Isaid,’No;youstopathome,andlookafterthehouseandtheparish,andI’llbringthechildback。’Youshallhaveyouroldbedroom,Valeria,withthewhitecurtains,youknow,loopedupwithblue!WewillreturntotheVicarage(ifyoucangetupintime)bythenine—fortytrainto—morrowmorning。"
ReturntotheVicarage!HowcouldIdothat?HowcouldIhopetogainwhatwasnowtheoneobjectofmyexistenceifIburiedmyselfinaremotenorth—countryvillage?ItwassimplyimpossibleformetoaccompanyDoctorStarkweatheronhisreturntohisownhouse。
"Ithankyou,uncle,withallmyheart,"Isaid。"ButIamafraidIcan’tleaveLondonforthepresent。"
"Youcan’tleaveLondonforthepresent?"herepeated。"Whatdoesthegirlmean,Mr。Benjamin?"Benjaminevadedadirectreply。
"Sheiskindlywelcomehere,DoctorStarkweather,"hesaid,"aslongasshechoosestostaywithme。"
"That’snoanswer,"retortedmyuncle,inhisrough—and—readyway。Heturnedtome。"WhatistheretokeepyouinLondon?"heasked。"YouusedtohateLondon。Isupposethereissomereason?"
ItwasonlyduetomygoodguardianandfriendthatIshouldtakehimintomyconfidencesoonerorlater。Therewasnohelpforitbuttorousemycourage,andtellhimfranklywhatIhaditinmymindtodo。Thevicarlistenedinbreathlessdismay。HeturnedtoBenjamin,withdistressaswellassurpriseinhisface,whenI
haddone。
"Godhelpher!"criedtheworthyman。"Thepoorthing’stroubleshaveturnedherbrain!"
"Ithoughtyouwoulddisapproveofit,sir,"saidBenjamin,inhismildandmoderateway。"IconfessIdisapproveofitmyself。"
"’Disapproveofit’isn’ttheword,"retortedthevicar。"Don’tputitinthatfeebleway,ifyouplease。Anactofmadness——that’swhatitis,ifshereallymeanwhatshesays。"Heturnedmyway,andlookedasheusedtolookattheafternoonservicewhenhewascatechisinganobstinatechild。"Youdon’tmeanit,"hesaid,"doyou?"
"Iamsorrytoforfeityourgoodopinion,uncle,"Ireplied。"ButImustownthatIdocertainlymeanit。"
"InplainEnglish,"retortedthevicar,"youareconceitedenoughtothinkthatyoucansucceedwherethegreatestlawyersinScotlandhavefailed。_They_couldn’tprovethisman’sinnocence,allworkingtogether。And_you_aregoingtoproveitsingle—handed?Uponmyword,youareawonderfulwoman,"criedmyuncle,suddenlydescendingfromindignationtoirony。"Mayaplaincountryparson,whoisn’tusedtolawyersinpetticoats,bepermittedtoaskhowyoumeantodoit?"
"ImeantobeginbyreadingtheTrial,uncle。"
"Nicereadingforayoungwoman!YouwillbewantingabatchofnastyFrenchnovelsnext。Well,andwhenyouhavereadtheTrial——whatthen?Haveyouthoughtofthat?"
"Yes,uncle;Ihavethoughtofthat。Ishallfirsttrytoformsomeconclusion(afterreadingtheTrial)astotheguiltypersonwhoreallycommittedthecrime。ThenIshallmakeoutalistofthewitnesseswhospokeinmyhusband’sdefense。Ishallgotothosewitnesses,andtellthemwhoIamandwhatIwant。Ishallaskallsortsofquestionswhichgravelawyersmightthinkitbeneaththeirdignitytoput。Ishallbeguided,inwhatIdonext,bytheanswersIreceive。AndIshallnotbediscouraged,nomatterwhatdifficultiesarethrowninmyway。Thosearemyplans,uncle,sofarasIknowthemnow。"
ThevicarandBenjaminlookedateachotherasiftheydoubtedtheevidenceoftheirownsenses。Thevicarspoke。
"Doyoumeantotellme,"hesaid,"thatyouaregoingroamingaboutthecountrytothrowyourselfonthemercyofstrangers,andtoriskwhateverroughreceptionyoumaygetinthecourseofyourtravels?You!Ayoungwoman!Desertedbyyourhusband!Withnobodytoprotectyou!Mr。Benjamin,doyouhearher?Andcanyoubelieveyourears?IdeclaretoHeaven_I_don’tknowwhetherI
amawakeordreaming。Lookather——justlookather!Thereshesitsascoolandeasyasifshehadsaidnothingatallextraordinary,andwasgoingtodonothingoutofthecommonway!
WhatamItodowithher?——that’stheseriousquestion——whatonearthamItodowithher?"
"Letmetrymyexperiment,uncle,rashasitmaylooktoyou,"I
said。"Nothingelsewillcomfortandsupportme;andGodknowsI
wantcomfortandsupport。Don’tthinkmeobstinate。Iamreadytoadmitthatthereareseriousdifficultiesinmyway。"
Thevicarresumedhisironicaltone。
"Oh!"hesaid。"Youadmitthat,doyou?Well,thereissomethinggained,atanyrate。"
"Manyanotherwomanbeforeme,"Iwenton,"hasfacedseriousdifficulties,andhasconqueredthem——forthesakeofthemansheloved。"
DoctorStarkweatherroseslowlytohisfeet,withtheairofapersonwhosecapacityoftolerationhadreacheditslastlimits。
"AmItounderstandthatyouarestillinlovewithMr。EustaceMacallan?"heasked。
"Yes,"Ianswered。
"TheheroofthegreatPoisonTrial?"pursuedmyuncle。"Themanwhohasdeceivedanddesertedyou?Youlovehim?"
"Ilovehimmoredearlythanever。"
"Mr。Benjamin,"saidthevicar,"ifsherecoverhersensesbetweenthisandnineo’clockto—morrowmorning,sendherwithherluggagetoLoxley’sHotel,whereIamnowstaying。
Good—night,Valeria。Ishallconsultwithyourauntastowhatistobedonenext。Ihavenomoretosay。"
"Givemeakiss,uncle,atparting。"
"Ohyes,I’llgiveyouakiss。Anythingyoulike,Valeria。I
shallbesixty—fivenextbirthday;andIthoughtIknewsomethingofwomen,atmytimeoflife。ItseemsIknownothing。Loxley’sHotelistheaddress,Mr。Benjamin。Good—night。"
BenjaminlookedverygravewhenhereturnedtomeafteraccompanyingDoctorStarkweathertothegardengate。
"Praybeadvised,mydear,"hesaid。"Idon’taskyoutoconsider_my_viewofthismatter,asgoodformuch。Butyouruncle’sopinionissurelyworthconsidering?"
Ididnotreply。Itwasuselesstosayanymore。Imadeupmymindtobemisunderstoodanddiscouraged,andtobearit。
"Good—night,mydearoldfriend,"wasallIsaidtoBenjamin。
ThenIturnedaway——Iconfesswiththetearsinmyeyes——andtookrefugeinmybedroom。
Thewindow—blindwasup,andtheautumnmoonlightshonebrilliantlyintothelittleroom。
AsIstoodbythewindow,lookingout,thememorycametomeofanothermoonlightnight,whenEustaceandIwerewalkingtogetherintheVicaragegardenbeforeourmarriage。ItwasthenightofwhichIhavewritten,manypagesback,whentherewereobstaclestoourunion,andwhenEustacehadofferedtoreleasemefrommyengagementtohim。Isawthedearfaceagainlookingatmeinthemoonlight;Iheardoncemorehiswordsandmine。"Forgiveme,"hehadsaid,"forhavinglovedyou——passionately,devotedlylovedyou。Forgiveme,andletmego。"
AndIhadanswered,"Oh,Eustace,Iamonlyawoman——don’tmaddenme!Ican’tlivewithoutyou。Imustandwillbeyourwife!"Andnow,aftermarriagehadunitedus,wewereparted!Parted,stilllovingeachaspassionatelyasever。Andwhy?Becausehehadbeenaccusedofacrimethathehadnevercommitted,andbecauseaScotchjuryhadfailedtoseethathewasaninnocentman。
Ilookedatthelovelymoonlight,pursuingtheseremembrancesandthesethoughts。Anewardorburnedinme。"No!"Isaidtomyself。
"Neitherrelationsnorfriendsshallprevailonmetofalterandfailinmyhusband’scause。
Theassertionofhisinnocenceistheworkofmylife;Iwillbeginitto—night。"
Idrewdowntheblindandlightedthecandles。Inthequietnight,aloneandunaided,Itookmyfirststeponthetoilsomeandterriblejourneythatlaybeforeme。Fromthetitle—pagetotheend,withoutstoppingtorestandwithoutmissingaword,I
readtheTrialofmyhusbandforthemurderofhiswife。
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PARTII。
PARADISEREGAINED。
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CHAPTERXV。
THESTORYOFTHETRIAL。THEPRELIMINARIES。
LETmeconfessanotherweakness,onmypart,beforeIbegintheStoryoftheTrial。Icannotprevailuponmyselftocopy,forthesecondtime,thehorribletitle—pagewhichholdsuptopublicignominymyhusband’sname。Ihavecopieditonceinmytenthchapter。Letoncebeenough。
TurningtothesecondpageoftheTrial,IfoundaNote,assuringthereaderoftheabsolutecorrectnessoftheReportoftheProceedings。Thecompilerdescribedhimselfashavingenjoyedcertainspecialprivileges。Thus,thepresidingJudgehadhimselfrevisedhischargetothejury。And,again,thechieflawyersfortheprosecutionandthedefense,followingtheJudge’sexample,hadrevisedtheirspeechesforandagainsttheprisoner。Lastly,particularcarehadbeentakentosecurealiterallycorrectreportoftheevidencegivenbythevariouswitnesses。ItwassomerelieftometodiscoverthisNote,andtobesatisfiedattheoutsetthattheStoryoftheTrialwas,ineveryparticular,fullyandtrulygiven。
Thenextpageinterestedmemorenearlystill。ItenumeratedtheactorsintheJudicialDrama——themenwhoheldintheirhandsmyhusband’shonorandmyhusband’slife。HereistheList:
THELORDJUSTICECLERK,}
LORDDRUMFENNICK,}JudgesontheBench。
LORDNOBLEKIRK,}
THELORDADVOCATE(Mintlaw),}DONALDDREW,Esquire(Advocate—Depute)。}CounselfortheCrown。
MR。JAMESARLISS,W。S。,AgentfortheCrown。
THEDEANOFFACULTY(Farmichael),}CounselforthePanelALEXANDERCROCKET,Esquire(Advocate),}(otherwisethePrisoner)
MR。THORNIEBANK,W。S。,}
MR。PLAYMORE,W。S。,}AgentsforthePanel。
TheIndictmentagainsttheprisonerthenfollowed。Ishallnotcopytheuncouthlanguage,fullofneedlessrepetitions(and,ifIknowanythingofthesubject,notguiltlessofbadgrammaraswell),inwhichmyinnocenthusbandwassolemnlyandfalselyaccusedofpoisoninghisfirstwife。ThelessthereisofthatfalseandhatefulIndictmentonthispage,thebetterandtruerthepagewilllook,to_my_eyes。
Tobebrief,then,EustaceMacallanwas"indictedandaccused,attheinstanceofDavidMintlaw,Esquire,HerMajesty’sAdvocate,forHerMajesty’sinterest,"oftheMurderofhisWifebypoison,athisresidencecalledGleninch,inthecountyofMid—Lothian。
ThepoisonwasallegedtohavebeenwickedlyandfeloniouslygivenbytheprisonertohiswifeSara,ontwooccasions,intheformofarsenic,administeredintea,medicine,"orotherarticleorarticlesoffoodordrink,totheprosecutorunknown。"Itwasfurtherdeclaredthattheprisoner’swifehaddiedofthepoisonthusadministeredbyherhusband,ononeorother,orboth,ofthestatedoccasions;andthatshewasthusmurderedbyherhusband。ThenextparagraphassertedthatthesaidEustaceMacallan,takenbeforeJohnDaviot,Esquire,advocate,Sheriff—SubstituteofMid—Lothian,didinhispresenceatEdinburgh(onagivendate,viz。,the29thofOctober),subscribeaDeclarationstatinghisinnocenceoftheallegedcrime:thisDeclarationbeingreservedintheIndictment——togetherwithcertaindocuments,papersandarticles,enumeratedinanInventory——tobeusedinevidenceagainsttheprisoner。TheIndictmentconcludedbydeclaringthat,intheeventoftheoffensechargedagainsttheprisonerbeingfoundprovenbytheVerdict,he,thesaidEustaceMacallan,"oughttobepunishedwiththepainsofthelaw,todeterothersfromcommittinglikecrimesinalltimecoming。"
SomuchfortheIndictment!Ihavedonewithit——andIamrejoicedtobedonewithit。
AnInventoryofpapers,documents,andarticlesfollowedatgreatlengthonthenextthreepages。This,initsturn,wassucceededbythelistofthewitnesses,andbythenamesofthejurors(fifteeninnumber)ballotedfortotrythecase。Andthen,atlast,theReportoftheTrialbegan。Itresolveditself,tomymind,intothreegreatQuestions。Asitappearedtomeatthetime,soletmepresentithere。
CHAPTERXVI。
FIRSTQUESTION——DIDTHEWOMANDIEPOISONED?
THEproceedingsbeganatteno’clock。TheprisonerwasplacedattheBar,beforetheHighCourtofJusticiary,atEdinburgh。HebowedrespectfullytotheBench,andpleadedNotGuilty,inalowvoice。
Itwasobservedbyeveryonepresentthattheprisoner’sfacebetrayedtracesofacutementalsuffering。Hewasdeadlypale。
HiseyesneveroncewanderedtothecrowdintheCourt。Whencertainwitnessesappearedagainsthim,helookedatthemwithamomentaryattention。Atothertimeshekepthiseyesontheground。Whentheevidencetouchedonhiswife’sillnessanddeath,hewasdeeplyaffected,andcoveredhisfacewithhishands。Itwasasubjectofgeneralremarkandgeneralsurprisethattheprisoner,inthiscase(althoughaman),showedfarlessself—possessionthanthelastprisonertriedinthatCourtformurder——awoman,whohadbeenconvictedonoverwhelmingevidence。
Therewerepersonspresent(asmallminorityonly)whoconsideredthiswantofcomposureonthepartoftheprisonertobeasigninhisfavor。Self—possession,inhisdreadfulposition,signified,totheirminds,thestarkinsensibilityofaheartlessandshamelesscriminal,andaffordedinitselfapresumption,notofinnocence,butofguilt。
ThefirstwitnesscalledwasJohnDaviot,Esquire,Sheriff—SubstituteofMid—Lothian。HewasexaminedbytheLordAdvocate(ascounselfortheprosecution);andsaid:
"Theprisonerwasbroughtbeforemeonthepresentcharge。HemadeandsubscribedaDeclarationonthe29thofOctober。Itwasfreelyandvoluntarilymade,theprisonerhavingbeenfirstdulywarnedandadmonished。"
HavingidentifiedtheDeclaration,theSheriff—Substitute——beingcross—examinedbytheDeanofFaculty(ascounselforthedefense)——continuedhisevidenceinthesewords:
"ThechargeagainsttheprisonerwasMurder。ThiswascommunicatedtohimbeforehemadetheDeclaration。Thequestionsaddressedtotheprisonerwereputpartlybyme,partlybyanotherofficer,theprocurator—fiscal。Theanswersweregivendistinctly,and,sofarasIcouldjudge,withoutreserve。ThestatementsputforwardintheDeclarationwereallmadeinanswertoquestionsaskedbytheprocurator—fiscalorbymyself。"
AclerkintheSheriff—Clerk’sofficethenofficiallyproducedtheDeclaration,andcorroboratedtheevidenceofthewitnesswhohadprecededhim。
TheappearanceofthenextwitnesscreatedamarkedsensationintheCourt。ThiswasnolessapersonthanthenursewhohadattendedMrs。Macallaninherlastillness——bynameChristinaOrmsay。
Afterthefirstformalanswers,thenurse(examinedbytheLordAdvocate)proceededtosay:
"Iwasfirstsentfortoattendthedeceasedladyonthe7thofOctober。Shewasthensufferingfromaseverecold,accompaniedbyarheumaticaffectionoftheleftknee—joint。PrevioustothisIunderstoodthatherhealthhadbeenfairlygood。Shewasnotaverydifficultpersontonursewhenyougotusedtoher,andunderstoodhowtomanageher。Themaindifficultywascausedbyhertemper。Shewasnotasullenperson;shewasheadstrongandviolent——easilyexcitedtoflyintoapassion,andquiterecklessinherfitsofangerastowhatshesaidordid。AtsuchtimesI
reallyhardlythinksheknewwhatshewasabout。Myownideaisthathertemperwasmadestillmoreirritablebyunhappinessinhermarriedlife。Shewasfarfrombeingareservedperson。
Indeed,shewasdisposed(asIthought)tobealittletoocommunicativeaboutherselfandhertroubleswithpersonslikemewhowerebeneathherinstation。Shedidnotscruple,forinstance,totellme(whenwehadbeenlongenoughtogethertogetusedtoeachother)thatshewasveryunhappy,andfrettedagooddealaboutherhusband。Onenight,whenshewaswakefulandrestless,shesaidtome——"
TheDeanofFacultyhereinterposed,speakingontheprisoner’sbehalf。HeappealedtotheJudgestosaywhethersuchlooseandunreliableevidenceasthiswasevidencewhichcouldbereceivedbytheCourt。
TheLordAdvocate(speakingonbehalfoftheCrown)claimeditashisrighttoproducetheevidence。Itwasoftheutmostimportanceinthiscasetoshow(onthetestimonyofanunprejudicedwitness)onwhattermsthehusbandandwifewereliving。Thewitnesswasamostrespectablewoman。Shehadwon,anddeserved,theconfidenceoftheunhappyladywhomsheattendedonherdeath—bed。
Afterbrieflyconsultingtogether,theJudgesunanimouslydecidedthattheevidencecouldnotbeadmitted。Whatthewitnesshadherselfseenandobservedoftherelationsbetweenthehusbandandwifewastheonlyevidencethattheycouldreceive。
TheLordAdvocatethereuponcontinuedhisexaminationofthewitness。ChristinaOrmsayresumedherevidenceasfollows:
"MypositionasnurselednecessarilytomyseeingmoreofMrs。
Macallanthananyotherpersoninthehouse。Iamabletospeakfromexperienceofmanythingsnotknowntootherswhowereonlyinherroomatintervals。
"Forinstance,IhadmorethanoneopportunityofpersonallyobservingthatMr。andMrs。Macallandidnotlivetogetherveryhappily。Icangiveyouanexampleofthis,notdrawnfromwhatotherstoldme,butfromwhatInoticedformyself。
"TowardthelatterpartofmyattendanceonMrs。Macallan,ayoungwidowladynamedMrs。Beauly——acousinofMr。
Macallan’s——cametostayatGleninch。Mrs。Macallanwasjealousofthislady;andsheshoweditinmypresenceonlythedaybeforeherdeath,whenMr。Macallancameintoherroomtoinquirehowshehadpassedthenight。’Oh,’shesaid,’nevermindhow_I_
haveslept!WhatdoyoucarewhetherIsleepwellorill?HowhasMrs。Beaulypassedthenight?Isshemorebeautifulthaneverthismorning?Gobacktoher——praygobacktoher!Don’twasteyourtimewithme!’Beginninginthatmanner,sheworkedherselfintooneofherfuriousrages。Iwasbrushingherhairatthetime;andfeelingthatmypresencewasanimproprietyunderthecircumstances,Iattemptedtoleavetheroom。Sheforbademetogo。Mr。Macallanfelt,asIdid,thatmydutywastowithdraw,andhesaidsoinplainwords。Mrs。Macallaninsistedonmystayinginlanguagesoinsolenttoherhusbandthathesaid,’Ifyoucannotcontrolyourself,eitherthenurseleavestheroomorIdo。’Sherefusedtoyieldeventhen。’Agoodexcuse,’shesaid,’forgettingbacktoMrs。Beauly。Go!’Hetookheratherword,andwalkedoutoftheroom。Hehadbarelyclosedthedoorbeforeshebeganrevilinghimtomeinthemostshockingmanner。Shedeclared,amongotherthingsshesaidofhim,thatthenewsofallotherswhichhewouldbemostgladtohearwouldbethenewsofherdeath。Iventured,quiterespectfully,onremonstratingwithher。Shetookupthehair—brushandthrewitatme,andthenandtheredismissedmefrommyattendanceonher。Ilefther,andwaitedbelowuntilherfitofpassionhadwornitselfout。ThenI
returnedtomyplaceatthebedside,andforawhilethingswentonagainasusual。
"ItmaynotbeamisstoaddawordwhichmayhelptoexplainMrs。
Macallan’sjealousyofherhusband’scousin。Mrs。Macallanwasaveryplainwoman。Shehadacastinoneofhereyes,and(ifI
mayusetheexpression)oneofthemostmuddy,blotchycomplexionsitwasevermymisfortunetoseeinaperson’sface。
Mrs。Beauly,ontheotherhand,wasamostattractivelady。Hereyeswereuniversallyadmired,andshehadamostbeautifullyclearanddelicatecolor。PoorMrs。Macallansaidofher,mostuntruly,thatshepainted。
"No;thedefectsinthecomplexionofthedeceasedladywerenotinanywayattributabletoherillness。Ishouldcallthembornandbreddefectsinherself。
"Herillness,ifIamaskedtodescribeit,Ishouldsaywastroublesome——nothingmore。Untilthelastdaytherewerenosymptomsintheleastdegreeseriousaboutthemaladythathadtakenher。Herrheumatickneewaspainful,ofcourse——acutelypainful,ifyoulike——whenshemovedit;andtheconfinementtobedwasirksomeenough,nodoubt。Butotherwisetherewasnothinginthelady’scondition,beforethefatalattackcame,toalarmheroranybodyabouther。Shehadherbooksandherwritingmaterialsonaninvalidtable,whichworkedonapivot,andcouldbearrangedinanypositionmostagreeabletoher。Attimesshereadandwroteagooddeal。Atothertimesshelayquiet,thinkingherownthoughts,ortalkingwithme,andwithoneortwoladyfriendsintheneighborhoodwhocameregularlytoseeher。
"Herwriting,sofarasIknew,wasalmostentirelyofthepoeticalsort。Shewasagreathandatcomposingpoetry。Ononeoccasiononlysheshowedmesomeofherpoems。Iamnojudgeofsuchthings。Herpoetrywasofthedismalkind,despairingaboutherself,andwonderingwhyshehadeverbeenborn,andnonsenselikethat。Herhusbandcameinmorethanonceforsomehardhitsathiscruelheartandhisignoranceofhiswife’smerits。Inshort,sheventedherdiscontentwithherpenaswellaswithhertongue。Thereweretimes——andprettyoftentoo——whenanangelfromheavenwouldhavefailedtohavesatisfiedMrs。Macallan。
"Throughouttheperiodofherillnessthedeceasedladyoccupiedthesameroom——alargebedroomsituated(likeallthebestbedrooms)onthefirstfloorofthehouse。
"Yes:theplanoftheroomnowshowntomeisquiteaccuratelytaken,accordingtomyremembranceofit。Onedoorledintothegreatpassage,orcorridor,onwhichallthedoorsopened。A
seconddoor,atoneside(markedBontheplan),ledtoMr。
Macallan’ssleeping—room。Athirddoor,ontheoppositeside(markedContheplan),communicatedwithalittlestudy,orbook—room,used,asIwastold,byMr。Macallan’smotherwhenshewasstayingatGleninch,butseldomorneverenteredbyanyoneelse。Mr。Macallan’smotherwasnotatGleninchwhileIwasthere。Thedoorbetweenthebedroomandthisstudywaslocked,andthekeywastakenout。Idon’tknowwhohadthekey,orwhetherthereweremorekeysthanoneinexistence。Thedoorwasneveropenedtomyknowledge。Ionlygotintothestudy,tolookatitalongwiththehousekeeper,byenteringthroughaseconddoorthatopenedontothecorridor。
"IbegtosaythatIcanspeakfrommyownknowledgepositivelyaboutMrs。Macallan’sillness,andaboutthesuddenchangewhichendedinherdeath。Bythedoctor’sadviceImadenotesatthetimeofdatesandhours,andsuchlike。Ilookedatmynotesbeforecominghere。
"Fromthe7thofOctober,whenIwasfirstcalledintonurseher,tothe20thofthesamemonth,sheslowlybutsteadilyimprovedinhealth。Herkneewasstillpainful,nodoubt;buttheinflammatorylookofitwasdisappearing。Astotheothersymptoms,exceptweaknessfromlyinginbed,andirritabilityoftemper,therewasreallynothingthematterwithher。Shesleptbadly,Ioughtperhapstoadd。Butweremediedthisbymeansofcomposingdraughtsprescribedforthatpurposebythedoctor。
"Onthemorningofthe21st,atafewminutespastsix,IgotmyfirstalarmthatsomethingwasgoingwrongwithMrs。Macallan。
"IwasawokeatthetimeIhavementionedbytheringingofthehand—bellwhichshekeptonherbed—table。LetmesayformyselfthatIhadonlyfallenasleeponthesofainthebedroomatpasttwointhemorningfromsheerfatigue。Mrs。Macallanwasthenawake。Shewasinoneofherbadhumorswithme。Ihadtriedtoprevailonhertoletmeremoveherdressing—casefromherbed—table,aftershehaduseditinmakinghertoiletforthenight。Ittookupagreatdealofroom;andshecouldnotpossiblywantitagainbeforethemorning。Butno;sheinsistedonmylettingitbe。Therewasaglassinsidethecase;and,plainasshewas,sheneverweariedoflookingatherselfinthatglass。Isawthatshewasinabadstateoftemper,soIgaveherherway,andletthedressing—casebe。Findingthatshewastoosullentospeaktomeafterthat,andtooobstinatetotakehercomposingdraughtfrommewhenIofferedit,Ilaidmedownonthesofaatherbedfoot,andfellasleep,asIhavesaid。
"ThemomentherbellrangIwasupandatthebedside,readytomakemyselfuseful。
"Iaskedwhatwasthematterwithher。Shecomplainedoffaintnessanddepression,andsaidshefeltsick。IinquiredifshehadtakenanythinginthewayofphysicorfoodwhileIhadbeenasleep。Sheansweredthatherhusbandhadcomeinaboutanhoursince,and,findingherstillsleepless,hadhimselfadministeredthecomposingdraught。Mr。Macallan(sleepinginthenextroom)joineduswhileshewasspeaking。Hetoohadbeenarousedbythebell。HeheardwhatMrs。Macallansaidtomeaboutthecomposingdraught,andmadenoremarkuponit。Itseemedtomethathewasalarmedathiswife’sfaintness。Isuggestedthatsheshouldtakealittlewine,orbrandyandwater。Sheansweredthatshecouldswallownothingsostrongaswineorbrandy,havingaburningpaininherstomachalready。Iputmyhandonherstomach——quitelightly。ShescreamedwhenItouchedher。