judgment did not immediately follow dissolution, and the souls of the dead were not instantly transferred to endless joy or endless sorrow, they should be allowed to haunt the scenes in which the sins of earth had been perpetrated by the wicked, or the virtues of the good had been exercised, and to witness, mingle with, and take part in the results of their own past deeds, as they affected living men? Such thoughts whiled away some hours, and, in the mean time, the sounds in the castle ceased one by one, till all became still; but sleep had no power over Ferdinand's eyes, and he was still sitting rapt in meditation, with his back leaning against the stone wall, and his arms crossed upon his chest, when the same voice was heard again, making him instantly start up, "Ferdinand," said the voice, "it is time to go." "But how can I go?" he demanded, "and where?" "Hast thou not a key?" demanded the voice; "the master key of all these doors." "Nay," answered Ferdinand; "I was obliged to give it to another to bear tidings of our fate to the priest." "Take up the lamp, then," said the voice, "and approach the stone in the middle of the pavement." The young man did as he was bidden, and beheld a large slab of slate-coloured stone, with some old characters engraved upon it. They were, Beneath this stone lieth the body of Wolfgang of Spires, Who built this Castle from the Foundation to the third story of the Keep, In the space of three-and-twenty years, At the end of which he was called to a Mansion not built with hands. He rests in peace. Ferdinand gazed upon it, holding down the lamp, and reading the rude letters with some difficulty, mentally inquiring, as he did so, "What has this to do with me?" But suddenly he thought some wind had made the flame of the lamp quiver, for the letters seemed to shake, and then the stone began to rise slowly in two-thirds of its length, the other third being depressed, as it moved upon a pivot. When at its full height, the wooden rounds of a ladder were perceived, and the voice said, "Descend."