for such a request."

"Before doing so," said Feodor rising, "allow me to inform the lady of
the house that her guests are to stay over night. It will give me the
utmost pleasure to make provision for yourself and your company. She,
of course, will attend to the comfort of her guests."

"You are most kind," observed Zeno as the Master made his way into the
adjacent room, which was Mashinka's. Feodor left the door ajar so that
Zeno might hear what was said.

"There is only one bed in Alexander's room, but they can sleep
together well enough for one night, I suppose."

Of course they could! Alexander would be only too pleased to have Paul
actually beside him before falling asleep. No longer would he need to
repeat the old nightly petition. That which he had so long asked was
at length within his very embrace.

Feodor now returned to Zeno.

"Now, sir," said he, "I can hear all you may have to say. But first
let us drink to each other."

They touched glasses, bowed to each other, and drank.

"In the first place," began Zeno, after a short silence, "I may as
well inform you that all last night I and my entire crew thought we
heard something very like the tolling of a bell away in the distance
before us."

"Indeed," observed the Master with the most perfect calm.

"Yes," Zeno went on; "the tolling quite confused us. My officers, who,
I fear, are by no means too expert with the compass and chart,
declared that the sounds must have proceeded from the lighthouse of
Gustavsvarn, whose lights, of course, could not then be seen in the
dense fog. On the other hand, my coxswain, who, it is true, is a
clumsy fellow enough, swears that it is impossible for the sound of a
bell in Gustavsvarn to be heard in this quarter, for Gustavsvarn lies
due north-east, while the sound we heard came more from the east. In
his opinion the bell-ringing is simply nothing but the pranks of evil
spirits. Just about here, he declares, there is a sunken town on the
deep sea-bottom, and on foggy nights seamen always hear its minster
bell tolling under the sea. The sound is too often their destruction,
for the spectres' bell invariably leads them wherever the most
frightful reefs and cliffs are to be found. There is quite a legend on
the subject, I believe. Do you know the story at all?"

"Oh yes," said Feodor quietly, "I know it well."

"Pray have the goodness to tell it me."

On the spur of the moment Feodor composed and embellished a legen