e voice
of Mr. Gallosh exclaim in terrified accents--

"I canna find the haundle! Oh, Gosh, where's the haundle?"

Being the less frenzied of the two, the Baron did succeed in finding the
handle, and with a gasp of relief burst into the lighted anteroom. The
piper had already departed, and evidently in haste, since he had
left some portion of a bottle of whisky unfinished. This fortunate
circumstance enabled them to recover something of their color, though,
even when he felt his blood warming again, Mr. Gallosh could scarcely
speak coherently of his terrible ordeal.

"What an awfu' night! what an awfu' night!" he murmured. "Oh, my lord,
let's get out of this!"

He was making for the door when the Baron seized his arm.

"Vait!" he cried. "Ze danger is past! Ach, vas I not brave? Did you not
hear me speak to him? You can bear vitness how brave I vas, eh?"

"I'll not swear I heard just exactly what passed, my lord. Man, I'll own
I was awful feared!"

"Tuts! tuts!" said the Baron kindly. "Ve vill say nozing about zat. You
stood vell by me, I shall say. And you vill tell zem I did speak mit
courage to ze ghost."

"I will that!" said Mr. Gallosh.

By the time they reached the drawing-room he had so far recovered his
equanimity as to prove a very creditable witness, and between them they
gave such an account of their adventure as satisfied even the excited
expectations of their friends; though the Baron thought it both prudent
and more becoming his dignity to leave considerable mystery attaching to
the precise revelations of his ancestral spirit.

"Bot vere is Bonker?" he asked, suddenly noticing the absence of his
friend.

A moment later the Count entered and listened with the greatest interest
to a second (and even more graphic) account of the adventure. More
intimate particulars still were confided to him when they had retired
to their own room, and he appeared as surprised and impressed as any
wraith-seer could desire. As they parted for the night, the Baron
started and sniffed at him.

"Vat a strange smell you have!" he exclaimed.

"Peat smoke, probably. This fire wouldn't draw."

"Strange!" mused the Baron. "I did smell a leetle smell of zat before
to-night."

"Yes; one notices it all through the house with an east wind."

This seemed to the Baron a complete explanation of the coincidence.

CHAPTER XIII

At the house in Belgrave Square at present tenanted by the Baron and
Baroness von Blitzenb