me, my love, he's not injured. We'll go and see him after breakfast, shall we? Have you kissed me this morning? I think you did," she added, as he kissed her again. "God bless you!"
They then commenced breakfast, and freely conversed on the subject which had set even conjecture at defiance; but before they had finished, their reverend friend called, impatient to communicate all he had heard and seen.
"I have, my dear madam, a tale of horror to tell," said he; but on the instant Aunt Eleanor raised her hand to enjoin silence, fearing that Sylvester, whom she fondly loved, would by any such tale be distressed.
"Have the people in the village then seen the ghost again?" she enquired.
"They have," replied the reverend gentleman.
"Then, for goodness sake, do not tell us any more about it—Sylvester, my dear, you will have another egg?"
"Not any more; I have had quite sufficient?"
"Then go, my love, and look at the horse. I know that you'll find him uninjured. And, Sylvester, dear, will you do me the favour to take the pony, and leave an order for me at the grocer's?"
"Certainly, aunt."
"There's a dear."
She then wrote an order, and Sylvester withdrew; and the moment he had done so, she became extremely anxious to hear her reverend friend's "tale of horror."
"My dear madam," said he, on being urged to proceed, "I scarcely know how to explain to you what has occurred; but let me, in the first place inform you, that a spectre on horseback was seen by the people of the village last night."
"A spectre on horseback! The horse was mine. It was, therefore, at least a real horse, and I should infer, from the way in which the animal has been goaded, that the rider was a real man."
"No, my dear madam, I am constrained to believe that the spectre which appeared on that horse was the same as that which I saw about three o'clock in your parlour."
"That which you saw! Good heavens! you amaze me! If you have seen a spectre, there is something in it, indeed! But explain, my dear sir, pray explain."
"About three o'clock this morning," resumed the reverend gentleman, with an expression of intensity, "as Jones and I were sitting near the fire, I heard the gate close, and immediately afterwards footsteps coming slowly up the path. Well, thinking it advisable to wait until some attempt were made to force the outer door, we kept our seats, but in an instant we saw the handle of the parlour door turn, and a tall figure clad in white entered the room."
"Good heavens!" energetically exclaimed Aunt Eleanor.
"I do not mean to say," pursued the reverend gentleman, "that I was not awed by the presence of this spirit: I do not mean to say that I did not experience an unusual tremor when it appeared; but I kept
