way my s

inions of

ze

e fiend, t

y-spurn back

son should

of his

ro

s horse with his own hand, and threw himself across his back. Then, turning his head northward towards Castle More, he gave him the rein, and, without forming any definite

ad been a little more experienced, or somewhat better read in this book of mysteries, where every line of the text is contradicted by a page of annotations, he might have known that a signal would have been flying for him-at the very last moment! But, alas for poor Kate Bellamont! alas for both! her voice, and the

a low turret rising at each angle, and defended on the inland side by a high wall with bastions and a deep moat. It was, at the date of this narrative, the abode of Lady Lester, the widow of General Lord Lester, who had fallen a few years before while gallantly fighting in Spain. Since his death she had withdrawn herself from the sphere of the court, and excluded herself almost altogether from society; devoting her time to the performance of the severe religious duties usually imposed by the Catholic church only on religieuses, and to the observance of rigorous and frequent fasts; and it was rumoured that she even i

h a course, he was the slave of passion and the victim of self-impulse; with the will to act justly, but without the power to guide that will: like a noble bark that has lost its rudder and is driven furiously along by its out-spread sails, which, managed by skill and discipline, might yet become the instruments of its safety, to irremediable shipwreck and ruin. If educated at all, he was taught to regard all the retainers of his vast estates as vassals; beings of meaner mould; a race of mortals who had somehow smuggled themselves into existence

ow, even as the harp of the youthful minstrel banished the gloomy spirit of evil from the soul of Saul! This potent person was Kate Bellamont: the wand she used, Cupid's magical bow. By its aid she brought his haughty will in subjection to her own mild sway, and converted the lion into the lamb. She had been his playfellow from childhood; they had strolled, fished, hunted, boated together. Others might be in com

ecame gentle and subdued: and he began to show signs of fear in her presence, and trembled if she laid her hand on his arm, which, of late, she was very careful not to do. Indeed, there is no describing half the signs by which their progress from the playmate state of chrysalis to the lovemate state of ripe youth was marked. Robert Lester very soon found that he was very unhappy away from Kate, and very happy in her presence. The maiden, on her part, was not long in discovering that the days were very long when Robert did not visit Castle Cor, and that she thought of him, somehow, a great deal more than she used to do. It evidently was very clear that she loved

steal into the corners and again meet, causing a second time very great embarrassment, and very guilty colouring of cheek and brow, as if each had been detected by the other in some crime. So they rode together in this pleasant manner for full half a mile; and one would believe, from their silence and the wide space they guardedly preserved between each other, that they had quarrelled. But their countenance

nscious look, as if contemplating a daring deed, he presented it to her. As, with averted eyes, she extended her hand for it, he placed in it tremblingly, instead of the whip, his own hand. She neither started nor turned her head, but her young bosom rose and fell quick, and he thought the hand fluttered with a new pulsation as it lay in his. She did not withdraw it. He grew confident, and slightly, very slightly, pressed a finger. Thereupon the little hand only throbbed the quicker. He pressed two, then three fingers, and then, with a boldness that grew with the occasion, he folded the soft, gloved hand all in his own. The next moment he coloured with conscious guilt, and looked up into her face as if about to throw himself upon her mercy. But she was so intently watching the rich dies of a sunset cloud that she ev

at

equally gentle sus

you a

ght t

the half-joyful, half-

y gentle that it was conveyed to him

walk to th

es

uched it, his arm glided about her taper waist, and somehow their lips met, and again met, and met again, an

There! my horse h

outh, in a tone that showed he did not very much

alk. But it i

ha

thi

together for a few

at

ber

ou lo

es

al the co

sk leave now!" sh

ers! They quarrelled only twenty times in the subsequent interval of a week that preceded her birthday; than which no greater proof need be advanced to show the new relation in which they sto

he outrageous deed he had madly attempted: with bitterness of heart he acknowledged that he deserved to be banished for ever from her presence, and to be remembered by her only with contempt. But he knew not of what enduring material a maiden's heart is composed; he knew not that, when love takes possession of it, like a magnet thrown among some delicate machinery of steel communicating to every part a portion of its own mysterious nature, it penetrates and pervades every attribute, converts every pa

grasping the rein. At one moment he would drop his head upon his breast, and be overcome by the bitterness of grief. At the next he would throw back his head, and with eyes flashing fire, gnash his glittering teeth, shake his clinched hands above his head, and curse in the face of Heaven; while the horse, catching his fierce spirit, would erect his bristling mane, and bound madly forward like the wind. These terrible

oss-grown fragments that everywhere strewed the ground, rose to his eye a mouldering buttress; the half of a Gothic window; a ruined tower, lifting itself in melancholy loneliness, in the last stages of decay; or, a doorway choked to its lintel with rubbish. Over all crept the ivy,

with the fallen temple, near its eastern end grew an aged tree, spreading over half the ruin its huge broad arms as if it would fain protect, in its desolation, the relics of that structure whose days of honour it had witnessed. A soft evening sunlight, struggling through the tops of the surrounding forest, shed a crimson glow over the whole scene, and imparted a quiet and sa

cked. Her hair was bright red, of extraordinary length, and hung down in masses nearly to the ground. Around her forehead was bound a cincture of beads, woven into singular devices, which confined a sort of turban of green silk. Her complexion was bronzed by exposure, but evidently once had been fair. Her features were stern and almost masculine, yet bearing traces of feminine beauty: the straight forehead, contracted by a rigid frown; the aquiline nose; the arched brow, and thin, well-shaped lips, with a roundly turned chin, were all, evidently,

ath, or I will ride over thee, and trample

sition, in a cold, hard voice, and with a malicious laugh, "thou has

of thy counsel. From my path

his horse's flanks, and urged the animal forward; the beast rea

thy brute will not. He has the eye to see

will dismount and hurl thee from the path if thou

rts to turn from the road. In an instant he leaped to the ground and advanced upon her. She smiled scornfully

rt More! thou

from his breast a hunting-knife, and, elevating

or I sheath this b

face an instant, and reading aright it

hed life, and thy blood is not on my soul. Now leave the path!" he added, sternly. "By the cross!

for thy pride, that will repay me for all thy arrogance! Oh, how thy haughty soul will writhe!

he soul of the young man. He was impressed by her manner as muc

hese dark wo

shall scorch thee! wither thy soul! cause thy heart to shrink! thy neck to bow! thy head to lie in the very dust! Oh,

and taunting scorn with which she s

monster of deformity!

be a time! Wouldst thou know what I have to reve

pluck thy tongue from thy throat, and fling i

r thee to hear; and I may no longer delay the recital of what, for thy sake," she added, with a softer manner, "I would bear close locked in my breast to the grave. But," she concluded

d, "I would believe thou hadst something to make known to me either of good or evil, though of the latter alone I know thou

for those kind expressions I would withhold from thee the knowledge of the doom that awaits thee. But it is not for me," she added, in an enthusiastic voice, and with returning wildness of the eye; "it is not for one like me to refuse to obey the decree that has gone forth against thee. As a mortal, I pity thee! as a woman, I could weep for

y, speak t

voice, that had a singular power over his wi

t lay in her way, directed her course towards a low door at the foot of the crumbling tower. He hesitated a moment, and then, leaving his horse cropping the long rich grass that grew among the ruins, followed her. She en

could no longer take a step safely in the impenetrable gloom that surroun

e said, returning a few steps

n a tone of horror, recoiling from her sever

"Elpsy of the Tower," for by both of these names she was known, who had the reputation, above all others who practised the black art, of being on the most intimate footing with his Satanic highness. Dark and wild were the tales that had gone forth, and were repeated in hall and cot, of the supernatural deeds of this communer with the world of spirits. By the imaginations of the credulous and timid she was invested with

he could go no farther, when he called to her. As the staff she offered came in contact with his hand, he had shuddered and shrunk back, remembering how that it was said her crutch was given her by her master, who had charmed it by hardening it in the fires of the ever-burning lake

hand!" she said, se

g, I will not

not harm thee," she added, in that peculiar tone w

and followed her through the dark passage a

Here are steps-thou m

ly led him down, when they stood upright in a damp chamber, in which a faint light struggled through an opening in the floor of the cha

ed, in a voice deep with the mingled emo

lack Morris O'More," she answered, in a

" he gasped, "then

y soul, proud youth, when

en; for, good or ill befall,

this chamber to my own house. This is only the anteroom to it. Ha, ha!" she la

hich, in the darkness, rattled like bone

shuddering at the sound

, firmly; "and see thou fall not over

h far beyond his own. He felt for his hunting-knife

his intentions; "I will not

flew open, exposing the interior of a small circular chamber receiving a dim l

princely one thou art accustomed to, but it will serve thy present purpose. Didst

once had contained three floors, one above the other; the mortises for the sleepers being yet visible, ranged regularly and at equal distances around the inner side. The top or roof of the tower, with its battlement and Gothic ornaments, had long since fallen in; and the floors, down even to the ground that formed the floor of the witch's apartment and the very foundation of the tower, had successively decayed and disappeared. The only entrance to this tunnel-like turret was the door from t

t grew fainter and fainter as it penetrated deeper, till only a dim twilight reached the chamber below. He recognised the tower as the loftiest of the ruin which often he had mad

ood as he gazed on them. Beside the door, its bones tied together with strips of deer's hide, hung a skeleton of great size, its ghastly jaws carefully bound up and grinning horribly, and its hollow, bony sockets filled with stag's eyes wildly staring at him. Sculls, cross-bones, and other hideous mementoes of the charnel-house were arranged along the sides of the walls; while charms, amulets, and all the numerous instruments o

less resolved that, having adventured, he would go through with it, trusting, with religious faith, that all good saints would help him against spiritual foes; while for protection against mortal ones, ay, even Elpsy herself, he trusted to his own coolness, and, if it should come to that, the broad sharp blade of his hunting-knife. Having fortified his mind with this resolve, he felt more confidence; and being now in

ou my abode

gloomy

ne, Lord Lester!" she added, laying a peculiar emphasis upon the last

d armour and the sepultured bones of my a

ter. Dost hear, Lord Lester? Open thine ears, and drink in the title

oman! Say what thou ha

uttering to herself, and gazing on him steadfastly and thoughtfully; "a coronet would grace that brow even as if 'twere born to it. Robert Lester, or Robert More, for men call thee both," she said aloud, bending h

hrough the past; then, in a low voice, which rose or fell, was

s sole companion, and the only link that bound him to his kind. This child grew up to be a tall and comely maiden. Her eyes were of the rich brown hue of the ripe chestnut. Her hair, soft as the floss of Florenc

ith thy tale?" demande

ark as it soars and sings; her spirits were light as the sparkling foam of the summer's sea; her heart as pure as the moonbeam that slept on the wave. Her happiness was in her father's smile and in his paternal love; and, besides her little cot, and the wide sea which she loved, and the tall cliff that towered above her home, she knew not, until she had entered her ei

he cried, 'there

er, the fatal vessel drove onward, now lifted high on a surge, now plunging into a yawning chasm, till at length, borne to a great height on a wave, she trembled an instant on its top, and then, descending like an arrow, struck against the bottom and was dashed to pieces. Wild, fearful, unearthly was the shriek that pierced the ears of the fisherman and his child!

impatiently; nevertheless, had he listened to her with interest, deeply imp

between hope and mistrust she sprang fearlessly towards the object-for, in the stern duties of humanity to its suffering kind, fear nor false delicacy have no place, and, if they had, that maiden was too good, too ignorant of life to know either. As she came close to it, she saw that it was the body of a man. She placed her hand upon his temples. They were warm. He was alive! Alas, far better would it have been for her had he been cold as the stone beside which he lay! His pulse was very faint; she could just feel it throb like a fine chord vibrating against her finger. He was lying upon his side naturally, like one in sleep. It was not yet light enough to see whether he was young or old, but she knew, from the soft smooth skin of his

and, methinks, little to the

gallant vessel, touched her heart. He was not above thirty years of age, with a high, fair brow, and a cheek, though sunburnt, bright as a child's. His hair was of a silvery hue, that harmonized with his complexion, and flowed long and in shining waves about his shoulders. His eyes were as blue as if they had been mirrors to reflect the summer's sky, and, as she met them, were tender, yet ardent, in their expression.

ed. Poor maiden! The hours wore away, yet they seemed minutes to her; the stars came out, and the tardy moon rose! He discoursed to her of love, and she listened! Her ears drank in his words! Her heart was no longer her own. He told her that he loved her, and received her ingenuous confession in return. He then told her of a brave tower, that stood amid broad lands five leagues northward, which owned him as master, and this, he said, he would make her the mistress of if she would become his bride. She believed and promised. He then said he must leave her, but would return in a few days in

rds the beach. Her heart fluttered. She knew not what to do for joy; and, in her impatience, could have flown along the white sand to meet it! Steadily it bore down towards her. She now forgot to look for the little skiff of her father; her eyes were fixed alone on the coming bark! It approached nearer and nearer. She could see forms on the d

n accents of love; 'come and be

said, looking anxiously to see

; 'he shall soon come, and cheer

have left him,' she said, with

ding her along; 'come, dearest, fly with me to the abode

sails were trimmed to the breeze, and swiftly it cut its way thr

asked the imp

ll in brilliant and varied dies on the floor of a chamber within it. In that chamber sat the fisher's daughter; and the fair-locked stranger was bending over her as she sat by the window

ion, while her eyes grew rigid, and her b

foul wrong?" asked the y

of the R

the Colonies, and who, for his bloodthirsty spirit, got th

e s

ave sworn

rimly, and t

honour by the words of the holy mass of marriage, with idle excuses; and so she was put off from day to

nt leaders, and day and night rung with bacchanalian revels. Lonely she sat, evening after evening, in her solitary chamber, with her face resting on her hand, and her e

saw that her head drooped, that she appeared sick and faint, and that he supported her by passing one arm about her waist. A pang of jealousy, the first she had ever known, shot through her bosom. They reined up beneath the window: she saw him take her in his arms from the saddle, and bear her within the tower. Then, with surprise, she heard him, in a loud tone, give commands for all the defences of the castle to be put up, as if he expected to encounter a s

scornfully, 'wh

ve,' she said, with gentle rep

rible look (which but one other living can give," said Elpsy, with peculiar emphasis, fixing

r, while, with a cry of pain and mortal anguish, she sunk down upon the floo

n. Up, I say. Thou shalt be her servant if I bid thee. Such a station will best su

he became a different being. 'Tis but a step from the deepest love to the deepest hate in woman's heart, when she feels that she is deliberately injured. Then lightning is not quicker than the change-hell not deeper than her

ting his fierce gaze with

he said, in a tone of less authority, d

mself, but the mother's open ears

hild sha

eclining on a couch, and appeared to be overpowered by fatigue and grief. She was very lovely, with fine dark eyes that were filled with tears, and raven hair that was spread dishevelled over her pillow. She turned her face as the door opened, and he

he sad, yet

eing in her turn asked how she came there,

repeated Leste

rgents, when, anxious and impatient for intelligence, she rode out, accompanied by several servants, nearly a league from her castle, in hopes of meeting him or a messenger. She got no tidings of him, and was on her return, when one

By Heaven! woman, my father once fought and conquered this same chi

iled mysteriousl

, came spurring behind us. They were passing us, when one of them, whom I recognised as Hurtel

! This will help redeem the day's rever

hen, ere I had time to collect my thoughts, he seized the rein of my palfrey and conveyed me hither. His object must be either ransom, or, more probably, the hope of being able, with

sed nor opened her eyes to look upon it. At sunrise the insurgent chief entered the chamber, and demanded which was the fisher's brat. There was an expression upon his face and a dark look in his eye that boded ill. With a convulsive shudder the mother shrunk from his gaze and f

uld you d

ore fiercely, 'or I will slay

hed her menacin

mother's love called loudly at her heart. Her babe's life was a

' he said

p the babe of the noble lad

t!' she cried, as he strode from th

he babe, when, seeing that, by a bold leap from the balustrade, she could reach a projecting rock, from which she could clamber down to the water, she prepared to take it. But her exclamation caused him to turn back; and seeing the fall of the child had been so singularly arrested, and that she was about to attempt its rescue, he grew black with rage, and with a violent blow, as she was in the act of springing to the rock, struck her from the balcony into the sea. As she fell she caught by the edges of the cliff, and, in some degree, broke her fall, but, nevert

ening of the second day. Her father, who had long mourned her dead, met her with open arms. He pitied and nursed her for many long months till she recovered her health; but her beauty of form was gone for ever. Her soul grew dark with her woes; vengeance took the place of love in her heart towards him who had so basely wronged her; and bitterness against all her species rankled in her breast, and hourly grew deeper and deeper. Her senses at length became unsteady. She gr

, wherever he would, unmolested; which terms the noble lord promised should be complied with if his lady should say she had received no insult at his hands; and if, further, he would bind himself to quit the realm within nine days thereafter. To this he assented. The gates were shortly after thrown open, and, mounted on the blood-bay charger which he always rode, he

the babe as if it had been his own flesh and blood, instead of sharing the mingled current that flowed in the veins of Hurtel of the Red-Hand and the fisher's daughter; and from thenceforward he took him home and made h

d read there the dreadful secret he anticipated, yet dared not meet. He listened to each word that fell from her lips with the most absorbing and painful interest-his lips parted-his eyes starting from their sockets-his face convulsed, and brought clos

sely whispered, through his clin

an extraordinary effort, and flung him

Does my story please thee, my l

ss, and then, approaching her, said, in an even ton

uly, who was this noble lad

he 'Dark Lady of the Ro

ants surely made?" he a

ve sa

became of

t with the

?" he asked, with

do

fisher

craft of him w

ch beneath

have

analyze, passed across his features. But

daughter-what

t know he

a! was it a boy?"

wa

home by my-b

es

d no children

as born beneath the roof of

his lowborn boy, grew up within the h

di

oy stands b

do

he shrunk from looking him in the face,

hese things I know not. I believe thou hast spoken truth

kened, his face worked convulsively. At last h

ides thyself?" he asked, his penet

eye with a wary look, as if anticipat

, then, but thine,

be other than he, when she who bore thee not

ilt swe

say

s fisher's boy know th

N

the ol

N

ilt swe

say

woman! Tho

mentary lighting up of his eye ere he made the spring, and alertly avoided the blow by leaping

and, without any sound to guide him, he groped his way along the gallery. At length he approached the light; but, although he could see through the door out into