"Twa candles, sir," said he, as he lighted them. "Twa, nae less. By the alcalde’s order, the auld patron body has to furnish ye wi’ twa,—which maks ye ’as braw as the Laird o’ Grant.’ Ye mind the auld saying, I daur say?" Ronald snatched the letters, and beheld with joy and delight that one was from Alice,—the other from his father. "Poor Louis!" muttered he aloud; "how much I wish that he was here!" Ronald was absolutely trembling with joy as he opened the letter and prepared to read it. He drew his chair close to the table, and raised the snuffers to trim the candles; when, lo! the lights were both blown out, and the snuffers flew from his hand with a loud report. "Gude guide us!" exclaimed Evan, astonished at being so suddenly involved in darkness; but a hearty malediction escaped Ronald, who was chafed and infuriated with the delay this unexpected circumstance caused. "Light them again," cried he. "Did you say that Major Campbell had been waiting for me in this room?" "Ay, sir, a gay gude while," "Pshaw! this is some trick of his: he has put a pinch of powder in the snuffers. His practical joke has been somewhat mis-timed. Get me fresh lights." Although Ronald laughed heartily at this occurrence afterwards, he was greatly enraged by it at the time, and an age seemed to elapse before Evan brought him the candles again. Love-letters are interesting to those only for whom they are designed, and it is not my intention to give Miss Lisle’s letter at length; but the reader, if concerned about the matter, may be assured that its contents were in every way just what Ronald could have wished them,—save in one part. She expressed her joy to hear that Louis was a prisoner, saying that he was "safer in France than fighting in Spain," and that she almost wished that Ronald himself might be captured likewise, to keep him out of harm’s way. "Evan, Jessie Cavers begs again to be remembered to you," said Ronald to his expectant follower, as he closed the letter.