E -SAMUEL WEIGHT, Editor and Proprietor. VOLUME XXX, NUMBER 12.1 ~PUBLISHED EVERY SATURDAY MORNING Office in Carpet Hall, North-westcorncr of iFront and Locust streets. Terms of -Subsoriltion. .Ate Copy pc rannum,t r paid i n advance, it tA " if not paid within tbree montharrom commencement ortlie year, 200 4 Choate a Copy. `N•osabsoriplton received for n ie.. time than six oaacinlhs; and no paper will be discontinued until all arrearagesure paid,unless at the option o f the pub- Isher. Up . ',Vloneymayberemittedbymail a it hepublish rim's risk. Rates of Advertising. * &guar e[6lines]one week, •' three weeks. each , übseque nti ttsertion, 10 [l2:ines] one week. 50 th- eks, 100 =EMI each 4ubgegoenti niertion. 25 Largeradvertisement.in proportion A liberaldiaeouni will he made to quarterly, half •arly oryearlyadvertiseramho are strictly confined o their business. DR. HOFFER, DENTIST. --OFFICE, Front Street 4th door from Locust. over Baylor & McDonald's Book store Columbia, Pa. .I[7 - Entrance, between the Book and Dr. Herr's Drug :Bare. [August 21, 1858 THOMAS WELSH. TEETHE OF TEE PEACE, Columbia, Pa. OFFICE, in Whipper's .New Building, below Black's Hotel, Front street. Prompt attention given to all business entrusted t to his care. November 98,1857. DR. G. W. MIFFLIN, - "TIENTIST, Locust street, a few doors above the Odd Fellows' Hall, Columbia, Pa. Col • mbia. May 3. 1856. H. N. NORTH, ATTORNEY AND COUNSELLOR AT LAM Columbia,Pa. Collections ,Fromptly made,in Laneasterand York Bounties. • Columbia, May 4,1850. J. W. FISHER, Attorney and Counsellor at Law, C331:13-xmllzoire , „ X =1. 4546. Colombia, September 13, Ire,itt --- C.D. HOTTENSTEIN, M. D., QUOIN AND PHYSICIAN, 'Columbia, Pa. L.; Office is the rooms lately occupied by Dr. L. S Filbert. May 14, 1135941. S. Atlee Boekins, D. D. S. PRACTICES the Operative, Surgical and htechan. teal Departments of Dentistry. Orme -Lee uststreet, between the Franklin Muse and Yost Office, Columbia, Pa. 31ay 7. MO. QIIIIIECTOIresh lot of Shaker Corn, for sale by /I ENRY zi..IITYDANI. Nov. 13. 1838. Corner treats. GEORGE J. SMITH', WHOLESALE and Retail Bread and Cake Baker.--exinstauttly on hand a variety of :likea 100 numerous to mention; iY:aokers; Soda, Wine, Scroll; and Sugar Biscuit; Confectionery, of every description, Ike., 6c. LO , UST STRBET, Feb. 2, , 56, Between the Bank and Franklin House. TUT received, three dozen Dr. 811111011 N u Vegetable Biters, a certain cure for Dyspepsia; also, a fresh lot of !zap Sago and Pine Apple Cheese. _Farina and torn Starch, at D. H 11. R'S -Sept 5,1857. Grocery and Liquor store JUST RECEIVED, a beautiful assortment of Glans Ink Stands, at the Headquarters and News Depot. Columbia, April le, 1857. CHEWING TOBACCO. AT HEN ay ,'FABLER' Locust street. opposite the Fr:auk:in House, can be had CUBA LEAF, CON -4.311F-Srl, and several other brands of the best Chewing Tobacco, to which the attention of chewers is invited. May 1, IBM. IMPORTED Lubin'r, air°, Glenn's Double Extracts, for the handkerchief, at HARRY GREEN'S, Oppoalte COIF, Bridge, Prom St. Feb. 19, '.%) NOTICE. GO TO FBNDRICII & BRO'S for the Best Tobacco. The Beet Sweet Coven fish, 0 Twist, Peach Leaf, •can be bought cheaper of Fend rich & Uros., than else where. The only eionbli,hed wholesale and retail Tobacconists in Columbia. FRONT STREET ABOVE LOCUST. March 12, MEI. BAGLEY'S GOLD PENS. A FBESII lot of lot A. G. Bagley's Gold Pens, of different siz es unit prices. Juin received, at 13AYLOR & ItIeDONALIVO, Head Quarters and News Depot, Front street, see and door above Locust. Mara 27. less. oz. !rooms, at Vholesale 01 Retail, at H. }WADI, ER'S, Dec. 12, 1857. Locust wee. INE'S Compound of Syrup of Tar, Wild Cherry and lion Mound, for the cure of Coughs, Colds, Whooping Cough, Croup, &e. For sale at CORIBLE & DELLETT'S Family Medicine Store, Odd Fellows' Hall October 22, 1858. Patent Steam Wash Boilers. ITIHTME well known Boiler' , are kept eonxt , intly on band at PFA H LEK'S, beensl street, oPposite the Franklin House. Colombia, July 18,1857. ilats for sale bythe bushel or larger loan tity by B. F. APPOI.D, Columbia Dee. 25, 1858. Canal Banjo. _LA FI MA. and M Superfine hole C Flour, Buckwheat our,Corn em. and worn and t Corner of Third land Union streets. [Jan. 8, '59. oluoßws Extract of Copaiba and Sarsaparilla, for 33 sale at the Golden Mortar Drug Store. March 27, 1858. TOBACCO and Begars of the best brands, wholesale and retail, at BRUNER'S. PRESERVE YOUR FRUITS. UTILLOUGHBY'S Potent Alr-Tight Stopper, for II Fruit Preserving Cans and Jar, , „ This is a new at, and is entirely effectual In excluding the air.— Fheentoppers can be fitted to any kind of Jar or Can. subscriber t. sole agent for Columbia. A large supply of Jars and Cans of all kinds nod sizes kept con stantly on band. HENRY PPA HIER. June 13.1R59* Locust street, Colombia. Pa. Soap. Boxes ofDattr WOWS) Sonp on band and for ZU sale low •1 th e earner ot Third and Union Ste. " August 6, 21139. -VIM Received another beautiful lot of Vanilla J O Beane, at J. S. GELLRIT do CO , S Golden Mortar Dru Store. Front Street. Stiffer no longer with Corns. &T.tbe Golden Mortar Drag Store you can procure /1. spaniels which is warranted to remove Cocoa in 48 boors, without pain or aorenem. Ply Paper. A trOPERIOII article of FIT Paper, for the deatrae• /1 doe of ri e s, p.c., hoe jest been received at the Drug Store of II WILLIAMS, Front street. Columbia, 7¢17 30, ass. Harrison's Columbian Ink. TEYEICH Is a superior article, permanently black, VT and not corroding the pen, can be had in any gluaMity. at the Family Mediclue Store, and blacker Yet te that English Boot Polislt. Columbia, Jams 9,1850 Brew Brand of Chewing Tobaopo. Inggeobacriber has Jost received 40 Boxes of th eir 1. celebrated brand "FIVIIDRICH,A BALTIhtORE BLACg PAT CHEWING TOBACCO: , which they offer at a very low rate. The Tobacco i. a first•rsie ankle. scannfaetored expressly for this market. The Pipes aroihiciriand solid. and the tobacco entirely Use front Nu deleterions sobwances. FENDILICH t BROS., Front suiet, Colembia,Ps glistlikoto. The Barred up Rooms el 50 CHAPTER I. The clocks of a small country place were chiming ten on a dark night, as one, dressed like a police-inspector, made his way across a piece of waste land. His destination was the Maze, a house belonging to Lord Level. A mysterious occurrence had taken place there the night previous, which caused the police to intrude: Lord Level had been stabbed in his bed. The officer rang a loud peal at the outer gate, and a policeman, ex pecting who it was, came from the house in answer to the ring. Ho waited when they gotinside—he knew he should be questioned. His superior closed the gate, walked up the garden path, and placed his back against a a tree in the vicinity of the house. "What have you learnt? Any clue to the assassin?" QM The policeman dropped his voice to a whisper and began to answer as though afraid the very trees might hear. "Speak up," sharply interrupted the inspector; "the open air does not carry tales." The man obeyod. "It's a clear case, sir, as ever we came across—against Lady Level." It takes a great deal to astonish a police inspector, bat the words certainly aston ished the one in question. "Against Lady Level?" be repeated. "His wife!" "She's the one, sir. But who'd think it, to see her? Only nineteen or twenty, and enough beauty to knock you over, with blue eyes that look you down in their haughti ness. She's dressed ont like them high ladies do dress, in light blue silk, with her neck and arms uncovered. There's a gen tleman with her now, some friend of the family, and he won't let us go on with our investigation. He came and stopped it, and said we were acting against Lord Level' s wishes." "But why do you suspect Lady Level?" "Look here, sir. It's sure that nobody got in; the doors and windows were safe when the house went to bed, and safe when it got up; there has been no robbery, or anything of that sort, and there's no Sus picion to be attached to the servants; and then there's the facts themselves. The ser vants were roused up in the middle of the night by Lord Level's bell ringing violently and my lady screaming, and when they gut to his room, there he lay, fainted dead off. stabbed in two places, and she pretty near fainting too, and dropped down in a chair in her silk dressing-gown, and the knife it had been done with flung or carried into the chamber opening from it—" "An unoccupied chamber?" "Lady Level's; the one she had been sleeping in. Not a sign or syrnpton was there of anybody else being about, or of anybody's having been there. Her lady ship's version is, that she was woke up by Lord Level calling to her, and found him stabbed and bleeding; that's all she'll con fess to knowing of it." "And be?" "Ire says nothing, as I hear, except that he won't have the police meddle with it.— But as he's off his head, he mayn't know what he's saying." "How does Lady Level account for the knife being in her room?" "There itis," cried-the man. "When ever these violence-workers, let 'em be duchesses or chimney-sweeps, do a deed, and think they do it securely, there's cer tain to be some outlet where suspicion can creep in. They over-do it, or they under do it. If anybody else had done it, 3nd put the knife in her room, she must have seen it done. And why did she put it there? They have got a fatality on them and they can't help themselves; if she had dropped the knife in his room and not taken it to hers, things would not have looked so strong against her." "But her motive for attacking him—her motive? Is any apparent?" "They were on bad terms," said the po liceman. "The servants heard a violent quarrel between them that night, previous t i her going to her room." The inspector mused. "Did they tell you this, as confirmatory of their suspicions against her?" "They don't suspeot her," he replied.— "I and Cliff have drawn our own deduc tions by what they have said, and by self observation." "It appears] scarcely credible that a young woman like Lady Level, hardly six months married, should attack her hus band," observed the inspector, as he moved from the spot. "Where are are these ser vants?" "In the kitchen, sir. This way. There's no establishment, because the family never livehere. Lord Level came down and got his knee hurt in some how, and then my lady followed him, against his will, it's wispered, and sent for ber maid and man•eervant." The lower part of a window, close to where they bad halted to vpeak, was hidden by dwarf shrubs, and the ever-observant eye of the inspector, less observant, perhaps, in the darkness of night than at noonday, had railed to detect that it was open. Yet at this.npen window, listening to his words and drinking them in, stood Lady Level. Partially standing, partially leaning against a _strong arm which was thrown arannd her for her _support—the arm of her early friend, Mr. Raminvortb,—lntlf-fsh3t "NO ENTERTAINMENT IS SO CHEAP AS READING,:NOR ANY PLEASURE SO LASTING." COLUMBIA, PENNSYLVANIA, . SATURDAY MORNING. OCTOBER 22, 1859. lug she had listened to the words of the of ficers. Mr. Ravensworth, strangely per plexed and doubting—perplexed by the as pect things wore, yet unable to believe her guilty—had besought her to tell him the truth, whatever it might be. She quitted Mr. Ravensworth as the men moved away; she leaned against the aide of the window, shocked, indignant, terrified, as might have been seen from her counte nance, had there been light to view it. "Arnold is this to be borne?" He folded his arms. He felt •for her deeply—were she connected with him by near ties of blood he could not have been more anxious to protect her; but a strong doubt that she might be guilty was working within him. He knew that she had received much provocation from Lord Level. "How can they dare to entertain such suspicions? • If they—if they—oh, Arnold, they never will arrest me!—they never will publicly accuse me!" she uttered„ as a new phase of possibilities occurred to her. "Blanche, listen. All that can be done for you, I will do; but I cannot work in this uncertainty, Toll me the truth, be it good or bad, and I will stand by you; but if I am to be of service to you, I must know the truth. Did you—did you"—he hesita ted to put the question so pointedly—"was it you who struck Lord Level?" "No. Have I not just told you so?" "What you told me I do not understand. You s,•sy you saw it done—" - "Theo, I did not see it done," she petu lantly interrupted; and no more questions would she answer. "Let me take you to the lighted room," said Mr. Ravensworth; "you are trembling with the cold." "Not with the cold," was her reply. The fire !Cad gone low, but he stirred it into a blaze, and drew the easy-chair near it fur Ludy Level. He stood by, saying nothing." "Suppose they should openly accuse me?" she began, after a silence. "Would they take me?" "Blanche," he retlrted, in a sharp, ring ing imperative accent, "are you guilty?— Tell me. one way or the other, that I may km.w what to be at." Lady Level rege and confronted him, her dark blue eyes wearing their haughty ex pression—for the first time, to him. "You have known me many years—known me well." "1 have." "Then, are you not ashamed to repeat this question? I guilty of attacking Lord Level!" "I would rather believe myself—l would as soon believe my own wife guilty of such a thing; but why have you equivocated with me? "Youihave not told me the truth as to what passed that night." "lb charged me not to tell." "Five minutes ago you told me yourself you saw it done—now you say you did not. What am I to think?" "In saying I saw it done, I spoke hastily; what I ought-to have said was, that I saw who did it. And then, to-day, Lord Level insisted that I had been dreaming," she abstractedly continued. "Arnold, do you believe that we can see visions or dream dreams that afterwards wear to the re membrance the semblance of realities?" "I wish you would not speak in riddles. The time is going on, those men of the law may come in to accuse you, and how um I defend you? I cannot, I repeat, work in the dark." There was along pause—Lady Level was deliberating with herself. "It may be bet ter that I tell you all." "You know that you may trust me," he replied. "I went to rest last night angry with Lord Level, for we had spoken irritating words to each other. I lay awake, I dare I say for an hour, indulging bitter thoughts, and then I dropped asleep. Suddenly some thing woke me; I cannot tell you what it. was: whether it was any noise, or whether it was the opening of the door between my room and Lord Level's. All I know is, that the door was wide open, and some one stood in it with a lighted candle. It was the strangest object, Arnold; it seemed to be dressed in flannel, flannel drawers and a flannel shirt, with long hair and wild eyes. In the confusion of the ; moment I be lieved it must be Lord Level, and I was struck with amazement, for Lord Level was not able even to turn in his bed without as sistance, on account of the injury to his knee, and I thought how long his hair had grown—that was, you know, when I was between sleep and wake. It came across the room—" "Blanche," he interrupted, "you speak just as if you were speaking of a vision. iltr " "That's what Lord Level says it was. Let me go on. It came across the room as far as the dressing-table. I started up in bed then, for I saw it was not Lord Level, the wild eyes turned upon me, and at the same moment Lord Level called out from his bed, apparently in agitation or' pain. The figure dropped something, turned round, and darted back again through the open door to Lord Level's chamber; and I saw the candle fall from it's hand to the floor, and the place was jn /darkness again, save what little light came from Lord Level's night-hmp. Terror overwhelmed me, and I cried out, and then Lord Level called to me by same. I ran to his room flinging on my warm dressingrigovra as /. want, and there found him hurt in some way, for he was bleeding from the arm and from the side. Arnold, as I. live, as I breathe, that is the whole truth," she concluded with emotion. •'Did you see the—the figure?" "It was not there. .I saw no trace of it. I remember I picked up the the candle stick, for it was right in my path, and I screamed as I went in; I screamed worse when I saw the blood upon Lord Level. 11, grasped me by the arm, us I hate told you, and kept me by him, and I saw how white be looked, and his brow was damp. 'What was it? what was that?' I exclaimed to him. 'Say nothing of what you have seen,' he answered; 'I charge you, nothing.' I don't quite know what I replied—it was to the effect that the house must be called; and the figure Teen after. He grasped my arm all the tighter; no wonder it is black; I thought he would have broken it. 'You are my wife,' he went on; 'my interests are yours; I charge you, by your duty and obedience to me, that you say nothing; bury this in silence, as you value your life and mine.' Then he fainted and his hold relaxed, and I screamed out and the ser vants came; had my life depended on it I could not have helped screaming. What had been dropped in my room proved to be the knife." "This is a very strange account," ex claimed Mr. Ravensworth. "It is so strange that I lose myself at times, wondering whether I was dreaming. But it was true, Arnold; it was true." "Did the figure, as you call it, bear a re semblance to any of tho servants? Was it one of them, man or woman, in disguise?" "I am certain it was not. It was too tall and young for the steward; too short for Sanders; and as for the women servants, it is absurd to think of them in connection with it. It had the strangest face, not, it seemed to me, like a human being's: I don't think it was one," abstractedly con tinued Lady Level. "And it wore neither shoes nor stockings, and the white tapes of its flannel drawer° were hanging about its legs." "And you saw no signs of it afterwards?" "None whatever. There were no traces, I tell you, of its having been there, save the injury to Lord Level, the knife and the fallen candlestick. The candlestick which he left in Lord Level's room the previous night, so that it must have been seen, and lighted from his night lamp. But, would you believe it, that Lord Level wants now to persuade me all this was a dream of the imagination?" "That his wounds are?" "Nut his wounds, of course—or the found knife, but all that part that I saw. He ridicules the idea of what I say I saw, this strangely dressed creature, looking like nothing human. He says he caught a full view of the man who attacked him; that be should know him again, that he was dressed in fustain, and was no more wild looking than I am, and ho suspects he was a poach er who must have got in through one of the windows. Do you wonder that I fear to go to bed to-night? Whatever it may have been, ghost, or man, or demon, if it came last night it may come again." Mr. Ravensworth pondered over the tale; and he could not help deeming it a most improbable one. But that traces of some mysterious presence had been left behind, he would have regarded it as her husband appeared to do—a midnight freak of Lady Level's imagination. "Yet the wounds are realities," said Mr. Ravenswortb, speaking aloud in answer to his own thoughts. "Arnold, it is all reality. There are mo ments, I say, when I am almost tempted to question it, but in my sober reason I know it to have been true. When one, near and dear to us, is taken by death from our hearth, we have interludes in our sorrow, when we say to ourselves, 'ls it not a dream? has death really been busy?' but; all the while, a secret consciousness is with us that it is only too true, that we are but essaying to cheat ourselves. So it was with me in this—while I ask myself. 'Was it a dream?' I hold a perfect, positive con viction that it was only too terrible a reality." "I have heard," continued Mr. Havens worth, still in abstraction, "of maniacs breaking from their places of durance and entering houses to do mischief in the dead of night. Blanche, did it look like a mad man?" "I never saw a madman, that I know of. This creature looked wild enough to be mad. There was one thing I thought curi ous in connection with the finding of the knife," proceeded Lady Level. 'lt was Timms who picked it up, while Sanders was gone for the surgeon, and she brought it into Lord Level's room, calling out that she bad found the weapon. 'Why. that's Mr. Drewitt's knife,' exclaimed the house girl, Deborah, as soon as she saw h; and the old steward, who had just reached the room, asked her how she could assert such a falsity. 'lt is yours, sir,' said Deborah; 'it's your new knife, I have seen it on your table, and should know it anywhere." D eborah, if you repeat that again I'll bavo you punished,' sharply called out the housekeeper, without, you understand, quit ting Lord Level to whom she was attend ing, to look whether it was or was not the the knife, Now, Arnold," added Lady Level. "ill and terrified as I was feeling at the moment, a conviction came across me that it was his knife, but that he and Mrs. Ndwards were purposely denying it." "It in impossible to suspect them of at tacking, or conniving at the attack on Lord Level." "They attack Lord Level! they would rather attack the whole world combined, than that a hair of his head. should c utter. They are fondly, blindly attached to him. At Deborah, it appears, has been convinced out of her assertion. Hark! who is that?" It was the inspector, exploring the out lets and inlets, followed by his two men, who had done the same before him. "I thought you had forbidden the search," cried Lady Level. "Why are they disobey ing you?" "Blanche, after what you have told you, I consider there ought to be a search." "In opposition to Lord Level?" "I think that Lord Level has not taken a sufficiently serious view of the case. The only solution I can come to is, that some escaped madman got into the house before it TM closed for the night, and concealed himself in it—and is in it now." "Now! In it now?" "Most probably. The house has been on the alert since it happened, and be has not been aeon to leave it. Madmen are more cunning than sane ones." "And you would have gone away and left me in it, Arnold!" • He smiled. "You had not told me then what you have now. I shall go and speak to the :aspect or." "Shall you tell him this?" "Probably. Or part of it." The inspector had evidently made up his mind—that it was Lady Level, though he did not say so in so many words. Mr. Ra vensworth repeated to him the substance of the account he had heard, and the officer, keen and practical, revolved the, story to himself, and his faith grew in it. There were mysterious points about it be could not yet explain, but he deemed it of suffi cient weight to justify a closer search of the premises. Not a soul went to bed that night. Lady Level set the example by sitting up, and the servants followed it, Mrs. Edwards was in attendance on Lord Level; and the steward who appeared most exceedingly to resent the presence of the police, shut himself in his rooms. The inspector, accompanied only by Mr. Ravensworth, went about the hones, looking here, there, and everywhere, but nothing - wrong could they find or discover. Passing Lord Level's rooms and down the long pas sage beyond it, which was divided by a door in the middle, they came upon another door which was fastened. The inspector shook it. "It must lead to the back rooms," be observed, "and they are uninhabited." "I think these are the steward's apart ments," observed Mr. Ravensworth, Whose ever they were, nobody came to the doer, and the inspector rattled it again. It brought forth Mr. Drewitt. They heard him draw and fasten a chain, and then he pulled the door a few inches open, as far as the chain permitted him. "Will you let us in? I must search these rooms." "Search for what?" asked the old man. "I cannot have my rooms searched. This morning after the alarm, I went over them to_ be safe, and that's sufficient." "Allow me to search for myself," re turned the officer. "No, sir," answered the steward, with dignity, "nobody comes in to search these rooms in opposition to the wish of my lord. His orders to me wore, that the affair should be allowed to drop, and I, for one, will not disobey him, or give help to those who would. His lordship believed that, whoever it might be that attacked him, came and went out again; the country must be hunted over, he said, bat not his house." "I must enter here," was all the answer reiterated to him by the officer. "It shall be over my body then," returned the steward, trembling with emotion. "My lord forbade a search, and you have no right whatever to proceed to it." "My good man I am a police detective." "You may be detective•general for all I care," retorted the old man, "but you don't come in here. Get my lord's authority first, and then you are welcome. And I beg your pardon, sir," he added to Mr. Ravenaworth "but I would inquire what authority you huld from my lord that you should set at nought his expressed wishes?" The door was shut and bolted in their fa ces, and the inspector leaned against the wall to think. "Did you notice his agita tion?" he whispered to Mr. Ravensworth; "there's more in this than meets the eye," He called hie men to him. "There must be rooms on the ground•flocr, looking to the back, as well as these—how are they led to?" How indeed? It seemed a puzzle. They took lights and went to explore. Plenty of rooms looking to the front of the house and the two sides, but none to the bank; or, if there were, they could find no entrance to them. "We'll go outside at daylight and have a look at the windoWs," said the in spector to Mr. Ravensworth. Easier said than done. With the gray light of the November morning they were out of doors, these two alone. A high wall running from the house on either side, like two speeding wings, enclosed the garden at the back, and that wall was enclosed and sheltered by a grove of dwarf ehrubs and tall trees. They found a door right in the corner, completely bidden by the shrubs be $1,50 PER YEAR IN ADVANCE; $2,00 IF NOT IN ADVANCE fore it. It was locked, and they went to Deborah for the key. She knew nothing about it, she said; she believed there was a key, but it was kept by Mr. Drewitt. "I can undo the door, sir, if you want it undone," spoke up one of the policetneu, who had heard the colloquy. "Are you prepared?" "All right, sir." Whether he was possessed of a skeleton key or keys, he and his superior alone knew. lie opened the door, and Mr. Ravensworth and the inspector entered. They found themselves in a large square plot of ground, gravelled, the whole enclosed by the high wall, by dwarf shrubs on this side it also, and by more lofty trees. The windows of the back of the house looked into it, curious louking windows, long a.,d narrow, most of them whitened over to obstruct the view, and all encased outside with strong iron bars. A. small iron door was visible leading to the garden, but it was foot and firm, and there were no apparent means of opening it. "Not much danger that he could have ef fected an entrance on this side, remarked Mr. Ravensworth, alluding to the mysteri ous visitant of the previous night." The inspeotor was taking a survey and softly whistling to himself; now standing afar off to gaze up at the whole, and now peering in through the lower windows. Of course, being whitened, he had his trouble fur his pains. "It puts me in mind of a prison," cried Mr. Ravensworth. "It puts me in mind of a madhouse," was the laconic rejoinder of the interpreter. They passed out, but Mr. Ravensworth lingered a minute behind the other. In that minute his eye was attracted to one of the windows on the floor above. It opened down the middle, like a French one, and was being shaken, apparently with a view to open it—and if you are well acquainted with oontinental windows, or windows made after their fashion, you may remember how long it has taken you to-shake a refractory window before it will obey. It was at length effected, and in the opening, gazing with a vacant, silly expression through the close bare, appeared a face. Just such a face as Lady Level had described, with wild eyes and uncouth features, scarcely like a human being. But he had no long hair, and appeared to be fully dressed. He re mained in view but a moment; the window was immediately closed again, Mr. Ravens.- worth thought by another band. What was the mystery? That there was one there was little doubt, and that the steward, Mrs. Edwards, and Lord Level were privy to it. Were they keeping a madman there? But who was he? And had he broken loose that night from keeping, injured Lord Level, and frightened his wife? Or was it some mad man who had got in, and was concealing himself there with impunity, owing to the obstinacy of the old steward. Mr. Ravensworth held his tongue, joined the inspector, and the gate was barred again. The latter took his departure, to return again later, and the former sought Lady Level. She changed her dress for a morning one, but she looked wan and hag gard. "Lady Level, you must go with me up stairs." "For what?" she asked. "To make old Drewitt open his door. He will not do it for me, so you must try your authority. I want to get into those shut-up apartments." Mr. Ravensworth was right. The stew ard did not presume to dispute Lady Level's mandate, which she gave somewhat imperi ously. They found themselves in the old gentleman's sitting-room, and tie placed chairs for them. "I have not come to sit," said Mr. Ravensworth, "I have come to explore those further rooms." "You must not do it, sir." "I will," said Mr. Ravensworth. "I have authority to not from Lady Level, and these rooms I shall examine." He penetrated to an inner passage as he spoke, where a door barred his further progress. "I will go on if I use force," he continued; "he who at tacked Lord Level is concealed here." "Are you an enemy of my lord's?" asked the old man, greatly agitated. "I do not wish to be an enemy to Lord Level, but I B.m the early friend of his wife, and io this business I will be her defender. An infamous suspicion bas been cast upon her; I must do what I can to remove it." "My lady," called out the old man, visi bly trembling, "I appeal to you as my lord's second self, to forbid this gentleman from entering these inner apartments. It must not be." "Bo firm, Blanche," whispered Mr. Ra vensworth, as she came forward; "I must enter, and it is for your sake. Trust to me." She turned to the steward. "I am sure that Mr. Ravensworth is acting for the best. Open the door. For one moment the old man hesitated, and then he wrung his hands. "That I should be forced to disobey the wife of my lord! My lady, I crave your - pardon, but I may not open these rooms." Mr. Ravensworth bade her remain where she was, near the door. He then went to obtain the skeleton key from the policeman, one that would open any lock, and came back with lt. "Now," said he to Lady Level, "you will oblige me by going down stairs again to your sitting room. Lease the rest to me." The old man opposed him with all his [WHOLE NUMBER 1,529. feeble power, but he had lost courage. "I am a determined man, Mr. Drowitt, when I believe that I am acting in the line •)f duty," remarked Mr. Ravensworth as he undid the door; "I think there is no necessity to call the officers down stairs to aid me." The rooms, very large, were but three, sitting-room, a bed-room, and a bath-room, self-supplying. A staircase descended to those below- Iu one of them were some gardener's tools, but of a less size than a grown man in his strength would use, and by their side were certain toys, tops, hoops. ninepins, and the like. One of the rooms had no furniture, and in that, standing orer a humming-top, which be bad just set to spin on the floor, bent the 6:ore—the figure Ravensworth had seen at the window, and the one no doubt, which hnd penetrated to the rooms of Lord and Lady Level. He had a child's whip in his hand, and was whipping the top and making a noise with his mouth in imitation of its hum. Half madman, half idiot, he stood out, in all his deep misfortune, before Mr. Ravens worth, raising himself up and staring at him with a vacant stare. He was apparently young, too, not more than twenty. The ex pression of Mr. Raveneworth's face changed to ono of pity. "Who are you?" he ex olaimed, in a kind tone. "What is your name?" "Archie!" was the mechanical answer, for brains and sense seemed to have little to do with it; and, catching up his top, be backed against the wall, and burst into a distressing laugh. Dia tressing to a listener; not distressing to him, poor fellow. "Who is he?" asked Mr. Rarensworth of the stew ard, who bad followed him. "An imbecile." "So I see. But what connexion has he with Lord Level's family?" "Ile is a connexion, or he would not be here." "Can be be—be--n eon of Lord Level's}" "A son!" returned the steward. "and my lord but just married: He never was mar ried before. No. air, he is not a son, he is none so near as that; be is but a connexion of the Level family—" He came forward from the wall where he was standing, and held out his top to Mr. Drewitt. "Do; do," he cried, spluttering as be spoke. "Nay, Archie, you can set it up better than I; my back won't stoop well, Archie." "Do, do," wns the persistent request, and the top held out still. Mr. Ravensworth took it and sat It up again, he looking on in greedy eagerness, slobbering and making a noise with his mouth. Then his note changed to a hum, and he whipped away as before. "Why is he not put away in an asylum?" "Put away in an asylum:" retorted the old man, indignantly; "where could he be put to have the care and kindness that is be stowed upon him here? Imbecile though be is, madman though he may be, he is dear to me and my sister. We pass our lives tend ing him, doing for him, soothing him—where else could that be done? Yon don't know what you are saying, sir. My lord comes down to see him; my lord orders that every thing should be done for his comfort. And do you suppose it is fitting that his condi tion should be made public? The fact of one being so afflicted is slur enough upon the race of Level, without its being pro claimed abroad." "It was he who attacked Lord Level." "Yes, it was; and how he could bare escaped to the other part of the house will be a marvel with ma forever. My sister says I could not have slipped the bolt of the passage door upon him as usual, but I know I did. He had been restless that day; Le has restless fits, and I suppose he could not sleep, and rose from his bed and came to my sitting-room. On the table there I had left my pocket knife, a new knife, the blades hr 4ht and sharp; and this be must have picked up and opened, and found his way with it to my lord's chamber. Why be should have attacked him, or any one else, I know not; he never had a ferocious fit before." "Indeed!" returned Mr. Itavensworth. "Never. lle has been imbecile and harm• less as you see him now. Ile has never dis turbed us at night; be has, as I say, fits of restlessness when he cannot sleep, but be is sufficiently sensible to ring a bell communi cating with my chamber if he wants any thing. If over he bas rung, it has been to toll me he wants meat." "Meat!" The steward nodded. But I have never given it to him. He is cunning as a fox. the all are, and were we to begin giving him food at night we mast continue it, or have no peace. Eating is his one enjoy meat in life, and he devours everything set before him—the kitchen-maid thinks I eat all that comes up, and sets me down as a cannibal. He has a hot supper every night; about a year ago we got to think it might be better for him to here a lighter one, and we tried it for a week, but be moaned sad cried all night long after his Lot moat, and we had to give hill= again. The night this happened he had bad veal cutlets and bacon." "Do; do," interrupted the imbecile, hold. ing oat his top again. "I shall never be able to account for it, I say," procecdod the steward; "for he has never shown symptoms of violence. We put him In a warm bath yesterday and tut his hair olose, but I saw no ferocity about him. After attacking my lord, he must bare owns qnietly back to his room, for X
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