Whether alive or
dead, this being had certainly some object in his visitation; and he
recollected to have heard it said, that spirits have no power to speak
until they are spoken to. Summoning up resolution, therefore, and
making two or three attempts before he could get his parched tongue in
motion, he addressed the unknown in the most solemn form of adjuration
that he could recollect, and demanded to know what was the motive of
his visit.
No sooner had he finished, than the old man rose, took down his hat,
the door opened, and he went out, looking back upon Dolph just as he
crossed the threshold, as if expecting him to follow. The youngster
did not hesitate an instant. He took the candle in his hand, and the
Bible under his arm, and obeyed the tacit invitation. The candle
emitted a feeble, uncertain ray; but still he could see the figure
before him, slowly descend the stairs. He followed, trembling. When it
had reached the bottom of the stairs, it turned through the hall
towards the back door of the mansion. Dolph held the light over the
balustrades; but, in his eagerness to catch a sight of the unknown, he
flared his feeble taper so suddenly, that it went out. Still there was
sufficient light from the pale moonbeams, that fell through a narrow
window, to give him an indistinct view of the figure, near the door.
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