I was not, on ordinary occasions, destitute of equanimity; but perhaps
the imagination of man is naturally abhorrent of death, until tutored
into indifference by habit. Every circumstance combined to fill me with
shuddering and panic. For a while, I was enabled to endure my situation
by the exertions of my reason. That the lifeless remains of a human
being are powerless to injure or benefit, I was thoroughly persuaded. I
summoned this belief to my aid, and was able, if not to subdue, yet to
curb, my fears. I listened to catch the sound of the returning footsteps
of Welbeck, and hoped that every new moment would terminate my solitude.

No signal of his coming was afforded. At length it occurred to me that
Welbeck had gone with no intention to return; that his malice had
seduced me hither to encounter the consequences of his deed. He had fled
and barred every door behind him. This suspicion may well be supposed to
overpower my courage, and to call forth desperate efforts for my
deliverance.

I extended my hands and went forward. I had been too little attentive to
the situation and direction of these vaults and passages, to go forward
with undeviating accuracy. My fears likewise tended to confuse my
perceptions and bewilder my steps. Notwithstanding the danger of
encountering obstructions, I rushed towards the entrance with
precipitation.

My temerity was quickly punished. In a moment, I was repelled by a
jutting angle of the wall, with such force that I staggered backward and
fell. The blow was stunning, and, when I recovered my senses, I
perceived that a torrent of blood was gushing from my nostrils. My
clothes were moistened with this unwelcome effusion, and I could not but
reflect on the hazard which I should incur by being detected in this