My heart sank lower and lower.

I began to lose sight of the lean, long-coated figure, and at length could no more hear his swishing stride through the heather.
But then I heard instead the slow-flapping wings of the raven; and, at intervals, now a firefly, now a gleaming butterfly rose into the rayless air.
By and by the moon appeared, slow crossing the far horizon.
"You are tired, are you not, Mr.Vane ?" said the raven, alighting on a stone.

"You must make acquaintance with the horse that will carry you in the morning!" He gave a strange whistle through his long black beak.

A spot appeared on the face of the half-risen moon.

To my ears came presently the drumming of swift, soft-galloping hoofs, and in a minute or two, out of the very disc of the moon, low-thundered the terrible horse.