of it yet!" cried
Arnold, in his hearty way--and rang the bell.

The bell was hung outside the door of that Patmos in the
wilderness--otherwise known as the head-waiter's pantry. Mr. Bishopriggs
(employing his brief leisure in the seclusion of his own apartment) had
just mixed a glass of the hot and comforting liquor called "toddy" in
the language of North Britain, and was just lifting it to his lips, when
the summons from Arnold invited him to leave his grog.

"Haud yer screechin' tongue!" cried Mr. Bishopriggs, addressing the
bell through the door. "Ye're waur than a woman when ye aince begin!"

The bell--like the woman--went on again. Mr. Bishopriggs, equally
pertinacious, went on with his toddy.

"Ay! ay! ye may e'en ring yer heart out--but ye won't part a Scotchman
from his glass. It's maybe the end of their dinner they'll be wantin'.
Sir Paitrick cam' in at the fair beginning of it, and spoilt the
collops, like the dour deevil he is!" The bell rang for the third time.
"Ay! ay! ring awa'! I doot yon young gentleman's little better than a
belly-god--there's a scandalous haste to comfort the carnal part o' him
in a' this ringin'! He knows naething o' wine," added Mr. Bishopriggs,
on whose mind Arnold's discovery of the watered sherry still dwelt
unpleasantly.

The lightning quickened, and lit the sitting-room horribly with its
lurid glare; the thunder rolled nearer and nearer over the black gulf of
the moor. Arnold had just raised his hand to ring for the fourth time,
when the inevitable knock was heard at the door. It was useless to say
"come in." The immutable laws of Bishopriggs had decided that a second
knock was necessary. Storm or no storm, the second knock came--and
then, and not till then, the sage appeared, with the dish of untasted
"collops" in his hand.

"Candles!" said Arnold.

Mr. Bishopriggs set the "collops" (in the language of England, minced
meat) upon the table, lit the candles on the mantle-piece, faced about
with the fire of recent toddy flaming in his nose, and waited for
further orders, before he went back to his second glass. Anne declined
to return to the dinner. Arnold ordered Mr. Bishopriggs to close the
shutters, and sat down to dine by himself.

"It looks greasy, and smells greasy," he said to Anne, turning over the
collops with a spoon. "I won't be ten minutes dining. Will you have some
tea?"

Anne declined again.

Arnold tried her once more. "What shall we do to get thro