Arrived in the next room, both Turlington and Launce resumed their
places among the guests with the same object in view. As a necessary
result of the scene in the boudoir, each had his own special
remonstrance to address to Sir Joseph. Even here, Launce was beforehand
with Turlington. He was the first to get possession of Sir Joseph's
private ear. His complaint took the form of a protest against
Turlington's jealousy, and an appeal for a reconsideration of the
sentence which excluded him from Muswell Hill. Watching them from
a distance, Turlington's suspicious eye detected the appearance of
something unduly confidential in the colloquy between the two. Under
cover of the company, he stole behind them and listened.
The great Bootmann had arrived at that part of the Nightmare Sonata in
which musical sound, produced principally with the left hand, is made to
describe, beyond all possibility of mistake, the rising of the moon in a
country church-yard and a dance of Vampires round a maiden's grave. Sir
Joseph, having no chance against the Vampires in a whisper, was obliged
to raise his voice to make himself audible in answering and comforting
Launce.
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