The Works of George W. M. Reynolds — page 351: what you’re looking at

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

334 REYNOLDS’ WORKS denly interrupting himself, at the same time that he started up from the chair, ‘it could only have been mere fancy, and nothing else. It is useless thus to enter upon the expla- nation of an idle dream.” “Yes, useless, my lord,” remarked Purvis, ‘‘ if the subject be painful.”’ “Why did you say that?’ demanded the duke, turning abruptly toward the old man as he sat up in his bed. ‘My lord — my lord,” stammered Purvis, who really had meant nothing more than his words had conveyed, “‘ I — I — beg your Grace’s pardon, but — but — I really —”’ “Well, well,” interrupted the duke, “‘you see that all these things naturally render me nervous and excited, — I mean that those mysterious incidents which occurred ere we went to bed —”’ “They naturally made a certain impression, my lord,” replied the steward. ‘“ For myself, I candidly confess that I was thinking of them until the very moment that sleep came upon my eyes.”’ “ You said nothing about it to the servants, Purvis? ”’ asked the duke, quickly. “ Certainly not, my lord; it was your Grace’s order to the contrary.” “To be sure. It were needless to frighten them,” and the duke lingered in the steward’s chamber with every ap- pearance of one who was afraid to return to hisown. ‘‘ About this dream of mine,’ he continued, after a pause, during which he first sat down, then rose up, and then sat down again, in a nervous, restless manner; ‘“‘ about this dream of mine, Purvis. I have a great mind to go on telling you what it was.” , But Marchmont once more stopped short, he evidently did not want to continue on the same topic, and yet his mind was irresistibly led by some strong influence to hover around it, painful though it were. ‘“ T was telling you that I had fallen asleep, when something awoke me. The night-lamp was burning as usual in the room, and I looked about me, but I saw nothing: The lamp was visibly growing fainter and fainter; there was a wax candle on the night-table upon one side of the bed, and I lighted it, but as I turned around I beheld on the other side what seemed to me to be the tall form of a man enveloped (E(0) Gomichbooks