"Well, well!" replied the Pensassenach; "Come now! tell me your
whole history."
Morag's nerves being now somewhat composed, she gave her mistress
as clear an outline as she could, of all that had befallen her. The
Pensassenach dropped some tears, to mingle with those which Morag
shed, when she recounted the evidence of John Smith's death, which
she felt to be but too probably true. But when she came to talk of
the ghost, she did all she could to laugh the girl out of her fears,
insisting with her that she had been deceived by terror and weakness,
and seeing how much the poor girl was worn out, she desired her to
take some refreshment, and to go to bed directly; and she had no
sooner retired, than the Pensassenach prepared to follow her example.
Morag, overcome with the immense fatigue she had undergone, had not
strength left to undo much more than half her dress, when she dropped
down on her bed, and fell over into a slumber. She had been lying
in this state for fully half an hour or more, during part of which
she had been dreaming of John Smith, mixed up with many a strange
incident, with all of which his slaughter, and his pale countenance
and bloody figure were invariably connected, when she was awaked by
a tapping at the window of her apartment, which was upon the ground
floor. She looked up and stared, but the moon was by this time gone
down, and all without was dark as pitch.
"Morag! Morag!" cried John Smith, who knowing well where she slept,
went naturally to her window to get her to come round and give him
admission to the house, and yet at the same time half doubting,
after the strange visitation which he had had, from what he
believed to be her wraith, that he could hardly expect to find her
alive. "Morag! Morag!" cried he again in his faint hollow voice.
"Och, Lord have mercy upon me, there it is!" cried Morag, in her native
tongue, and shaking from head to foot with terror. "Who is there?"
"Its me, your own Ian," cried John, in a tender tone. "Let me in,
Morag, for the love of God!"
"Och, Ian, Ian!" cried Morag. "Och, Ian, my darling dear Ian! are you
sure that it is really yourself in real flesh and blood?--for I have
got such a fright already this night. But if it really and truly be
you, go round to the door and I'll be with you in a minute. Och, och,
the Lord be praised, if it really be him after all!"
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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