away, a hundred things which now I could not do; and here I was with my
boy in a brain-fever, and his life, the most precious life on earth,
hanging in the balance, dependent on whether or not I could get to the
reason of a commonplace ghost-story! I paced about in high wrath, not
seeing what I was to do; for to take Roland away, even if he were able to
travel, would not settle his agitated mind; and I feared even that a
scientific explanation of refracted sound or reverberation, or any other
of the easy certainties with which we elder men are silenced, would have
very little effect upon the boy.

"Cornel," said Jarvis solemnly, "and _she'll_ bear me witness,--the young
gentleman never heard a word from me--no, nor from either groom or
gardener; I'll gie ye my word for that. In the first place, he's no a lad
that invites ye to talk. There are some that are, and some that arena.
Some will draw ye on, till ye've tellt them a' the clatter of the toun,
and a' ye ken, and whiles mair. But Maister Roland, his mind's fu' of his
books. He's aye civil and kind, and a fine lad; but no that sort. And ye
see it's for a' our interest, Cornel, that you should stay at Brentwood.
I took it upon me mysel to pass the word,--'No a syllable to Maister
Roland, nor to the young leddies--no a syllable.' The women-servants,
that have little reason to be out at night, ken little or nothing about
it. And some think it grand to have a ghost so long as they're no in the
way of coming across it. If you had been tellt the story to begin with,
maybe ye would have thought so yourself."

This was true enough, though it did not throw any light upon my
perplexity. If we had heard of it to start with, it is possible that all
the family would have considered the possession of a ghost a distinct
advantage. It is the fashion of the times. We never think what a risk it
is to play with young imaginations, but cry out, in the fashionable