After this the wholeship's company went ashore, except one left in charge, and they wanderedabout for hours, yet saw nothing more. As night came on they made a fireat the base of a fallen oak, near the shore, and lay around it, talking,and smoking the lately discovered weed, tobacco; when suddenly they heardloud noises from the direction of the castle and then all over the island,which frightened them so that they went on board the sloop and stayed allnight.The next morning they saw a dignified, elderly gentleman with ten unarmedfollowers coming down towards the shore. Hailing the sloop, the oldergentleman, speaking Gaelic, asked who and whence they were, and beingtold, invited them ashore as his guests. They went on shore, well armed;and he embraced them one by one, telling them that they were the happiestsight that island had seen for hundreds of years; that it was calledHy-Brasail or O-Brazile; that his ancestors had been princes of it, butFor many years it had been taken possession of by enchanters, who kept italmost always invisible, so that no ship came there; and that for the samereason he and his friends were rendered unable to answer the sailors, evenwhen they knocked at the door; and that the enchantment must remain untila fire was kindled on the island by good Christians. This had been donethe night before, and the terrible noises which they had heard were fromthe powers of darkness, which had now left the island forever.
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