About half-way down , the wind sprang up in a clap and shook the tower , and died again ; the rain followed ; and before I had reached the ground level it fell in buckets . I put out my head into the storm , and looked along towards the kitchen . The door , which I had shut behind me when I left , now stood open , and shed a little glimmer of light ; and I thought I could see a figure standing in the rain , quite still , like a man hearkening . And then there came a blinding flash , which showed me my uncle plainly , just where I had fancied him to stand ; and hard upon the heels of it , a great tow-row of thunder . Now , whether my uncle thought the crash to be the sound of my fall , or whether he heard in it God 's voice denouncing murder , I will leave you to guess . Certain it is , at least , that he was seized on by a kind of panic fear , and that he ran into the house and left the door open behind him . I followed as softly as I could , and , coming unheard into the kitchen , stood and watched him . He had found time to open the corner cupboard and bring out a great case bottle of aqua vitae , and now sat with his back towards me at the table . Ever and again he would be seized with a fit of deadly shuddering and groan aloud , and carrying the bottle to his lips , drink down the raw spirits by the mouthful . I stepped forward , came close behind him where he sat , and suddenly clapping my two hands down upon his shoulders -- `` Ah ! '' cried I. My uncle gave a kind of broken cry like a sheep 's bleat , flung up his arms , and tumbled to the floor like a dead man . I was somewhat shocked at this ; but I had myself to look to first of all , and did not hesitate to let him lie as he had fallen . The keys were hanging in the cupboard ; and it was my design to furnish myself with arms before my uncle should come again to his senses and the power of devising evil . In the cupboard were a few bottles , some apparently of medicine ; a great many bills and other papers , which I should willingly enough have rummaged , had I had the time ; and a few necessaries that were nothing to my purpose . Thence I turned to the chests . The first was full of meal ; the second of moneybags and papers tied into sheaves ; in the third , with many other things -LRB- and these for the most part clothes -RRB- I found a rusty , ugly-looking Highland dirk without the scabbard . This , then , I concealed inside my waistcoat , and turned to my uncle . He lay as he had fallen , all huddled , with one knee up and one arm sprawling abroad ; his face had a strange colour of blue , and he seemed to have ceased breathing . Fear came on me that he was dead ; then I got water and dashed it in his face ; and with that he seemed to come a little to himself , working his mouth and fluttering his eyelids . At last he looked up and saw me , and there came into his eyes a terror that was not of this world .
`` Come , XXXXX , '' said I ; `` sit up . ''
come coming concealed devising died followed guess ran sat thought