mourer to Huberto, who hinted a doubt upon the matter; but so it may be as truly said that " believing is seeing." Belief is closely allied to sight, and it is not difficult to imagine you see a thing you believe in. 80 CHAPTER III. "Live you, or are you aught That man may question?" Shakspeare. "Smile on, my pretty baby boy : That dimple chubby smile, Will, o'er those ruddy lips of joy, Old Song. THE armourer had scarcely concluded his story, and there had been no time for any comments to pass when cries of distress were heard along the passage leading to the housekeeper's room, which threw the whole of the party there assembled, into an agony fear. Their minds had been worked up to a great pitch of excitement, by the armourer's horrific tale, to which they listened with the most profound attention, not venturing to break the awful silence they maintained throughout, beyond occasional exclamations of astonishment, elicited by different prominent and terrifying passages with which it abounded. Cries of "Murder-help-help," were now distinctly heard approaching the door, which was then thrown open with violence, when in rushed, or rather in rolled Agatha, the underhousekeeper, pale with fright, and her teeth chattering. She sunk down on the floor near to the table,which she overset with what was upon it. The lamp was put out in the fall, and the goblets were smashed to pieces. The whole economy of the room was thrown into the greatest disorder. The women screamed, some fainted; and the men who had swords drew them, and placed themselves in an attitude of defence, against they knew not what. The steps of Agatha, had been quickly followed by the wild woman, who was now seen standing in the centre of the room, quite undismayed by the threatening aspect of affairs around her. Her appearance at any time G was calculated to inspire fear, but when that sentiment had already full possession of fourfifths of those present-not excepting that proportion of the warriors-the sight of her at this moment, was observed by most with awe and trembling. She stood erect, resting her right hand upon a tall thick knotty stick, which could be converted from an assistant on a journey to a weapon of offence or defence, as occasions might require, of fearful : power. Her left arm was covered by a short cloak of red cloth, patched in many places, which was tied in front in a knot, and the end brought forward and thrown loosely over the right shoulder. There was no other complete garment in the whole of her dress, which was made up of pieces of raiment consisting of woollen, linen, cotton, and stuff of different colours-blue, black, white, yellow, red, and green-which chance had thrown in her way; all of which she had put together, without regard to any thing, but to form an adequate covering for her athletic and muscular form. This outward many-coloured garment, or, more properly speaking, this party-coloured wrapper was fastened round the waist by a band of white goat-skin in its natural state, and supported over the shoulders by pieces of the same, leaving the arms, which were weather-beaten, and strongly sinewed, quite bare. The dress was uneven at the bottom, and appeared tumbling into slits and rags from age and various casualties. It reached down to the calves of the legs, which with the feet, were naked as the arms. Her face was remarkably large; her chin was long and narrow; her mouth, the lips of which were very thick and pouting, was a little awry; her nose was long, broad, and aquiline; her eyes were large and deep in the sockets, with their lids fringed with long black lashes, beneath a projecting brow with deep furrows; the hairs of the eye-brow were black, long, and thick, and met over the nose, forming two high shaggy arches, which, when knit in anger, gave a fierce and demoniacal expression to the wild roll of her eye, the white of which was as clear as unsunned snow, while the pupil |