Chapter 7 Silas finds his “gold”
But while Godfrey Cass was managing to forget his problems by the lovely Nancy's side，his wife was walking with slow，uncertain steps along the snow－covered road to Raveloe.She was carrying her sleeping child in her arms.
For some time now she had planned to come to Raveloe on New Year's Eve.She knew that her husband would be at the centre of a happy，smiling group of friends，and she had chosen this moment to appear in front of all his family and guests at the Red House dance.“I don't care if Godfrey is ashamed of me！”she thought bitterly.“I want people to know we're married！”Sometimes she hated her husband, because he was still handsome，and had money，while she was no longer pretty，and very poor.She blamed him for her miserable life，but in her heart she knew she should blame her drinking.It had become a habit with her to spend most of the money Godfrey gave her on gin.She had a bottle in her pocket now，which she had lifted to her lips several times during her journey.
It was already seven o'clock in the evening，and there was a freezing wind.Molly did not know she was very near Raveloe.Her legs were tired and the gin was beginning to make her feel sleepy.She thought she would rest for a while，and，still holding her child，she lay down on the snow.She did not notice that the ground was cold.
In a few moments the child woke up，crying，“Mummy！” But the mother did not seem to hear.Suddenly，as the child fell gently out of its mother's arms on to the soft snow，it noticed a bright，dancing light on the white ground.Interested，the child stood up to see where the brightness came from，and followed the light to an open door，the door of Silas Marner's cottage.The little one toddled right in through the door and sat down by the bright fire.After a few minutes the child felt pleasantly warm, and fell asleep.
But where was Silas while this was happening？In the evenings he sometimes used to open his door and look out.He had some idea that his money would come back，or that someone would come with information about the thief.Tonight was New Year's Eve，and the villagers had told him to stay awake until midnight，because it would bring him good luck if he saw the beginning of the new year.So tonight he was more restless than usual.He opened his door several times during the evening，and stared out，but he saw and heard nothing in the silent，freezing night.The last time，as he was standing at the door，he had one of his fits，and stood there completely unconscious，holding the door open.
