"
"God's law says nought of that," said the female; "I have only read
there, that thou shall not kill. But I have neither time nor
inclination to preach to you--you will find enough of fighting here if
you like it, and well if it come not to seek you when you are least
prepared. Farewell for the present--the char-woman will execute your
commands for your meals."
She left the room, just as Nigel, provoked at her assuming a superior
tone of judgment and of censure, was about to be so superfluous as to
enter into a dispute with an old pawnbroker's daughter on the subject
of the point of honour. He smiled at himself for the folly into which
the spirit of self-vindication had so nearly hurried him.
Lord Glenvarloch then applied to old Deborah the char-woman, by whose
intermediation he was provided with a tolerably decent dinner; and the
only embarrassment which he experienced, was from the almost forcible
entry of the old dotard his landlord, who insisted upon giving his
assistance at laying the cloth. Nigel had some difficulty to prevent
him from displacing his arms and some papers which were lying on a
small table at which he had been sitting; and nothing short of a stern
and positive injunction to the contrary could compel him to use
another board (though there were two in the room) for the purpose of
laying the cloth.
Having at length obliged him to relinquish his purpose, he could not
help observing that the eyes of the old dotard seemed still anxiously
fixed upon the small table on which lay his sword and pistols; and
that, amidst all the little duties which he seemed officiously anxious
to render to his guest, he took every opportunity of looking towards
and approaching these objects of his attention.
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