ing it from the sand, with a little
assistance I placed it across the horse, though not without a most
determined opposition on the part of the animal. Throwing a cloak over
the body, we made the best of our way back; and on arriving at the house
I found that the only vacant apartment where I could deposit my charge
was a narrow loft over the out-house, the entrance to which was both
steep and dangerous. With the assistance of my two friends, though with
considerable difficulty, it was in the end deposited there, upon a
miserable pallet of straw, over which we threw a tattered blanket. On
returning, I found the guest-room deserted: the old woman to whom the
tavern belonged--the mother, as I afterwards found, of my female
companion--was hastily clearing away the drinking utensils, and
preparing for an immediate removal to the only apartment above-stairs
which bore the honours of the bedchamber. She kindly offered me the use
of it for the night; but this sacrifice of comfort I could not allow;
and throwing my cloak over a narrow bench, I drew it near the fire,
determining to snatch a brief interval of rest, without robbing the good
woman and her daughter of their night's repose.

It was now past midnight; sleep was out of the question, as I lay
ruminating on the mysterious events of the few past hours. The
extraordinary manner in which the murdered wretch had been committed to
my care seemed an imperative call upon me to attempt the discovery of
some foul and horrible crime. With the returning day I resolved to begin
my inquiries, and I vowed to compass sea and land ere I gave up the
pursuit. So absorbed was I in the project, that I scarcely noticed the
storm, now bursting forth in a continuous roll from the sea, until one
wild gust, that seemed to rush by as if it would have swept the dwelling
from its seat, put an end to these anticipations. I watched the rattling
casement, expecting every moment that it would give way, and the
groaning thatch be rent from its hold. Involuntarily I arose and
approached the window. It was pitchy dark, and the roar of the sea,
under the terrific sweep of the tempest, was truly awful. Never had I
heard so terrible a conflict. I knew not how soon I might be compelled
to quit this unstable shelter; the very earth shook; and every moment I
expected the frail tenement would be levelled to its foundations. The
eddying and unequal pressure of the wind heaped a huge sand-drift
against the walls,