I
too listened eagerly--intensely; my senses sharpened to the keenest
perception of sound.
The moan of the sea came on incessantly as before; no other sound could
be distinguished. Again I tried to urge him forward; but the attempt was
fruitless. I now fancied that there might be some dangerous gulf or
precipice just at his feet, and that the faithful animal was unwilling
to plunge himself and his rider into immediate destruction. I
dismounted, and with the bridal at arm's length, carefully stepped
forward a few paces, but I could find no intimation of danger; the same
deep and level bed of sand seemed to continue onwards, without any
shelving or declivity whatever. Was the animal possessed? He still
refused to proceed, but the cause remained inscrutable. A sharp and
hasty snort, with a snuffing of the wind in the direction of the sea,
now pointed out the quarter towards which his attention was excited. His
terror seemed to increase, and with it my own. I knew not what to
anticipate. He evidently began to tremble, and again I listened. Fancy
plays strange freaks, or I could have imagined there was something
audible through the heavy booming of the sea--a more distinct, and as it
were, articulate sound--though manifestly at a considerable distance.
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