there first appeared, from some natural
taciturnity of character, to decline opening the conversation.

At length the second comer spoke, saying,--

"I have made some exertion to get here to my time, and yet I am beyond
it, as you are no doubt aware."

"Yes, yes."

"Well, such would not have been the case; but yet, I stayed to bring you
some news of importance."

"Indeed!"

"It is so. This place, which we have, now for some time had as a quiet
and perfectly eligible one of meeting, is about to be invaded by one of
those restless, troublesome spirits, who are never happy but when they
are contriving something to the annoyance of others who do not interfere
with them."

"Explain yourself more fully."

"I will. At a tavern in the town, there has happened some strange scenes
of violence, in consequence of the general excitement into which the
common people have been thrown upon the dreadful subject of vampyres."

"Well."

"The consequence is, that numerous arrests have taken place, and the
places of confinement for offenders against the laws are now full of
those whose heated and angry imaginations have induced them to take
violent steps to discover the reality or the falsehood of rumours which
so much affected them, their wives, and their families, that they feared
to lie down to their night's repose."

The other laughed a short, hollow, restless sort of laugh, which had not
one particle of real mirth in it.

"Go on--go on," he said. "What did they do?"

"Immense excesses have been committed; but what made me, first of all,
stay beyond my time, was that I overheard a man declare his intentions
this night, from twelve till the morning, and for some nights to come,
to hold watch and ward for the vampyre."

"Indeed!"

"Yes. He did but stay, at the earnest solicitation of his comrades, to
take yet another glass, ere he came upon his expedition."

"He must be met. The idiot! what business is it of his?"

"There are always people who will make everything their business,
whether it be so or not."

"There are. Let us retire further into the recesses of the ruin, and
there consider as well what is to be done regarding more important
affairs, as with this rash intruder here."

They both walked for some twenty paces, or so, right into the ruin, and
then he who had been there first, said, suddenly, to his companion,--

"I am annoyed, although the feeling reaches no further than annoyance,
for I have a natur