'Fly!' cried Dame Ursulina, running in breathless. 'The baron has just returned, and is searching for you all. And he has already been through the chapel, and armoury, and gallery; and the west tower, and east tower, and south tower; and the cedar chamber, and oaken chamber, and black chamber, and grey, brown, yellow, green, pale pink, sky blue; and every shade, tinge, and tint of chamber in the whole castle. Benedicite, Santa Maria; how the times have degenerated! Come, come, come.' The guests vanished, the door was barred, and I remained alone. I sat ruminating in sad earnest, on the necessity for my consenting to this hateful match; when (and I protest to you, I had not thought it was more than nine o'clock), a terrible bell, which I never heard before, tolled, with an appalling reverberation, that rang through my whole frame, the frightful hour of ONE! At the same moment I heard a noise; and looking towards the opposite end of the chamber, I beheld the great picture on a sudden disappear; and, standing in its stead, a tall figure, cased in blood-stained steel, and with a spectral visage, the perfect counterpart of the baron's. I sat gasping. It uttered these sepulchral intonations. '_I am the spirit of the murdered Alphonso. Lord Montmorenci deserves thee. Wed him, or in two days thou liest a corpse. To-morrow night I come again._' The superhuman appearance spoke; and (oh, soothing sound) uttered a human sneeze! 'Damnation!' it muttered. 'All is blown!' And immediately the picture flew back to its place. Well, I had never heard of a ghost's sneezing before: so you may judge I soon got rid of my terror, and felt pretty certain that this was no bloodless and marrowless apparition, but the baron himself, who had adopted the ghosting system, so common in romances, for the purpose of frightening me into his schemes. However, I had now discovered a concealed door, and with it a chance of escape. I must tell you, that escape by the public door is utterly impracticable, as a maid always opens it for those that enter, and remains outside till they return. However, I have a plan about the private door; which, if the ghost should appear again, as it promised, is likely to succeed. I was pondering upon this plan, when in came Dame Ursulina, taking snuff, and sneezing at a furious rate. 'By the mass,' said she, 'it rejoiceth the old cockles of my heart to see your ladyship safe; for as I passed your door just now, methought I heard the ghost.' 'You might well have heard it,' said I, pretending infinite faintness, 'for I have seen it; and it entered through yonder picture.' 'Benedicite!' cried she, 'but it was a true spectre!' 'A real, downright apparition,' said I, 'uncontaminated with the smallest mixture of mortality.' 'And didn't your ladyship hear me sneeze at the door?' said she.