Old L'Amour grew cross when we went into them, although
we could see nothing; and Milly was afraid to open the windows--not that
any Bluebeard revelations were apprehended, but simply because she knew
that Uncle Silas's order was that things should be left undisturbed; and
this boisterous spirit stood in awe of him to a degree which his gentle
manners and apparent quietude rendered quite surprising.
There were in this house, what certainly did not exist at Knowl, and what
I have never observed, thought they may possibly be found in other old
houses--I mean, here and there, very high hatches, which we could only
peep over by jumping in the air. They crossed the long corridors and great
galleries; and several of them were turned across and locked, so as to
intercept the passage, and interrupt our explorations.
Milly, however, knew a queer little, very steep and dark back stair, which
reached the upper floor; so she and I mounted, and made a long ramble
through rooms much lower and ruder in finish than the lordly chambers we
had left below. These commanded various views of the beautiful though
neglected grounds; but on crossing a gallery we entered suddenly a chamber,
which looked into a small and dismal quadrangle, formed by the inner walls
of this great house, and of course designed only by the architect to afford
the needful light and air to portions of the structure.
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