Here the ballad was broken off. I asked what it was; but had never answer. For, on a sudden, a summons loud and long sounded upon the Manor door.
“Hallo! What’s this?” cried I. But my brother said nothing; only got from his chair, and stepped to the casement; as I did also. He drew the shutter; and we peered without upon the avenue. ’Twas a wintry and a weird prospect: the moon shone bleak through the scantly falling snow, which was flurried about in drifts of powder on the frozen ground. The tall elms stood gauntly up, the smaller branches of them stirring in sudden movements, like hands and fingers. But at the great door there was a little fat man in the uniform of the captain of a King’s ship. He stood panting, his face fiery red; and kept pummelling with his cane upon the flagstones.
“Why, ’tis the captain of your ship!” said I. “’Tis Captain Skinton!” But, muttering in his teeth, Dick turned and hurried from the room. I followed, to find him at the end of the corridor warily withdrawing the arras. We looked through.
The Captain addressed the serving-man who had opened to him, and was beside himself with passion. He spoke in rapid and high-pitched tones, and with robustious gesticulation. We caught a tail-end: “—that I see Squire Clayton this night!”
“But he’s a-bed, your honour,” says Roger.
“Then wake him! wake him! wake him!” cried the little man; and, stamping by misadventure a gouty foot, he broke into a paroxysm of rage, just as the Squire, our father, came forth on the gallery of the stairs.
“What’s this? What’s this?” says he, looking down in his nightcap.
“What’s this, sir?” cries Skinton, his voice rising shrill, “what’s this, sir? Why, your son, sir ... a conspiracy, sir, a conspiracy aboard my ship, my ship, sir!”
“Roger,” says the Squire, “how came you to admit this neighing rascal? Show him into the stable!”
Hereupon the Captain became perfectly furious; but the Squire returned him word for word, as hot as he gave, so that there fell a very great clamour. And, in the hurly-burly, Dick stole past them into the hall, I following; and so (the door having been left open), out into the night.