LITERATURE.

Globe, Volume VIII, Issue 931, 19 June 1877, Page 3

LITERATURE.

THE DEVIL’S HOLE.

[from chamber’s journal.] { Continued ) W rds can scarcely express the relief I experienced as I felt myself being carried swiftly away from the neighbourhood of these horrible pits. The state of my health possibly may have had something to do with it; but my imagination certainly had been powerfully impressed with what was perhaps an exaggerated idea of their danger, and throughout the remainder of our drive I could talk of little else. Interested only in a lesser degree than myself, Mr Morgan joined me in conjectures as to the way in which they had been formed ; the probable depth of writer contained in them; the manner iu which they were connected with the sea, and so forth. But though each of us endeavoured by turns to draw Jonathan into the conversation, in order t > extract information from him, our dwarfish driver either could not or would not afford us any. He did not know, he said, whether or not there had ever been an accident at the spot, and replied to all our questions with a shortness which - considering that he had chattered incessantly dui’ing the former part of the j u ney—made me think that for some reason or other the subject must be distasteful to him.

Upon reaching Twcllryst the little minister and 1 separated, with the understanding that we were to meet again at the inn at which we had put up, at four in the afternoon —that hour being as late a one as we thought it wise to appoint, on account of getting back to Lleyrudrigg that night. A careful exploration of the ruins, which turned out to be very interesting ; a walk in the country ; and a saunter round the town, filled up my time very agreeably; and arriving exactly as the clock struck the appointed hour, 1 found Mr Morgan already at the rendezvous. Our conveyance was then called for, but to our annoyance the driver was not forthcoming. He had strolled away from the hotel some time ago, w r e were told ; and when, eventually, the search for him ended in his discovery in a neighbouring public-house, he appeared to be a good deal the worse for liquor. The delay thus occasioned in starting upon our backward journey w T as the more vexatious because of the threatening aspect which during the last hour the weather had been assuming. Thick dark clouds had gradually spread themselves over the entire sky, and the wind, as it moaned amongst the trees of a neighbouring orchard or whistled round the corners of the inn, had a decidedly stormy sound. Naturally I am rather a passionate man, and at the time of which I write my private troubles made me more than usually prone to irritation. It is scarcely to be wondered at then, that when, upon my friend’s calling Jonathan’s attention to these signs of the times, I observed an impish look of satisfaction stealing over his face as though he were inwardly rejoicing in theanricipation of our getting a good wetting, in return for the scolding we had given him. Indeed, 1 had some difficulty in restraining my inclination to seize his horse-whip and lay it across his shoulders. I did restrain it, however ; and when ready at length, we set off at full speed. This was so well kept up by Mr Williams’s excellent horse, that although we could not hope to escape a drenching, we began to congratulate ourselves that after all we might get to Lleyrudrigg before very late in the evening.

We had been for more than an hour upon the road and had made first-rate progress, ■when on a sudden the looked-for storm broke upon us with the utmost violence. In a few moments the wind had risen to a hurricane, rendering our umbrellas entirely useless; ana it was only by enveloping ourselves in a l av <re horse-rug with which the landlord had provided us, that the little Welshman and 1 had any chance of keeping dry. Taking off our hats, we passed the rug over our heads, and had .been riding in this way for a considerable" distance, when my companion observed that the vehicle was jolting very much ; and removing the covering from my face, I saw that we had turned off the highway into a narrow lane. On being questioned by Mr Morgan, to whom I uneasily communicated this fact, Jonathan declared that the lane was a short cut which would presently bring us out a<?ain upon the road we had quitted. I can scarcely tell why, but from the very first I doubted the correctness of this statement; and when, after twisting and turning times without number, the lane appeared yet as far as ever from its promised termination, my suspicions became confirmed. That our driver was purposely taking us in a wrong direction, I could hardly think, since I could conceive of no object for his doing so ; but that he had, either through drunkenness or carelessne s, lost his way, I felt assured. Bending forward, I angrily charged him with the mistake ; and though at first holding dogsredly to his former assertion, he admitted | by-and-by that he thought he must have turned up the wrong lane—adding, however, that as I might see for myself, as he could not get his horse round in so confined a space, and would be obliged therefore to drive onwards. The obligation I was of course forced to allow ; and muttering something as like an anathema as my clerical character would permit me to use, I re-covered my head and resigned myself, along with my more even-tempered associate, to the inevitable. But our misadventures were not to end with this contretemps. We were still in the lane, and had been going more and more slowly on account of its increasing roughness, when all at once the dwarf affirmed that something was wrong with tho horse’s right fore-foot, and precipitately doscenced to examine it. The examination o 'copied a long time ; and peering from beneath the sheltering rug, I noticed Jonathan’s arm working about as he bent over the hoof he had raised, and thought I distinguished, mingling with tho roar of the wind, a faint sound as of grating metal. I remarked upon this to Mr Morgan, and we both called out to inquire what was the matter. But the fellow would vouchsafe us uo reply until he had remounted to his seat, when he informed us sulkily that tho shoe upon that foot was coming loose, and that he had been trying to refasten it. Apparently, however, he had not succeeded to his satisfaction, for he shortly got down to look at it again, and kept on repeating tho action at intervals. At length just as we emerged from that seemingly interminable lane, the horse stumbled slightly; and once more descending from his box, the hunchback, with an ejaculation, in which it struck me there was a tone of triumph, brought forward the shoe, which had now indeed come off. (To he continued.)