"Take a horse, Master," exclaimed the Marquis, greatly affected by this additional misfortune, so unexpectedly heaped upon his young protege; "and give me my ambling palfrey; and haste forward, you knaves, to see what can be done to save the furniture, or to extinguish the fire--ride, you knaves, for your lives!"The attendants bustled together, and began to strike their horses with the spur, and call upon Caleb to show them the road.
But the voice of that careful seneschal was heard above the tumult, "Oh, stop sirs, stop--turn bridle, for the luve of Mercy;add not loss of lives to the loss of warld's gean! Thirty barrels of powther, landed out of a Dunkirk dogger in the auld lord's time--a' in the vau'ts of the auld tower,--the fire canna be far off it, I trow. Lord's sake, to the right, lads--to the right; let's pit the hill atween us and peril,--a wap wi' a corner-stane o' Wolf's Crag wad defy the doctor!"It will readily be supposed that this annunciation hurried the Marquis and his attendants into the route which Caleb prescribed, dragging Ravenswood along with them, although there was much in the matter which he could not possibly comprehend.
"Gunpowder!" he exclaimed, laying hold of Caleb, who in vain endeavoured to escape from him; "what gunpowder? How any quantity of powder could be in Wolf's Crag without my knowledge, I cannot possibly comprehend.""But I can," interrupted the Marquis, whispering him, "I can comprehend it thoroughly; for God's sake, ask him no more questions at present.""There it is, now," said Caleb, extricating himself from his master, and adjusting his dress, "your honour will believe his lordship's honourable testimony. His lordship minds weel how, in the year that him they ca'd King Willie died----""Hush! hush, my good friend!" said the Marquis; "I shall satisfy your master upon that subject.""And the people at Wolf's Hope," said Ravenswood, "did none of them come to your assistance before the flame got so high?""Ay did they, mony ane of them, the rapscallions!" said Caleb;"but truly I was in nae hurry to let them into the Tower, where there were so much plate and valuables.""Confound you for an impudent liar!" said Ravenswood, in uncontrollable ire, "there was not a single ounce of----""Forbye," said the butler, most irreverently raising his voice to a pitch which drowned his master's, "the fire made fast on us, owing to the store of tapestry and carved timmer in the banqueting-ha', and the loons ran like scaulded rats sae sune as they heard of the gunpouther.""I do entreat," said the Marquis to Ravenswood, "you will ask him no more questions.""Only one, my lord. What has become of poor Mysie?""Mysie!" said Caleb, "I had nae time to look about ony Mysie;she's in the Tower, I'se warrant, biding her awful doom.""By heaven," said Ravenswood, "I do not understand all this !
The life of a faithful old creature is at stake; my lord, I will be withheld no longer; I will at least ride up, and see whether the danger is as imminent as this old fool pretends.""Weel, then, as I live by bread," said Caleb, "Mysie is weel and safe. I saw her out of the castle before I left it mysell. Was I ganging to forget an auld fellow-servant?""What made you tell me the contrary this moment?" said his master.
"Did I tell you the contrary?" said Caleb; "then I maun hae been dreaming surely, or this awsome night has turned my judgment; but safe she is, and ne'er a living soul in the castle, a' the better for them: they wau have gotten an unco heezy."The Master of Ravenswood, upon this assurance being solemnly reiterated, and notwithstanding his extreme wish to witness the last explosion, which was to ruin to the ground the mansion of his fathers, suffered himself to be dragged onward towards the village of Wolf's Hope, where not only the change-house, but that of our well-known friend the cooper, were all prepared for reception of himself and his noble guest, with a liberality of provision which requires some explanation.
