y right feeling Christian man could wish
to be, yet when it was possible that he stood within, as it were, a
hair's breadth of eternity, a strange world of sensation and emotions
found a home in his heart, and he could not look altogether undaunted on
that future which might, for all he knew to the contrary, be so close at
hand, as far as he was concerned.

It was not that he feared death, but that he looked with a decent
gravity upon so grave a change as that from this world to the next, and
hence was it that his face was pale, and that he looked all the emotion
which he really felt.

This was the aspect and the bearing of a brave but not a reckless man;
while Sir Francis Varney, on the other hand, seemed, now that he had
fairly engaged in the duel, to look upon it and its attendant
circumstances with a kind of smirking satisfaction, as if he were far
more amused than personally interested.

This was certainly the more extraordinary after the manner in which he
had tried to evade the fight, and, at all events, was quite a sufficient
proof that cowardice had not been his actuating motive in so doing.

The admiral, who stood on a level with him, could not see the sort of
expression he wore, or, probably, he would have been far from well
pleased; but the others did, and they found something inexpressibly
disagreeable in the smirking kind of satisfaction with which the vampyre
seemed to regard now the proceedings.

"Confound him," whispered Marchdale to Henry, "one would think he was
quite delighted, instead, as we had imagined him, not well pleased, at
these proceedings; look how he grins."

"It is no matter," said Henry; "let him wear what aspect he may, if is
the same to me; and, as Heaven is my judge, I here declare, if I did not
think myself justified in so doing, I would not raise my hand against
this man."

"There can be no shadow of a doubt regarding your justification. Have at
him, and Heaven protect you."

"Amen!"

The admiral was to give the word to fire, and now he and Marshal having
stepped sufficiently on one side to be out of all possible danger from
any stray shot, he commenced repeating the signal,--

"Are you ready, gentlemen?--once."

They looked sternly at each other, and each grasped his pistol.

"Twice!"

Sir Francis Varney smiled and looked around him, as if the affair were
one of the most common-place description.

"Thrice!"

Varney seemed to be studying the sky rather than atten