ttend to her case."

"Before I attend to hers or any one else's case," said the dwarf,
hopping over the table like an overgrown toad, "I will first see that
this guest of ours is properly taken care, of, and does not leave us
without the ceremony of saying good-bye."

With which, he seized one of the wax candles, and trotted, with rather
unprincely haste, after Sir Norman and his conductors. The young knight
had been led down the same long passage he had walked through before;
but instead of entering the chamber of horrors, they passed through the
centre arch, and found themselves in another long, vaulted corridor,
dimly lit by the glow of the outer one. It was as cold and dismal a
place, Sir Norman thought, as he had ever seen; and it had an odor damp
and earthy, and of the grave. It had two or three great, ponderous doors
on either side, fastened with huge iron bolts; and before one of these
his conductors paused. Just as they did so, the glimmer of the dwarf's
taper pierced the gloom, and the next moment, smiling from ear to ear,
he was by their side.

"Down with the bars!" he cried. "This is the one for him--the strongest
and safest of them all. Now, my dashing courtier, you will see how
tenderly your little friend provides for his favorites!"

If Sir Norman made any reply, it was drowned in the rattle and clank
of the massive bars, and is hopelessly lost to posterity. The huge door
swung back; but nothing was visible but a sort of black velvet pall, and
effluvia much stronger than sweet. Involuntarily he recoiled as one of
the guards made a motion for him to enter.

"I Shove him in! shove him in!" shrieked the dwarf, who was getting so
excited with glee that he was dancing about in a sort of jig of delight.
"In with him--in with him! If he won't go peaceably, kick him in
head-foremost!"

"I would strongly advise them not to try it," said Sir Norman, as he
stepped into the blackness, "if they have any regard for their health!
It does not make much difference after all, my little friend, whether
I spend the next half-hour in the inky blackness of this place or the
blood-red grandeur of your royal court. My little friend, until we meet
again, permit me to say, au revoir."

The dwarf laughed in his pleasant way, and pushed the candle cautiously
inside the door.

"Good-by for a little while, my dear young sir, and while the headsmen
is sharpening his axe, I'll leave you to think about your little friend.
Lest