But says he, 'No, no, you
must not go; who knows what it may be? I'll go myself. They may be
robbers, and the men fighting them. You stop where you are.' Sayin'
that, he was half-ways doon the stair. I stood whaur I was, lookin'
doon an' hearkenin', an' the noise still goin' on. But he could but
hae won the len'th o' the hall, whan it stoppit a' at ance an'
a'thegither. Ye may think what a din it maun hae been, whan I tell
ye the quaiet that cam upo' the heels o' 't jist seemed to sting my
twa lugs. The same moment I h'ard the maister cryin' til me to come
doon. I ran, an' whan I reached the servan's ha', whaur he stood
jist inside the door, I stood aside him an' glowered. For, wad ye
believe me! the place was as dacent an' still as ony kirkyard i' the
munelicht! There wasna a thing oot o' it's place, nor an air o'
dist, nor the sma'est disorder to be seen! A' the things luikit as
gien they had sattlet themsel's to sleep as usual, an' had sleepit
till we cam an' waukit them. The maister glowert at me, an' I
glowert at the maister. But a' he said was,--'A false alarm, ye see,
Rose!' What he thoucht I canna tell, but withoot anither word we
turnt, an' gaed up the stair again thegither.
"At the tap o' the stair, the lang corridor ran awa' intil the dark
afore 's, for the can'le the maister carried flangna licht half to
the en' o' 't; an' frae oot o' the mirk on a suddent cam to meet 's
a rampaugin' an' a rattlin' like o' a score o' nowt rinnin' awa' wi'
their iron tethers aboot their necks--sic a rattlin' o' iron chains
as ye never h'ard! an' a groanin' an' a gruntin' jist fearsome.
Pages:
439
440
441
442
443
444
445
446
447
448
449
450
451
452
453
454
455
456
457
458
459
460
461
462
463