Naughton, the stable hand, was caught in a compromising position with the butler. It was in the scullery. The scullery maid came across them.
She had brought in a bucket of water to scrub the floor when she came across Naughton and the butler. This was almost in the days when witches were burned at the stake, so one can imagine the shock and disbelief experienced by Jennifer (the scullery maid). She ran outraged to the kitchen maid, who told the cook, who told the chef, who told the lord of the manor. Normally the chef would have told the butler, but in this case that was unnecessary.
The lord of the manor was irate in the extreme. He called for the butler, who was dismissed. He then called for Naughton who was informed that his services down at the stables would be continued provided he told no one. He didn’t want to dismiss him. He would blab all over the countryside.