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without a word, he rose and moving over, sat down on the side of the |
bed. The collapse had come, as on former occasion, just as I had |
expected. |
When I was leaving the room, last of our party, he said to me in a |
quiet, well-bred voice:-- |
"You will, I trust, Dr. Seward, do me the justice to bear in mind, later |
on, that I did what I could to convince you to-night." |
CHAPTER XIX |
JONATHAN HARKER'S JOURNAL |
_1 October, 5 a. m._--I went with the party to the search with an easy |
mind, for I think I never saw Mina so absolutely strong and well. I am |
so glad that she consented to hold back and let us men do the work. |
Somehow, it was a dread to me that she was in this fearful business at |
all; but now that her work is done, and that it is due to her energy and |
brains and foresight that the whole story is put together in such a way |
that every point tells, she may well feel that her part is finished, and |
that she can henceforth leave the rest to us. We were, I think, all a |
little upset by the scene with Mr. Renfield. When we came away from his |
room we were silent till we got back to the study. Then Mr. Morris said |
to Dr. Seward:-- |
"Say, Jack, if that man wasn't attempting a bluff, he is about the |
sanest lunatic I ever saw. I'm not sure, but I believe that he had some |
serious purpose, and if he had, it was pretty rough on him not to get a |
chance." Lord Godalming and I were silent, but Dr. Van Helsing added:-- |
"Friend John, you know more of lunatics than I do, and I'm glad of it, |
for I fear that if it had been to me to decide I would before that last |
hysterical outburst have given him free. But we live and learn, and in |
our present task we must take no chance, as my friend Quincey would say. |
All is best as they are." Dr. Seward seemed to answer them both in a |
dreamy kind of way:-- |
"I don't know but that I agree with you. If that man had been an |
ordinary lunatic I would have taken my chance of trusting him; but he |
seems so mixed up with the Count in an indexy kind of way that I am |
afraid of doing anything wrong by helping his fads. I can't forget how |
he prayed with almost equal fervour for a cat, and then tried to tear my |
throat out with his teeth. Besides, he called the Count 'lord and |
master,' and he may want to get out to help him in some diabolical way. |
That horrid thing has the wolves and the rats and his own kind to help |
him, so I suppose he isn't above trying to use a respectable lunatic. He |
certainly did seem earnest, though. I only hope we have done what is |
best. These things, in conjunction with the wild work we have in hand, |
help to unnerve a man." The Professor stepped over, and laying his hand |
on his shoulder, said in his grave, kindly way:-- |
"Friend John, have no fear. We are trying to do our duty in a very sad |
and terrible case; we can only do as we deem best. What else have we to |
hope for, except the pity of the good God?" Lord Godalming had slipped |
away for a few minutes, but now he returned. He held up a little silver |
whistle, as he remarked:-- |
"That old place may be full of rats, and if so, I've got an antidote on |
call." Having passed the wall, we took our way to the house, taking care |
to keep in the shadows of the trees on the lawn when the moonlight shone |
out. When we got to the porch the Professor opened his bag and took out |
a lot of things, which he laid on the step, sorting them into four |
little groups, evidently one for each. Then he spoke:-- |
"My friends, we are going into a terrible danger, and we need arms of |
many kinds. Our enemy is not merely spiritual. Remember that he has the |
strength of twenty men, and that, though our necks or our windpipes are |
of the common kind--and therefore breakable or crushable--his are not |
amenable to mere strength. A stronger man, or a body of men more strong |
in all than him, can at certain times hold him; but they cannot hurt him |
as we can be hurt by him. We must, therefore, guard ourselves from his |
touch. Keep this near your heart"--as he spoke he lifted a little silver |
crucifix and held it out to me, I being nearest to him--"put these |
flowers round your neck"--here he handed to me a wreath of withered |
garlic blossoms--"for other enemies more mundane, this revolver and this |
knife; and for aid in all, these so small electric lamps, which you can |
fasten to your breast; and for all, and above all at the last, this, |
which we must not desecrate needless." This was a portion of Sacred |
Wafer, which he put in an envelope and handed to me. Each of the others |
was similarly equipped. "Now," he said, "friend John, where are the |
skeleton keys? If so that we can open the door, we need not break house |
by the window, as before at Miss Lucy's." |
Dr. Seward tried one or two skeleton keys, his mechanical dexterity as a |
surgeon standing him in good stead. Presently he got one to suit; after |
a little play back and forward the bolt yielded, and, with a rusty |
clang, shot back. We pressed on the door, the rusty hinges creaked, and |
it slowly opened. It was startlingly like the image conveyed to me in |
Dr. Seward's diary of the opening of Miss Westenra's tomb; I fancy that |
the same idea seemed to strike the others, for with one accord they |
shrank back. The Professor was the first to move forward, and stepped |
into the open door. |
"_In manus tuas, Domine!_" he said, crossing himself as he passed over |
the threshold. We closed the door behind us, lest when we should have |
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