Emily’s Solo Evening Vigil at the Watch-Tower
Emily often comes alone at evening to this watch-tower, which commands the entire prospect. She leans against its broken walls thinking of Valancourt, unaware that this tower had been almost as frequently his resort since his estrangement from the neighboring château. One evening she lingers until late, sitting on the building’s steps in tranquil melancholy as the landscape’s features fade into twilight.
Emily’s Song of the Evening Hour
As evening deepens and the first pale star appears, Emily personifies the hour in her poem “Song of the Evening Hour.” The verses describe the Evening Hour as the last of the day’s hours, gliding through twilight realms, bearing cooling dews and fragrance, spreading dusky tints across the world, wafting freshening winds, awakening fairy elves, and moving swiftly onward as moonlight silvers the eastern clouds and Day’s crimson fades from the West.
Mysterious Figure Sighting at the Watch-Tower
When the moon rises from the sea, Emily hears sounds she immediately recognizes as the midnight music and voice she had formerly heard. Trembling with awe in her remote and lonely situation, she awaits the approaching sounds but cannot determine their direction. After they cease, a figure emerges from the woods and passes swiftly along the bank before her. Though she sees it clearly, her spirits are so overcome that she observes little, and she leaves with a resolution never to visit alone so late again.
Servants Search for Emily, Count’s Reprimand
As Emily approaches the château, she hears the Count’s servants calling from the woods. When she enters the supper-room where the Count sits with Henri and Blanche, he gently reproaches her with a look that makes her blush for having deserved it. This occurrence recalls the circumstances she witnessed nights before, leaving her scarcely courageous enough to remain alone in her chamber.
Nocturnal Disturbance in Emily’s Chamber
Emily watches late into the night before sinking to uneasy rest. She is awakened by loud, unusual sounds from the gallery adjoining her chamber—distinct groans followed by a dead weight falling violently against her door, threatening to burst it open. Despite her loud calls, no answer comes, though she continues to hear something like low moaning at intervals. Fear renders her immobile until footsteps approach from the gallery’s remote part, and she calls out again until several servants’ voices reach her door, apparently engaged with some circumstance outside.
Maid’s Staircase Apparition Sighting
Annette enters for water and informs Emily that a maid has fainted. When the girl recovers, she recounts seeing an apparition on the second landing-place of the back staircase as she climbed with a low-held lamp. The figure stood briefly in the corner before gliding up the stairs and vanishing at the door of the recently-opened apartment, followed by a hollow sound. Dorothée declares that the devil must have obtained a key to that apartment, as she locked the door herself. The frightened maid runs screaming through the gallery and collapses groaning at Emily’s door.
Dorothée’s Superstitious Past Confessions
Emily gently chides the maid while trying to shame her for her fears, but the girl persists in her account. After the maid departs with the other servants, Dorothée remains with Emily through the night, confessing many past occurrences that have long confirmed her superstitions. She once witnessed a similar appearance on the very same spot, which had made her hesitate when ascending the stairs with Emily and increased her reluctance to open the north apartments. Emily listens attentively without revealing her own opinions, pondering Dorothée’s communications.
Servants Seek Discharge from the Haunted Château
From this night, the servants’ terror grows so excessive that several determine to leave the château and request their discharge. The Count, whatever private beliefs he may hold, conceals them and attempts to reassure them through ridicule and argument. However, fear has rendered their minds inaccessible to reason, and only one servant’s extraordinary courage will prove equal to the challenge.
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