THE  ANTIQUAUY.  281

—  vary  well ;  deu  comes  one  liendd,  as  we  call
Ernhold,  winding  his  lioru;  and  den  come  de  great
Peolphan,  called  the  Mighty  Hunter  of  de  North,
mounted  on  hims  black  steed  — but  you  would  not
care  to  see  all  this  ?" ^

"  Wliy,I  am  not  afraid,"  answered  the  poor  baro-
net," if  —  that  is  —  does  anything  —  any  great  mis-
chiefs—  happen  on  such  occasions?"

"  Bah,  mischiefs  ?  No !  sometimes  if  de  circle
be  no  quite  just,  or  de  beholder  be  de  frightened
coward,  and  not  hold  de  sword  firm  and  straight
towards  him,  de  Great  Hunter  will  take  his  advan-
tage, and  drag  him  exorcist  out  of  de  circle  and
throttle  him.     Dat  does  happens.  "

"  Well  then,  Dousterswivel,  with  every  confi-
dence in  my  courage  and  your  skill,  we  will  dis-
pense with  this  apparition,  and  go  on  to  the
business  of  the  night.  "

"  With  all  mine  heart, —  it  is  just  one  thing  to
me;  and  now  it  is  de  time, —  hold  you  de  sword
till  I  kindle  de  little  what  you  call  chip. "

Dousterswivel  accordingly  set  fire  to  a  little  pile
of  chips,  touched  and  prepared  with  some  bitumi-
nous substance  to  make  them  burn  fiercely ;    and

1  A  great  deal  of  stuff  to  the  same  purpose  with  that  ]ilaeed  in
the  moutli  of  the  German  adept  may  be  found  in  Keginald  Scot'.s
"Discovery  of  Witchcraft.  Third  Edition,  folio,  Loudon,  1005."
The  appendix  is  entitled,  "  An  Excellent  Discourse  of  tlie
Nature  and  Substance  of  Devils  and  Spirits,  in  two  IJooks  ,  tlie
First  by  the  aforesaid  author  (Keginald  Scot),  the  Second  now
added  in  this  Third  Edition  as  succedaneous  to  the  former,  and
conducing  to  the  completing  of  the  whole  work."  This  Second
Book,  though  stated  as  succedaneous  to  the  first,  is,  in  fact,  en-
tirely at  variance  with  it ;  for  the  work  of  Reginald  Scot  is  a  com-
pilation of  the  absurd  and  superstitious  ideas  concerning  witches
so  generally  entertained  at  the  time,  and  the  pretended  conclusion
is  a  serious  treatise  on  the  various  means  of  conjuring  astral
spirits.
