The Mysteries of Udolpho

'No,' answered Ugo, 'he crowed as loud as the best of them in the midst

of it all. There he was roaring out in the hottest fire I have seen this

many a day! I said that some of them would have a hit at the old fellow,

but he escaped, and the tower too.'

The road winding round the base of a mountain, they now came within view

of the castle, which was shewn in the perspective of the valley by a

gleam of moon-shine, and then vanished in shade; while even a transient

view of it had awakened the poignancy of Emily's feelings. Its massy and

gloomy walls gave her terrible ideas of imprisonment and suffering:

yet, as she advanced, some degree of hope mingled with her terror; for,

though this was certainly the residence of Montoni, it was possibly,

also, that of Valancourt, and she could not approach a place, where he

might be, without experiencing somewhat of the joy of hope.

They continued to wind along the valley, and, soon after, she saw again

the old walls and moon-lit towers, rising over the woods: the strong

rays enabled her, also, to perceive the ravages, which the siege had

made,--with the broken walls, and shattered battlements, for they were

now at the foot of the steep, on which Udolpho stood. Massy fragments

had rolled down among the woods, through which the travellers now began

to ascend, and there mingled with the loose earth, and pieces of rock

they had brought with them. The woods, too, had suffered much from the

batteries above, for here the enemy had endeavoured to screen themselves

from the fire of the ramparts. Many noble trees were levelled with the

ground, and others, to a wide extent, were entirely stripped of their

upper branches. 'We had better dismount,' said Ugo, 'and lead the mules

up the hill, or we shall get into some of the holes, which the balls

have left. Here are plenty of them. Give me the torch,' continued Ugo,

after they had dismounted, 'and take care you don't stumble over any

thing, that lies in your way, for the ground is not yet cleared of the

enemy.' 'How!' exclaimed Emily, 'are any of the enemy here, then?'

'Nay, I don't know for that, now,' he replied, 'but when I came away I

saw one or two of them lying under the trees.' A

s they proceeded, the torch threw a gloomy light upon the ground, and

far among the recesses of the woods, and Emily feared to look forward,

lest some object of horror should meet her eye. The path was often

strewn with broken heads of arrows, and with shattered remains of

armour, such as at that period was mingled with the lighter dress of the

soldiers. 'Bring the light hither,' said Bertrand, 'I have stumbled over

something, that rattles loud enough.' Ugo holding up the torch, they

perceived a steel breastplate on the ground, which Bertrand raised, and

they saw, that it was pierced through, and that the lining was entirely

covered with blood; but upon Emily's earnest entreaties, that they would

proceed, Bertrand, uttering some joke upon the unfortunate person, to

whom it had belonged, threw it hard upon the ground, and they passed on.