My return route brought me back to the south edge of the Common, the point most remote from the farm. There I met a labourer whom I knew by sight, a man named Hawke. He was carrying a stick, and prodding with it foolishly among the furze and gorse bushes. The bracken was already dying down. "What are you looking for?" I asked. "It's this 'ere Master Stott, sir," he said, looking up. "'E's got loarst seemingly." I felt a sudden stab of self-reproach. I had been taking things too easily. I looked at my watch. It was a quarter to four. "Mr. Challis 'ave told me to look for 'un," added the man, and continued his aimless prodding of the gorse. "Where is Mr. Challis?" I asked. "'E's yonder, soomewheres." He made a vague gesture in the direction of Pym. The sun had come out, and the Common was all aglow. I hastened towards the village. On the way I met Farmer Bates and two or three labourers. They, too, were beating among the gorse and brown bracken. They told me that Mr. Challis was at the cottage and I hurried on. All the neighbourhood, it seems, was searching for the Wonder. In the village I saw three or four women standing with aprons over their heads, talking together. I had never seen Pym so animated. III I met Challis in the lane. He was coming away from Mrs. Stott's cottage. "Have you found him?" I asked stupidly. I knew quite well that the Wonder was not found, and yet I had a fond hope that I might, nevertheless, be mistaken. Challis shook his head. "There will be a mad woman in that cottage if he doesn't come back by nightfall," he remarked with a jerk of his head. "I've done what I can for her." I explained that I had been over to Deane Hill, searching and calling. "You didn't see anything?" asked Challis, echoing my foolish query of a moment before. I shook my head. We were both agitated without doubt. We soon came up with Farmer Bates and his men. They stopped and touched their hats when they saw us, and we put the same silly question to them. "You haven't found him?" We knew perfectly well that they would have announced the fact at once if they had found him. "One of you go over to the Court and get any man you can find to come and help," said Challis. "Tell Heathcote to send every one." One of the labourers touched his cap again, and started off at once with a lumbering trot. Challis and I walked on in silence, looking keenly about us and stopping every now and then and calling. We called "Hallo! Hallo-o!" It was an improvement upon my whistle. "He's such a little chap," muttered Challis once; "it would be so easy to miss him if he were unconscious." It struck me that the reference to the Wonder was hardly sufficiently respectful. I had never thought of him as "a little chap." But Challis had not known him so intimately as I had.