But Leoline had
something of Miranda's courage, as well as her looks and temper;
so she tried to feel as brave as possible, and not think of her
unpleasant predicament while there remained anything else to
think about. Perhaps she might escape, too; and, as this notion
struck her, she looked with eager anxiety, not unmixed with
curiosity, at the place where she was. By this time, her eyes
had been accustomed to the light, which proceeded from a great
antique lamp of bronze, pendent by a brass chain from the
ceiling; and she saw she was in a moderately sized and by no
means splendid room. But what struck her most was, that
everything had a look of age about it, from the glittering oak
beams of the floor to the faded ghostly hangings on the wall.
There was a bed at one end - a great spectral ark of a thing,
like a mausoleum, with drapery as old and spectral as that on the
walls, and in which she could no more have lain than in a moth-
eaten shroud. The seats and the one table the room held were of
the same ancient and weird pattern, and the sight of them gave
her a shivering sensation not unlike an ague chill. There was
but one door - a huge structure, with shining panels, securely
locked; and escape from that quarter was utterly out of the
question.
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