Part 37 (1/2)

'Ah! white-livered lout! I wonder what the devilto our trade! Corub; and then to bed Pihost, if we stay five er'

CHAPTER VIII

_The scene continued; and our terrors increased: An interesting dialogue, that unravels theof a new acquaintance_

Here to our infinite ease they quitted us, went through an inner door that led to the house, locked it after them, and left us, not only with the dead hand, not only with the dead body, but in the hterhouse that murder and horror ever constructed, or ever conceived Such were our impressions: and such, under the same circumstances, they would have been, perhaps, of the bravest man, or man-killer, that ever existed Alexander and Caesar the e heard, and seeing : for, by the light of the lanthorn, we beheld limbs, and bones, and human skeletons, on every side of us I repeat: horror had nothing to add

The dancing lights we had seen, the shrill signals and the dreadful howls that we had heard, were now no longer thought nis fatuus_; but the lanthorn of these assassins: no dog or wolf, baying theyells of murder!

Thetheested itself Nor was it so much overpowered by the apprehension of the arms hich I concluded such men must be provided, as that my mind was rendered irresolute by the dreadful pictures, real and ih my mind

Clarke, brave as he was, had lost all his intrepidity in this golgotha, this place of skulls; the very scent of which, knohence it proceeded, was abhorrent

No: it was not their arms, nor their numbers, but these fears that inducedthe alar by the fellow's sympathetic terror, counterfeit the death by which I was environed

Here then ere And must we here rerapple with the dead; trample on their li to get out?

Neither could we tell what new horrors were in store for us Who had not heard of trap doors, sliding wainscots, and other otten? Impossible All the phantoms memory could revive, or fancy could create, were realized and assembled

Of the two, I certainly hadthan Clarke; but I was so absorbed, in the terrors which assailed ot, while the lanthorn gliraphy of the place; or to plan the ; when I caught a gli an, in low and cautious whispers, to cohts Clarke was pertinaciously averse to rise, and hurtle in the dark with the bones of the dead By the intervening medium of the straw, he had pushed away the terrific hand; and was deterht should return, and prevent hi, at rando over and being stretched upon a corpse

I had as little inclination to come in contact with dead hands, cadaverous bodies, and dissevered joints, as he could have; yet was too violently tormented to reination Had I resignedto relieve it by action, it would have driven , ventured to feel round me and shrunk back with inexpressible terror, froain ventured to feel, and again and again shi+vered with horrible apprehensions

Use will reconcile us to all situations Experience corrects fear, enorance, and renders desire adventurous The builder ithout dread on the ridge of a house: while the tied to turn his eyes away, or tuination Repeated trials had a similar effect on me: they rendered uess, toward the ; touching, treading on, and encountering, I knew not what; subject, every , now leaping, as the sudden freaks and frights of fancy seized upon me

After the departure of the desperadoes, we had heard various noises, in the adjoining house; a of a cha to explore my way, arrested by terror at every step, as I have been describing, we again heard sounds that approached more nearly; and presently the inner-door once hted candles, came in; followed by aa kind of bib up to his chin, and linen sleeves drawn over his coat

The re, wan, countenance; and a diminutive form The servant had evidently some trepidation

'Do not be afraid, Matthew,' said the master 'You will soon be accustoh at your present timidity

Unless you conquer your fears, you will not be able to obeyme; and consequently will not be fit for your place; and you know you cannot get such good wages in any other'

'I will do my best, sir,' said the servant: 'but I can't say but, for the first tihtful'