ly sharp draught coming down one
of the passages of the rambling old house, caught her candle and
extinguished it. Making her way to the study-door, she pushed it open
to see if anybody was there previous to asking for a light. At first
she could see nobody. On the table, which was covered with papers,
there stood two candles, a brandy-bottle, and a glass. She was just
moving to the candle to get a light, when her eye fell on what she at
first believed to be a heap of clothes huddled together on the floor
in the corner of the room. Further examination showed that it was a
man--she could distinctly see the backs of his hands. Her first ideas
was that she had surprised a thief, and she stopped, feeling
frightened and not knowing what to do. Just then the bundle
straightened itself a little and dropped its hands, revealing to her
wondering gaze her own father's face, which wore the same awful look
of abject fear which she had seen upon it when he passed through the
hall beneath her just before Isleworth broke into flame on the night
of her marriage. The eyes appeared to be starting from the sockets in
an effort to clearly realize an undefinable horror, the hair, now
daily growing greyer, was partially erect, and the pallid lips, half-
opened, as though to speak words that would not come. He saw her too,
but did not seem surprised at her presence. Covering up his eyes again
with one hand, he shrank further back into his corner, and with the
other pointed to a large leather arm-chair in which Pigott had told
her her grandfather had died.

"Look there," he whispered, hoarsely.

"Where, father? I see nothing."

"There, girl, in the chair--look how it glares at me!"

Angela stood aghast. She was alarmed, in defiance of her own reason,
and began to catch the contagion of superstition.

"This is dreadful," she said; "for heaven's sake tell me what is the
matter."

Philip's ghastly gaze again fixed itself on the chair, and his teeth
began to chatter.

"_Great God,_" he said, "_it is coming._"

And, uttering a smothered cry, he fell on his face in a half faint.
The necessity for action brought Angela to herself. Seizing the
water-bottle, she splashed some water into her father's face. He came
to himself almost instantly.

"Where am I?" he said. "Ah! I remember; I have not been quite well.
You must not think anything of that. What are you doing down here at
this time of night? Pass me that bottle," and he took nearly hal