task of no great difficulty, for the woodwork round the lock shared the
common decay of Doom, and with the silver lamp to light his steps, he
made his way along the corridor and down the stair. It was a strange and
romantic spectacle he made moving thus through the darkness, the lamp
swaying his shadow on the stairway as he descended, and he could have
asked for no more astonishment in the face of his jailer than he found
in Mungo's when that domestic met him at the stair-foot.

Mungo was carrying hot water in a huge kettle. He put down the vessel
with a startled jolt that betrayed his fright.

"God be aboot us! Coont, ye near gied me a stroke there."

"Oh, I demand pardon!" said Count Victor ironically. "I forgot that a
man of your age should not be taken by surprise."

"My age!" repeated Mungo, with a tone of annoyance. "No' sae awfu'
auld either. At my age my grandfaither was a sergeant i' the airmy, and
married for the fourth time."

"Only half his valour seems to run in the blood," said Count Victor.
Then, more sternly, "What did you mean by locking me up there?"

Mungo took up the kettle and placed it to the front of him, with some
intuition that a shield must be extemporised against the sword that the
Frenchman had menacing in his hand. The action was so droll and futile
that, in spite of his indignation, Count Victor had to smile; and this
assured the little domestic, though he felt chagrin at the ridicule
implied.

"Jist a bit plan o' my ain, Coont, to keep ye oot o' trouble, and I'm
shair ye'll excuse the leeberty. A bonny-like thing it wad be if the
maister cam' hame and foun' the Macfarlanes wer oot on the ran-dan and
had picked ye oot o' Doom like a wulk oot o' its shell. It wisna like as
if ye were ane o' the ordinar garrison, ye ken; ye were jist a kin' o'
veesitor--"

"And it was I they were after," said Count Victor, "which surely gave me
some natural interest in the defence."

"Ye were safer to bide whaur ye were; and hoo ye got oot o't 's mair
than I can jalouse. We hae scalded aff the rogues wi' het water, and if
they're to be keepit aff, I'll hae to be unco gleg wi' the kettle."

As he said these words he saw, apparently for the first time, with
a full understanding of its significance, the lamp in Count Victor's
hands. His jaw fell; he put down the kettle again helplessly, and, in
trembling tones, "Whaur did ye get the lamp?" said he.

"_Ah, mon vieux!_" cried Count Victor, enjoying his