swim like a fish; and was the best hand in the whole place at
fives or nine-pins.

All these accomplishments, however, procured him no favour in the eyes
of the doctor, who grew more and more crabbed and intolerant, the
nearer the term of apprenticeship approached. Frau Ilsy, too, was for
ever finding some occasion to raise a windy tempest about his ears;
and seldom encountered him about the house, without a clatter of the
tongue; so that at length the jingling of her keys, as she approached,
was to Dolph like the ringing of the prompter's bell, that gives
notice of a theatrical thunder-storm. Nothing but the infinite
good-humour of the heedless youngster, enabled him to bear all this
domestic tyranny without open rebellion. It was evident that the
doctor and his housekeeper were preparing to beat the poor youth out
of the nest, the moment his term should have expired; a shorthand mode
which the doctor had of providing for useless disciples.

Indeed, the little man had been rendered more than usually irritable
lately, in consequence of various cares and vexations which his
country estate had brought upon him. The doctor had been repeatedly
annoyed by the rumours and tales which prevailed concerning the old
mansion; and found it difficult to prevail even upon the countryman
and his family to remain there rent-free. Every time he rode out to
the farm, he was teased by some fresh complaint of strange noises and
fearful sights, with which the tenants were disturbed at night; and
the doctor would come home fretting and fuming, and vent his spleen
upon the whole household. It was indeed a sore grievance, that
affected him both in pride and purse. He was threatened with an
absolute loss of the profits of his property; and then, what a blow to
his territorial consequence, to be the landlord of a haunted house!

It was observed, however, that with all his vexation, the doctor never
proposed to sleep in the house himself; nay, he could never be
prevailed upon to remain in the premises after dark, but made the best
of his way for town, as soon as the bats began to flit about in the
twilight. The fact was, the doctor had a secret belief in ghosts,
having passed the early part of his life in a country where they
particularly abound; and indeed the story went, that, when a boy, he
had once seen the devil upon the Hartz mountains in Germany.

At length, the doctor's vexations on this head were brought to a
crisis. One morning, as