‘If thou wilt go, thou mayst,’ replied the stranger; and Ernest, under the influence of a secret fascination, consented. ‘To-morrow, by daybreak, we will set out,’ said his guest; and then, as the night was far advanced, they both retired to their straw couches, after partaking of a simple supper which Ernest had hastily provided. CHAPTER II The rising dawn found Ernest and his unknown guide wending their way down the long valley. It was a still, gloomy October morning. The sky was obscured by grey clouds, and the cold wind which whistled among the yellow withered leaves of the wood that covered the rocks blew occasionally some mizzling drops of rain into the faces of the two travellers. The distant prospect of the lake and mountains was hidden by a veil of mist, and when the sun rose above them his presence was only revealed by a whitish light gleaming through the thin watery atmosphere. The only sounds which fell on the ear were the howling of the blast in the caverned sides of the valley, and the melancholy murmuring of the stream as its waves beat against the rugged stones which obstructed its passage. They proceeded along in a straight course till they came to the borders of the lake, where the guide stopped, saying: ‘We must now cross this water.’ Ernest gazed at him a moment, and then said: ‘How can we? We have no boat, and I lack the power to swim for so long a time as it would require to cross this lake.’ No sooner had he uttered these words than a light gale arose which ruffled and agitated the quiet surface of the lake. Presently a tiny skiff appeared gliding over the waves, and in a few minutes reached the bank whereon they stood. The stranger quickly sprang into the bark, and Ernest, though filled with terror at the conviction that he was now in the hands of a supernatural being, felt himself compelled by a strong impulse to follow whither he was led. No sooner were they seated than a large white sail unfurled seemingly of its own accord, and in a few moments they found themselves nearing the opposite shore, so lightly and swiftly this fairy vessel had borne them over the lake.