FREE BOOKS

Author's List




PREV.   NEXT  
|<   110   111   112   113   114   115   116   117   118   119   120   121   122   123   124   125   126   127   128   129   130   131   132   133   134  
135   136   137   138   139   140   141   142   143   144   145   146   147   148   149   150   151   152   153   154   155   156   157   158   159   >>   >|  
ared quarters with M'Iver in the castle, where every available corner was occupied by his lordship's guests. When these other guests were bedded, and the house in all our wing of it was still, my comrade and I sat down to a tasse of brandy in our chamber, almost blythe, as you would say, at the prospect of coming to blows with our country's spoilers. We were in the midst of a most genial crack when came a faint rap at the door, and in steps the goodman, as solemn as a thunder-cloud, in spite of the wan smile he fixed upon his countenance. He bore his arm out of his sleeve in a sling, and his hair was un-trim, and for once a most fastidious nobleman was anything but perjink. "I cry pardon, gentlemen!" he said in Gaelic, "for breaking in on my guests' privacy; but I'm in no humour for sleeping, and I thought you might have a spare glass for a friend." "It's your welcome, Argile," said I, putting a wand chair to the front for him. He sat himself down in it with a sigh of utter weariness, and nervously poking the logs on the fire with a purring-iron, looked sadly about the chamber. It was his wife's tiring-room, or closet, or something of that nature, fitted up hastily for our accommodation, and there were signs of a woman's dainty hand and occupation about it The floor was carpeted, the wall was hung with arras; a varnish 'scrutoire, some sweet-wood boxes, two little statues of marble, two raised silver candlesticks with snuffers conform, broidery-work unfinished, and my lord's picture, in a little gilded frame hanging over a dressing-table, were among its womanly plenishing. "Well, coz," said his lordship, breaking an awkward silence, "we have an enormous and dastardly deed here to avenge." "We have that!" said M'Iver. "It's a consolation that we are in the mood and in the position to set about paying the debt. Before the glad news came of your return, I was half afraid that our quarry would be too far gone ere we set loose the dogs on him. Luckily he can be little farther than Glenurchy now. Elrigmore and I had the honour to see the visitors make their departure. They carried so much stolen gear, and drove so big a prize of cattle, that I would not give them more than a twenty miles' march to the day." "Will they hang together, do you think?" asked his lordship, fingering a crystal bottle for essence that lay on the 'scrutoire. "I misdoubt it," said M'Iver. "You know the stuff, MacCailein? He may have h
PREV.   NEXT  
|<   110   111   112   113   114   115   116   117   118   119   120   121   122   123   124   125   126   127   128   129   130   131   132   133   134  
135   136   137   138   139   140   141   142   143   144   145   146   147   148   149   150   151   152   153   154   155   156   157   158   159   >>   >|  



Top keywords:
lordship
 

guests

 

breaking

 

scrutoire

 

chamber

 
Before
 
paying
 

silence

 
awkward
 

consolation


MacCailein

 

position

 
plenishing
 

enormous

 
dastardly
 

avenge

 
hanging
 
silver
 

raised

 

candlesticks


snuffers

 

conform

 

marble

 

statues

 

broidery

 

dressing

 

unfinished

 

picture

 

gilded

 

womanly


quarry

 
cattle
 

carried

 

stolen

 

twenty

 
essence
 

fingering

 
crystal
 

bottle

 
departure

misdoubt
 

return

 
afraid
 
Luckily
 

honour

 

visitors

 
Elrigmore
 

farther

 
Glenurchy
 

varnish