disorder. I
fancied, too, that there was blood upon his
breast and face. I was sure there was
upon his hands. His eyes, with the light
of a mad horror in them, awful in its
intensity, were staring through the darkness
towards the lock-house, and he seemed to
be straining every nerve to catch some sound
from that quarter. I saw, at the same
time, hardly knowing how I saw it in that
short moment, a gun leaning against the
well of the punt.

While yet I was fascinated by the horror
of the sight, he disappeared behind the
bushes, and as the black darkness settled
again upon the scene, a rattling peal of
thunder awoke the echoes of the hills. I
was too startled for a moment to row, and
lay upon my sculls vainly trying to explain
to myself what I had seen; but, finding my
boat drifting down with the stream, started
once more. Hardly had I done so before
I was alarmed by the report of a gun, close
at hand, as it seemed, followed by a loud
splash in the water. Connecting this at
once with the man I had seen, I rowed
round to the other side of the island as fast
as I could, and hailed him loudly. There
was no answer, and I could see nothing. I
rowed up and down the length of the island
half a dozen times, but without result. The
man and punt were gone. I could not
understand it. The man's wild, strange
appearance, his evident terror, and the
disorder of his dress alarmed me. And
then the gun and the splash! What was
it? What could have happened? I rowed
uneasily about the spot for some time,
until a horror of it and of what I had seen
completely mastered me, and I made the
best of my way to Henley. The storm was
now at its height, and raging with great
fury.