He had got upon a piece of township road, where each surveyor shuffled through his year of office as best he could, filling up the dangerous holes in summer with great boulder stones that turned up like flitches of bacon in winter. So Sir Moses rolled and rocked in imminent danger of an upset. To add to his misfortunes, he was by no means sure but that he might have to retrace his steps: it was all chance.
There are but two ways of circumventing a hill, either by going round it or over it; and the road, after evading it for some time, at length took a sudden turn to the right, and grappled fairly with its severity. The mare applied herself sedulously to her task, apparently cheered by the increasing lights on the hill. At length she neared them, and the radiant glow of a blacksmith’s shop cheered the drooping spirit of the traveller.
“Holloo, my man!” cried Sir Moses, at length, pulling up before it.
“Holloo!” responded the spark-showering Vulcan from within.
“Is this the way to Lord Lundyfoote’s?” demanded Sir Moses, knowing the weight a nobleman’s name carries in the country.
“Lord Lundyfoote’s!” exclaimed Osmand Hall, pausing in his work; “Lord Lundyfoote’s!” repeated he; “why, where ha’ you come from?”
“Tidswell,” replied Sir Moses, cutting off the former part of the journey.
“Why, what set ye this way?” demanded the dark man, coming to the door with a red-hot horse-shoe on a spike, which was nearly all that distinguished him from the gloom of night; “ye should never ha’ coom’d this way; ye should ha’ gone by Marshfield and Hengrove.”
“Dom it, I said so!” ejaculated the Baronet, nearly stamping the bottom of his gig out with vexation. “However, never mind,” continued he, recollecting himself, “I’m here now, so tell me the best way to proceed.”
This information being at length accorded, Sir Moses proceeded; and the rest of the hill being duly surmounted, the dancing and stationary lights spreading o’er the far-stretching vale now appeared before him, with a clustering constellation, amid many minor stars scattered around, denoting the whereabouts of the castle.