rd when men have risen
up against us and called us sorcerers? Have we not suffered for our
reputation; and do we not therefore deserve to wear it with what
honour we may?"

The woman spoke with a strange mixture of bitterness, earnestness,
and scorn--scorn, as it seemed, almost of herself and of her tribe,
yet a scorn so proudly worn that it scarce seemed other than a mark
of distinction to the wearer. Cuthbert listened in amaze and
bewilderment. It was all so different from what he had looked for.
He had hoped to consult an oracle, to learn hidden secrets of which
the gipsies had cognizance through their mysterious gifts; and,
behold, he was almost told that these same gifts were little more
than the idle imagining of superstitious and ignorant men.

"Then canst thou tell me nothing?" he asked.

"I can tell thee much," was the steady answer, "albeit not all that
thou wouldst know; that will still be thine to track out with
patience and care. But these lines may help; they may contain a
clue. I wonder how and where Esther learned them! But come within
the cave. The evening air grows chill, and I and thou have both
walked far, and stand in need of refreshment. All is ready for us
within. Come; I will lead the way."

Joanna stepped on before, and Cuthbert followed. He had thought the
cave a small and shallow place before, but now he discovered that
this shallow cavity in the rock was but the antechamber, as it
were, to a larger cavern, where twenty men might sit or lie at
ease; and the entrance to this larger place was through a passage
so narrow and low that none who did not know the secret would think
it possible to traverse it.

Cuthbert wondered if he were letting himself be taken in a trap as
he followed the gipsy through this narrow way; but he trusted
Joanna with the confidence of instinct which is seldom deceived,
and presently felt that they had emerged into some larger and wider
place. In a few moments the gipsy had produced a light, and the
proportions of the larger cavern became visible. It was a vaulted
place that had been hollowed out of the ruddy sandstone either by
some freak of nature or by the device of men, and had plainly been
adapted by the wandering gipsy tribes as a place of refuge and
resort. There were several rude pieces of furniture about--a few
pallet beds, some benches, and a table. On this table was now
spread the wherewithal for a modest repast--some cold venison, some
wheaten bread,