Roanoke of Roanoke Hall: A Romance — page 132: what you’re looking at

Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.

126 Roanoke of Roanoke Hall. hear, by John o’ Compton, cursing and swear- ing terribly at my evasion. There was a handle on the inside, and to this I clung madly, defying all their efforts to open the door which swung outwards. John o’ Comp- ton battered at the barrier, bidding me come forth, but I paid no heed, though it had flashed. across: my startled mind that I must eventually yield or perish of starvation. “Never mind that,” said the man of the woods, presently. ‘Look out above there.” Before I had time to reflect upon the mean- ing of these words I felt myself moving swiftly upwards, and an instant after the light of day shone chilly from above and I was swept up through a sliding stone to the ter- race of the roof. The man I had seen in the chapel, and who had been watching the chase below, was already running for the stairhead, but I had a long start of him, and was de- scending in mad haste before he turned the corner. ‘ Down, down, down, giddy with the speed, I rushed, straightforward along the dark pas- sages until I was suddenly hurled against some solid body, and found myself ensnared comieboots.comy| ~