SEWARD'S DIARY 3 October-Let me put down with exactness all that happened, as well as I can remember, since last I made an entryNot a detail that I can recall must be forgottenIn all calmness I must proceed When I came to Renfield's room I found him lying on the floor on his left side in a glittering pool of bloodWhen I went to move him, it became at once apparent that he had received some terrible injuriesThere seemed none of the unity of purpose between the parts of the body which marks even lethargic sanityAs the face was exposed I could see that it was horribly bruised, as though it had been beaten against the floorIndeed it was from the face wounds that the pool of blood originated The attendant who was kneeling beside the body said to me as we turned him over, "I think, sir, his back is brokenSee, both his right arm and leg and the whole side of his face are paralysed How such a thing could have happened puzzled the attendant beyond measureHe seemed quite bewildered, and his brows were gathered in as he said, "I can't understand the two thingsHe could mark his face like that by beating his own head on the floorI saw a young woman do it once at the Eversfield Asylum before anyone could lay hands on herAnd I suppose he might have broken his neck by falling out of bed, if he got in an awkward kinkBut for the life of me I can't imagine how the two things occurredIf his back was broke, he couldn't beat his head, and if his face was like that before the fall out of bed, there would be marks of it I said to him, "Go to DrVan Helsing, and ask him to kindly come here at onceI want him without an instant's delay The man ran off, and within a few minutes the Professor, in his dressing gown and slippers, appearedWhen he saw Renfield on the ground, he looked keenly at him a moment, and then turned to meI think he recognized my thought in my eyes, for he said very quietly, manifestly for the ears of the attendant, "Ah, a sad accident! He will need very careful watching, and much attentionI shall stay with you myself, but I shall first dress myselfIf you will remain I shall in a few minutes join you The patient was now breathing stertorously and it was easy to see that he had suffered some terrible injury Van Helsing returned with extraordinary celerity, bearing with him a surgical caseHe had evidently been thinking and had his mind made up, for almost before he looked at the patient, he whispered to me, "Send the attendant awayWe must be alone with him when he becomes conscious, after the operation I said, "I think that will do now, SimmonsWe have done all that we can at presentYou had better go your round, and DrVan Helsing will operateLet me know instantly if there be anything unusual anywhere The man withdrew, and we went into a strict examination of the patientThe wounds of the face were superficialThe real injury was a depressed fracture of the skull, extending right up through the motor area The Professor thought a moment and said, "We must reduce the pressure and get back to normal conditions, as far as can beThe rapidity of the suffusion shows the terrible nature of his shop injury

George sat with his back to Cassy, and did not see the absorbed expression of her countenance, as he was giving these details At this point in the story, she touched his arm, and, with a face perfectly white with interest, said, ?Do you know the names of the people he bought her of?? ?A man of the name of Simmons, I think, was the principal in the transactionAt least, I think that was the name on the bill of sale ?O, my God!? said Cassy, and fell insensible on the floor of the cabin George was wide awake now, and so was Madame de ThouxThough neither of them could conjecture what was the cause of Cassy?s fainting, still they made all the tumult which is proper in such cases;?George upsetting a wash-pitcher, and breaking two tumblers, in the warmth of his humanity; and various ladies in the cabin, hearing that somebody had fainted, crowded the state-room door, and kept out all the air they possibly could, so that, on the whole, everything was done that could be expected Poor Cassy! when she recovered, turned her face to the wall, and wept and sobbed like a child,?perhaps, mother, you can tell what she was thinking of! Perhaps you cannot,?but she felt as sure, in that hour, that God had had mercy on her, and that she should see her daughter,?as she did, months afterwards,?when?but we anticipate 1 Hamlet, Act I, scene 1, lines 115-116 Chapter 43 Results The rest of our story is soon toldGeorge Shelby, interested, as any other young man might be, by the romance of the incident, no less than by feelings of humanity, was at the pains to send to Cassy the bill of sale of Eliza; whose date and name all corresponded with her own knowledge of facts, and felt no doubt upon her mind as to the identity of her childIt remained now only for her to trace out the path of the fugitives Madame de Thoux and she, thus drawn together by the singular coincidence of their fortunes, proceeded immediately to Canada, and began a tour of inquiry among the stations, where the numerous fugitives from slavery are locatedAt Amherstberg they found the missionary with whom George and Eliza had taken shelter, on their first arrival in Canada; and through him were enabled to trace the family to Montreal George and Eliza had now been five years freeGeorge had found constant occupation in the shop of a worthy machinist, where he had been earning a competent support for his family, which, in the mean time, had been increased by the addition of another daughter Little Harry?a fine bright boy?had been put to a good school, and was making rapid proficiency in knowledge The worthy pastor of the station, in Amherstberg, where George had first landed, was so much interested in the statements of Madame de Thoux and Cassy, that he yielded to the solicitations of the former, to accompany them to Montreal, in their search,?she bearing all the expense of the expedition The scene now changes to a small, neat tenement, in the outskirts of Montreal; the time, eveningA cheerful fire blazes on the hearth; a tea-table, covered with a snowy cloth, stands prepared for the evening mealIn one corner of the room was a table covered with a green cloth, where was an open writing-desk, pens, paper, and over it a shelf of well-selected books This was George?s studyThe same zeal for self-improvement, which led him to steal the much coveted arts of reading and writing, amid all the toil and discouragements of his early life, still led him to devote all his leisure time to self-cultivation At this present time, he is seated at the table, making notes from a volume of the family library he has been reading ?Come, George,? says Eliza, ?you?ve been gone all dayDo put down that book, and let?s talk, while I?m getting tea,?do And little Eliza seconds the effort, by toddling up to her father, and trying to pull the book out of his hand, and install herself on his knee as a substitute ?O, you little witch!? says George, yielding, as, in such circumstances, man always must ?That?s right,? says Eliza, as she begins to cut a loaf of breadA little older she looks; her form a little fuller; her air more matronly than of yore; but evidently contented and happy as woman need be ?Harry, my boy, how did you come on in that sum, today?? says George, as he laid his land on his son?s head Harry has lost his long curls; but he can never lose those eyes and eyelashes, and that fine, bold brow, that flushes with triumph, as he answers, ?I did it, every bit of it, myself, father; and nobody helped me!? ?That?s right,? says his father; ?depend on yourself, my sonYou have a better chance than ever your poor father had At this moment, there is a rap at the door; and Eliza goes and opens itThe delighted??Why! this you???calls up her husband; and the good pastor of Amherstberg is welcomedThere are two more women with him, and Eliza asks them to sit down Now, if the truth must be told, the honest pastor had arranged a little programme, according to which this affair was to develop itself; and, on the way up, all had very cautiously and prudently exhorted each other not to let things out, except according to previous arrangement What was the good man?s consternation, therefore, just as he had motioned to the ladies to be seated, and was taking out his pocket-handkerchief to wipe his mouth, so as to proceed to his introductory speech in good order, when Madame de Thoux upset the whole plan, by throwing her arms around George?s neck, and letting all out at once, by saying, ?O, George! don?t you know me? I?m your sister Emily Cassy had seated herself more composedly, and would have carried on her part very well, had not little Eliza suddenly appeared before her in exact shape and form, every outline and curl, just as her daughter was when she saw her lastThe little thing peered up in her face; and Cassy caught her up in her arms, pressed her to her bosom, saying, what, at the moment she really believed, ?Darling, I?m your mother!? In fact, it was a troublesome matter to do up exactly in proper order; but the good pastor, at last, succeeded in getting everybody quiet, and delivering the speech with which he had intended to open the exercises; and in which, at last, he succeeded so well, that his whole audience were sobbing about him in a manner that ought to satisfy any orator, ancient or modern They knelt together, and the good man prayed,?for there are some feelings so agitated and tumultuous, that they can find rest only by being poured into the bosom of Almighty love,?and then, rising up, the new-found family embraced each other, with a holy trust in Him, who from such peril and dangers, and by such unknown ways, had brought them together The note-book of a missionary, among the Canadian fugitives, contains truth stranger than shop fiction

George sat with his back to Cassy, and did not see the absorbed expression of her countenance, as he was giving these details At this point in the story, she touched his arm, and, with a face perfectly white with interest, said, ?Do you know the names of the people he bought her of?? ?A man of the name of Simmons, I think, was the principal in the transactionAt least, I think that was the name on the bill of sale ?O, my God!? said Cassy, and fell insensible on the floor of the cabin George was wide awake now, and so was Madame de ThouxThough neither of them could conjecture what was the cause of Cassy?s fainting, still they made all the tumult which is proper in such cases;?George upsetting a wash-pitcher, and breaking two tumblers, in the warmth of his humanity; and various ladies in the cabin, hearing that somebody had fainted, crowded the state-room door, and kept out all the air they possibly could, so that, on the whole, everything was done that could be expected Poor Cassy! when she recovered, turned her face to the wall, and wept and sobbed like a child,?perhaps, mother, you can tell what she was thinking of! Perhaps you cannot,?but she felt as sure, in that hour, that God had had mercy on her, and that she should see her daughter,?as she did, months afterwards,?when?but we anticipate 1 Hamlet, Act I, scene 1, lines 115-116 Chapter 43 Results The rest of our story is soon toldGeorge Shelby, interested, as any other young man might be, by the romance of the incident, no less than by feelings of humanity, was at the pains to send to Cassy the bill of sale of Eliza; whose date and name all corresponded with her own knowledge of facts, and felt no doubt upon her mind as to the identity of her childIt remained now only for her to trace out the path of the fugitives Madame de Thoux and she, thus drawn together by the singular coincidence of their fortunes, proceeded immediately to Canada, and began a tour of inquiry among the stations, where the numerous fugitives from slavery are locatedAt Amherstberg they found the missionary with whom George and Eliza had taken shelter, on their first arrival in Canada; and through him were enabled to trace the family to Montreal George and Eliza had now been five years freeGeorge had found constant occupation in the shop of a worthy machinist, where he had been earning a competent support for his family, which, in the mean time, had been increased by the addition of another daughter Little Harry?a fine bright boy?had been put to a good school, and was making rapid proficiency in knowledge The worthy pastor of the station, in Amherstberg, where George had first landed, was so much interested in the statements of Madame de Thoux and Cassy, that he yielded to the solicitations of the former, to accompany them to Montreal, in their search,?she bearing all the expense of the expedition The scene now changes to a small, neat tenement, in the outskirts of Montreal; the time, eveningA cheerful fire blazes on the hearth; a tea-table, covered with a snowy cloth, stands prepared for the evening mealIn one corner of the room was a table covered with a green cloth, where was an open writing-desk, pens, paper, and over it a shelf of well-selected books This was George?s studyThe same zeal for self-improvement, which led him to steal the much coveted arts of reading and writing, amid all the toil and discouragements of his early life, still led him to devote all his leisure time to self-cultivation At this present time, he is seated at the table, making notes from a volume of the family library he has been reading ?Come, George,? says Eliza, ?you?ve been gone all dayDo put down that book, and let?s talk, while I?m getting tea,?do And little Eliza seconds the effort, by toddling up to her father, and trying to pull the book out of his hand, and install herself on his knee as a substitute ?O, you little witch!? says George, yielding, as, in such circumstances, man always must ?That?s right,? says Eliza, as she begins to cut a loaf of breadA little older she looks; her form a little fuller; her air more matronly than of yore; but evidently contented and happy as woman need be ?Harry, my boy, how did you come on in that sum, today?? says George, as he laid his land on his son?s head Harry has lost his long curls; but he can never lose those eyes and eyelashes, and that fine, bold brow, that flushes with triumph, as he answers, ?I did it, every bit of it, myself, father; and nobody helped me!? ?That?s right,? says his father; ?depend on yourself, my sonYou have a better chance than ever your poor father had At this moment, there is a rap at the door; and Eliza goes and opens itThe delighted??Why! this you???calls up her husband; and the good pastor of Amherstberg is welcomedThere are two more women with him, and Eliza asks them to sit down Now, if the truth must be told, the honest pastor had arranged a little programme, according to which this affair was to develop itself; and, on the way up, all had very cautiously and prudently exhorted each other not to let things out, except according to previous arrangement What was the good man?s consternation, therefore, just as he had motioned to the ladies to be seated, and was taking out his pocket-handkerchief to wipe his mouth, so as to proceed to his introductory speech in good order, when Madame de Thoux upset the whole plan, by throwing her arms around George?s neck, and letting all out at once, by saying, ?O, George! don?t you know me? I?m your sister Emily Cassy had seated herself more composedly, and would have carried on her part very well, had not little Eliza suddenly appeared before her in exact shape and form, every outline and curl, just as her daughter was when she saw her lastThe little thing peered up in her face; and Cassy caught her up in her arms, pressed her to her bosom, saying, what, at the moment she really believed, ?Darling, I?m your mother!? In fact, it was a troublesome matter to do up exactly in proper order; but the good pastor, at last, succeeded in getting everybody quiet, and delivering the speech with which he had intended to open the exercises; and in which, at last, he succeeded so well, that his whole audience were sobbing about him in a manner that ought to satisfy any orator, ancient or modern They knelt together, and the good man prayed,?for there are some feelings so agitated and tumultuous, that they can find rest only by being poured into the bosom of Almighty love,?and then, rising up, the new-found family embraced each other, with a holy trust in Him, who from such peril and dangers, and by such unknown ways, had brought them together The note-book of a missionary, among the Canadian fugitives, contains truth stranger than shop fiction

So we shall, if we have not yet catch him and destroy him, drive him to bay in some place where the catching and the destroying shall be, in time, sure Here I started up for I could not contain myself at the thought that the minutes and seconds so preciously laden with Mina's life and happiness were flying from us, since whilst we talked action was impossibleBut Van Helsing held up his hand warningly "Nay, friend Jonathan," he said, "in this, the quickest way home is the longest way, so your proverb sayWe shall all act and act with desperate quick, when the time has comeBut think, in all probable the key of the situation is in that house in PiccadillyThe Count may have many houses which he has boughtOf them he will have deeds of purchase, keys and other thingsHe will have paper that he write onHe will have his book of chequesThere are many belongings that he must have somewhereWhy not in this place so central, so quiet, where he come and go by the front or the back at all hours, when in the very vast of the traffic there is none to noticeWe shall go there and search that houseAnd when we learn what it holds, then we do what our friend Arthur call, in his phrases of hunt 'stop the earths' and so we run down our old fox, so? Is it not?" "Then let us come at once," I cried, "we are wasting the precious, precious time!" The Professor did not move, but simply said, "And how are we to get into that house in Piccadilly?" "Any way!" I cried"We shall break in if need be "And your police? Where will they be, and what will they say?" I was staggered, but I knew that if he wished to delay he had a good reason for itSo I said, as quietly as I could, "Don't wait more than need beYou know, I am sure, what torture I am in "Ah, my child, that I doAnd indeed there is no wish of me to add to your anguishBut just think, what can we do, until all the world be at movementThen will come our timeI have thought and thought, and it seems to me that the simplest way is the best of allNow we wish to get into the house, but we have no keyIs it not so?" I nodded "Now suppose that you were, in truth, the owner of that house, and could not still get inAnd think there was to you no conscience of the housebreaker, what would you do?" "I should get a respectable locksmith, and set him to work to pick the lock for me "And your police, they would interfere, would they not?" "Oh no! Not if they knew the man was properly employed "Then," he looked at me as keenly as he spoke, "all that is in doubt is the conscience of the employer, and the belief of your policemen as to whether or not that employer has a good conscience or a bad oneYour police must indeed be zealous men and clever, oh so clever, in reading the heart, that they trouble themselves in such matterNo, no, my friend Jonathan, you go take the lock off a hundred empty houses in this your London, or of any city in the world, and if you do it as such things are rightly done, and at the time such things are rightly done, no one will interfereI have read of a gentleman who owned a so fine house in London, and when he went for months of summer to Switzerland and lock up his house, some burglar come and broke window at back and got inThen he went and made open the shutters in front and walk out and in through the door, before the very eyes of the policeThen he have an auction in that house, and advertise it, and put up big noticeAnd when the day come he sell off by a great auctioneer all the goods of that other man who own themThen he go to a builder, and he sell him that house, making an agreement that he pull it down and take all away within a certain timeAnd your police and other authority help him all they canAnd when that owner come back from his holiday in Switzerland he find only an empty hole where his house had beenThis was all done en regle, and in our work we shall be en regle tooWe shall not go so early that the policemen who have then little to think of, shall deem it shop strange

In fear I turned to the ProfessorTo my consternation, however, he was not thereAn instant later, I saw him below meRound the rock he had drawn a circle, such as we had found shelter in last night When he had completed it he stood beside me again saying, "At least you shall be safe here from him!" He took the glasses from me, and at the next lull of the snow swept the whole space below us"See," he said, "they come quicklyThey are flogging the horses, and galloping as hard as they can He paused and went on in a hollow voice, "They are racing for the sunsetGod's will be done!" Down came another blinding rush of driving snow, and the whole landscape was blotted outIt soon passed, however, and once more his glasses were fixed on the plain Then came a sudden cry, "Look! Look! Look! See, two horsemen follow fast, coming up from the southIt must be Quincey and JohnLook before the snow blots it all out!" I took it and lookedThe two men might be DrI knew at all events that neither of them was JonathanAt the same time I knew that Jonathan was not far offLooking around I saw on the north side of the coming party two other men, riding at breakneck speedOne of them I knew was Jonathan, and the other I took, of course, to be Lord GodalmingThey too, were pursuing the party with the cartWhen I told the Professor he shouted in glee like a schoolboy, and after looking intently till a snow fall made sight impossible, he laid his Winchester rifle ready for use against the boulder at the opening of our shelter "They are all converging," he said"When the time comes we shall have gypsies on all sides I got out my revolver ready to hand, for whilst we were speaking the howling of wolves came louder and closerWhen the snow storm abated a moment we looked againIt was strange to see the snow falling in such heavy flakes close to us, and beyond, the sun shining more and more brightly as it sank down towards the far mountain topsSweeping the glass all around us I could see here and there dots moving singly and in twos and threes and larger numbersThe wolves were gathering for their prey Every instant seemed an age whilst we waitedThe wind came now in fierce bursts, and the snow was driven with fury as it swept upon us in circling eddiesAt times we could not see an arm's length before usBut at others, as the hollow sounding wind swept by us, it seemed to clear the air space around us so that we could see afar offWe had of late been so accustomed to watch for sunrise and sunset, that we knew with fair accuracy when it would beAnd we knew that before long the sun would setIt was hard to believe that by our watches it was less than an hour that we waited in that rocky shelter before the various bodies began to converge close upon usThe wind came now with fiercer and more bitter sweeps, and more steadily from the northIt seemingly had driven the snow clouds from us, for with only occasional bursts, the snow fellWe could distinguish clearly the individuals of each party, the pursued and the pursuersStrangely enough those pursued did not seem to realize, or at least to care, that they were pursuedThey seemed, however, to hasten with redoubled speed as the sun dropped lower and lower on the mountain tops Closer and closer they shop drew