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crazy old staircase, to his apartment for the night. Not much fancying the appearance of the place, and finding no lock upon his door, he fixed a chair behind it; and, after priming his pistols, put them carefully under his pillow. He had not been long in bed when he heard a noise below, as of persons entering the house; and, some time afterwards, was alarmed by the sound of a man’s footsteps on the staircase. He then perceived a light through the crevice of the door, against which the man gently pressed for admittance, but finding some resistance, he thrust it open sufficiently to admit his hand, and with extreme caution removed the chair and entered the apartment.
The Chevalier then saw his host, with a lamp in one hand and a huge knife in the other, approaching the bed on tiptoe. The Chevalier ⟨cocked⟩ his pistols beneath the bed-clothes, that ⟨the⟩ noise of the spring might not be heard. When the man reached the side of the bed, he ⟨held⟩ the light to the Chevalier’s face, who pretended to be in a profound sleep, but contrived ⟨nevertheless⟩ to steal an occasional glance at his ⟨fearful⟩ host. The man soon turned from him, ⟨and⟩, after hanging the lamp on the bed-post, went to the other end of the room and brought ⟨to⟩ the bedside a chair, on which he immediately ⟨mounted⟩, with the tremendous knife still in his ⟨hand⟩. At the very moment that the Chevalier ⟨was⟩ about to start up from the bed and shoot ⟨him⟩, the man, in hurried manner, cut several ⟨enormous⟩ slices from a piece of bacon that was
