ower reverberate.

In descending the spiral stairs, he came to a narrow window, which
overlooked the moat, and from thence he saw Tamar lingering on the other
side thereof. He stood a moment and she called to him; her words were
these,--"Have you sped?" in reply to which, protruding his head through
the narrow aperture, he said: "No! the man's a low and despicable
deceiver," adding other terms which were by no means measured by the
rules of prudence or even courtesy; these words were not, however, lost
on Tamar, and by what she then heard, she was induced to take a measure
which had she deliberated longer thereon, she might not have
ventured upon.

Dymock having spent his breath and his indignation through the window,
to the disturbance of sundry bats and daws, which resided in the roof of
the Tower, was become so calm that he made the rest of his descent in
his usually tranquil and sluggish style, and even before he had crossed
the court towards the draw-bridge, he had made up his mind to get Shanty
to settle this knotty business, feeling that the old blacksmith would
have been the proper person to have done it from the first.

Jacob, the ugly, ill-conditioned serving-man, was waiting to turn the
light bridge, and had Dymock looked upon him, he would have seen that
there was triumph on the features of this deformed animal, for Jacob was
in all his master's secrets; he knew that he meant to cheat the Laird,
and he being Salmon's foster brother, already counted upon his master's
riches as his own. Salmon's constitution was failing rapidly, and Jacob,
therefore, soon hoped to gather in his golden harvest.

Jacob too, hated every creature about him, and his hatred being
inherited from his parents, was likely to be coeval with his life. The
cause of this hatred will be seen in the sequel; but Jacob had no sooner
turned the bridge and fixed it against the opposite bank, than Tamar
springing from behind a cluster of bushes, jumped lightly on the boards,
and the next moment she was with Dymock and Jacob on the inner side of
the moat, under the tower.

Jacob had started back, as if he had seen a spectre, at the appearance
of the blooming, sparkling Tamar, who came forward without hat or other
head dress, her raven tresses floating in the breeze.

"Why are you here, my daughter?" said Dymock.

"Do not restrain me, dear father," she answered, "you have not sped you
say, only permit me to try my skill;" and then turning sud