"Wedifferedonthatpoint。Istoodtohimsome—
　　whatintherelationofaguardian。Youhaveprobablyseenenoughofaffairstorecognisethatoccasionallyacertainfriction——。Butevenifthatwasthecase，thereisadoubtwhetherhewilleverwake。Thissleepexhaustsslowly，butitexhausts。Apparentlyheisslidingslowly，veryslowlyandtediously，downalongslope，ifyoucanunderstandme？"
　　"Itwillbeapitytolosehissurprise。There’sbeenalotofchangethesetwentyyears。It’sRipVanWinklecomereal。"
　　"It’sBellamy，"saidWarming。"Therehasbeenalotofchangecertainly。And，amongotherchanges，Ihavechanged。Iamanoldman。"
　　Isbisterhesitated，andthenfeignedabelatedsurprise。
　　"Ishouldn’thavethoughtit。"
　　"Iwasforty—threewhenhisbankers——yourememberyouwiredtohisbankers——sentontome。"
　　"Igottheiraddressfromthechequebookinhispocket，"saidIsbister。
　　"Well，theadditionisnotdifficult，"saidWarming。
　　Therewasanotherpause，andthenIsbistergavewaytoanunavoidablecuriosity。"Hemaygoonforyearsyet，"hesaid，andhadamomentofhesitation。
　　"Wehavetoconsiderthat。Hisaffairs，youknow，mayfallsomedayintothehandsof——someoneelse，youknow。"
　　"That，ifyouwillbelieveme，Mr。Isbister，isoneoftheproblemsmostconstantlybeforemymind。Wehappentobe——asamatteroffact，therearenoverytrustworthyconnectionsofours。Itisagrotesqueandunprecedentedposition。"
　　"Itis，"saidIsbister。"Asamatteroffact，it’sacaseforapublictrustee，ifonlywehadsuchafunctionary。"
　　"Itseemstomeit’sacaseforsomepublicbody，somepracticallyundyingguardian。Ifhereallyisgoingonliving——asthedoctors，someofthem，think。
　　Asamatteroffact，Ihavegonetooneortwopublicmenaboutit。But，sofar，nothinghasbeendone。"
　　"Itwouldn’tbeabadideatohandhimovertosomepublicbody——theBritishMuseumTrustees，ortheRoyalCollegeofPhysicians。Soundsabitodd，ofcourse，butthewholesituationisodd。"
　　"Thedifficultyistoinducethemtotakehim。"
　　"Redtape，Isuppose？"
　　"Partly。"
　　Pause。"It’sacuriousbusiness，certainly，"saidIsbister。"Andcompoundinteresthasawayofmountingup。"
　　"Ithas，"saidWarming。"Andnowthegoldsuppliesarerunningshortthereisatendencytowards……appreciation。"
　　"I’vefeltthat，"saidIsbisterwithagrimace。"Butitmakesitbetterforhim。"
　　"Ifhewakes。"
　　"Ifhewakes，"echoedIsbister。"Doyounoticethepinched—illlookofhisnose，andthewayinwhichhiseyelidssink？"
　　Warminglookedandthoughtforaspace。"Idoubtifhewillwake，"hesaidatlast。
　　"Ineverproperlyunderstood，"saidIsbister，"whatitwasbroughtthison。Hetoldmesomethingaboutoverstudy。I’veoftenbeencurious。"
　　"Hewasamanofconsiderablegifts，butspasmodic，emotional。Hehadgravedomestictroubles，divorcedhiswife，infact，anditwasasarelieffromthat，Ithink，thathetookuppoliticsoftherabidsort。
　　HewasafanaticalRadical——aSocialist——ortypicalLiberal，astheyusedtocallthemselves，—oftheadvancedschool。Energetic——flighty——undisciplined。Overworkuponacontroversydidthisforhim。Irememberthepamphlethewrote——acuriousproduction。Wild，whirlingstuff。Therewereoneortwoprophecies。
　　Someofthemarealreadyexploded，someofthemareestablishedfacts。Butforthemostparttoreadsuchathesisistorealisehowfulltheworldisofunanticipatedthings。Hewillhavemuchtolearn，muchtounlearn，whenhewakes。Ifeverawakingcomes。"
　　"I’dgiveanythingtobethere，"saidIsbister，"justtohearwhathewouldsaytoitall。"
　　"SowouldI，"saidWarming。"Aye！sowouldI，"withanoldman’ssuddenturntoselfpity。"ButIshallneverseehimwake。"
　　Hestoodlookingthoughtfullyatthewaxenfigure。
　　"Hewillneverwake，"hesaidatlast。Hesighed"Hewillneverwakeagain。"
　　CHAPTERIII
　　THEAWAKENING
　　ButWarmingwaswronginthat。Anawakeningcame。
　　Whatawonderfullycomplexthing！thissimpleseemingunity——theself！Whocantraceitsreintegrationasmorningaftermorningweawaken，thefluxandconfluenceofitscountlessfactorsintenveaving，rebuilding，thedimfirststirringsofthesoul，thegrowthandsynthesisoftheunconscioustothesubconscious，thesub—conscioustodawningconsciousness，untilatlastwerecogniseourselvesagain。Andasithappenstomostofusafterthenight’ssleep，soitwaswithGrahamattheendofhisvastslumber。
　　Adimcloudofsensationtakingshape，acloudydreariness，andhefoundhimselfvaguelysomewhere，recumbent，faint，butalive。
　　Thepilgrimagetowardsapersonalbeingseemedtotraversevastgulfs，tooccupyepochs。Giganticdreamsthatwereterriblerealitiesatthetime，leftvagueperplexingmemories，strangecreatures，strangescenery，asiffromanotherplanet。Therewasadistinctimpression，too，ofamomentousconversation，ofaname——hecouldnottellwhatname——thatwassubsequentlytorecur，ofsomequeerlong—forgottensensationofveinandmuscle，ofafeelingofvasthopelesseffort，theeffortofamanneardrowningindarkness。Thencameapanoramaofdazzlingunstableconfluentscenes。
　　Grahambecameawarehiseyeswereopenandregardingsomeunfamiliarthing。
　　Itwassomethingwhite，theedgeofsomething，aframeofwood。Hemovedhisheadslightly，followingthecontourofthisshape。Itwentupbeyondthetopofhiseyes。Hetriedtothinkwherehemightbe。
　　Diditmatter，seeinghewassowretched？Thecolourofhisthoughtswasadarkdepression。Hefeltthefeaturelessmiseryofonewhowakestowardsthehourofdawn。Hehadanuncertainsenseofwhispersandfootstepshastilyreceding。
　　Themovementofhisheadinvolvedaperceptionofextremephysicalweakness。Hesupposedhewasinbedinthehotelattheplaceinthevalley——buthecouldnotrecallthatwhiteedge。Hemusthaveslept。
　　Herememberednowthathehadwantedtosleep。Herecalledthecliffandwaterfallagain，andthenrecollectedsomethingabouttalkingtoapasser—by。
　　Howlonghadheslept？Whatwasthatsoundofpatteringfeet？Andthatriseandfall，likethemurmurofbreakersonpebbles？Heputoutalanguidhandtoreachhiswatchfromthechairwhereonitwashishabittoplaceit，andtouchedsomesmoothhardsurfacelikeglass。Thiswassounexpectedthatitstartledhimextremely。Quitesuddenlyherolledover，staredforamoment，andstruggledintoasittingposition。Theeffortwasunexpectedlydifficult，anditlefthimgiddyandweak——andamazed。
　　Herubbedhiseyes。Theriddleofhissurroundingswasconfusingbuthismindwasquiteclear——evidentlyhissleephadbenefitedhim。Hewasnotinabedatallasheunderstoodtheword，butIyingnakedonaverysoftandyieldingmattress，inatroughofdarkglass。Themattresswaspartlytransparent，afactheobservedwithastrangesenseofinsecurity，andbelowitwasamirrorreflectinghimgreyly。Abouthisarm——andhesawwithashockthathisskinwasstrangIydryandyellow——wasboundacuriousapparatusofrubber，boundsocunninglythatitseemedtopassintohisskinaboveandbelow。Andthisstrangebedwasplacedinacaseofgreenishcolouredglass（asitseemedtohim），abarinthewhiteframeworkofwhichhadfirstarrestedhisattention。Inthecornerofthecasewasastandofglitteringanddelicatelymadeapparatus，forthemostpartquitestrangeappliances，thoughamaximumandminimumthermometerwasrecognisable。
　　Theslightlygreenishtintoftheglass—likesubstancewhichsurroundedhimoneveryhandobscuredwhatlaybehind，butheperceiveditwasavastapartmentofsplendidappearance，andwithaverylargeandsimplewhitearchwayfacinghim。Closetothewallsofthecagewerearticlesoffurniture，atablecoveredwithasilverycloth，silverylikethesideofafish，acoupleofgracefulchairs，andonthetableanumberofdisheswithsubstancespiledonthem，abottleandtwoglasses。Herealisedthathewasintenselyhungry。
　　Hecouldseenohumanbeing，andafteraperiodofhesitationscrambledoffthetranslucentmattressandtriedtostandonthecleanwhitefloorofhislittleapartment。Hehadmiscalculatedhisstrength，however，andstaggeredandputhishandagainsttheglasslikepanebeforehimtosteadyhimself。Foramomentitresistedhishand，bendingoutwardlikeadistendedbladder，thenitbrokewithaslightreportandvanished——aprickedbubble。Hereeledoutintothegeneralspaceofthehall，greatlyastonished。Hecaughtatthetabletosavehimself，knockingoneoftheglassestothefloor——itrangbutdidnotbreak——
　　andsatdowninoneofthearmchairs。
　　Whenhehadalittlerecoveredhefilledtheremainingglassfromthebottleanddrank——acolourlessliquiditwas，butnotwater，withapleasingfaintaromaandtasteandaqualityofimmediatesupportandstimulus。Heputdownthevesselandlookedabouthim。
　　Theapartmentlostnoneofitssizeandmagnificencenowthatthegreenishtransparencythathadintervenedwasremoved。Thearchwayhesawledtoaflightofsteps，goingdownwardwithouttheintermediationofadoor，toaspacioustransversepassage。
　　Thispassageranbetweenpolishedpillarsofsomewhite—veinedsubstanceofdeepultramarine，andalongitcamethesoundofhumanmovementsandvoicesandadeepundeviatingdroningnote。Hesat，nowfullyawake，listeningalertly，forgettingtheviandsinhisattention。
　　Thenwithashockherememberedthathewasnaked，andcastingabouthimforcovering，sawalongblackrobethrownononeofthechairsbesidehim。
　　Thishewrappedabouthimandsatdownagain，trembling。
　　Hismindwasstillasurgingperplexity。Clearlyhehadslept。andhadbeenremovedinhissleep。Buthere？Andwhowerethosepeople，thedistantcrowdbeyondthedeepbluepillars？Boscastle？Hepouredoutandpartiallydrankanotherglassofthecolourlessfluid。
　　Whatwasthisplace？——thisplacethattohissensesseemedsubtlyquiveringlikeathingalive？Helookedabouthimatthecleanandbeautifulformoftheapartment，unstainedbyornament，andsawthattheroofwasbrokeninoneplacebyacircularshaftfulloflight，and，ashelooked，asteady，sweepingshadowblotteditoutandpassed，andcameagainandpassed。
　　"Beat，beat，"thatsweepingshadowhadanoteofitsowninthesubduedtumultthatfilledtheair。
　　Hewouldhavecalledout，butonlyalittlesoundcameintohisthroat。Thenhestoodup，and，withtheuncertainstepsofadrunkard，madehiswaytowardsthearchway。Hestaggereddownthesteps，trippedonthecorneroftheblackcloakhehadwrappedabouthimself，andsavedhimselfbycatchingatoneofthebluepillars。
　　Thepassagerandownacoolvistaofblueandpurple，andendedremotelyinarailedspacelikeabalcony，brightlylitandprojectingintoaspaceofhaze，aspaceliketheinteriorofsomegiganticbuilding。
　　Beyondandremotewerevastandvaguearchitecturalforms。Thetumultofvoicesrosenowloudandclear，andonthebalconyandwiththeirbackstohim，gesticulatingandapparentlyinanimatedconversation，werethreefigures，richlydressedinlooseandeasygarmentsofbrightsoftcolourings。Thenoiseofagreatmultitudeofpeoplepouredupoverthebalcony，andonceitseemedthetopofabannerpassed，andoncesomebrightlycolouredobject，apalebluecaporgarmentthrownupintotheairperhaps，flashedathwartthespaceandfell。TheshoutssoundedlikeEnglish，therewasareiterationof"Wake！"Heheardsomeindistinctshrillcry，andabruptlythethreemenbeganlaughing。
　　"Ha，ha，ha！"laughedone——ared—hairedmaninashortpurplerobe。"WhentheSleeperwakes——
　　__When！__
　　Heturnedhiseyesfullofmerrimentalongthepassage。
　　Hisfacechanged，thewholemanchanged，becamerigid。Theothertwoturnedswiftlyathisexclamationandstoodmotionless。Theirfacesassumedanexpressionofconsternation，anexpressionthatdeepenedintoawe。
　　SuddenlyGraham’skneesbentbeneathhim，hisarmagainstthepillarcollapsedlimply，hestaggeredforwardandfelluponhisface。
　　CHAPTERIV
　　THESOUNDOFATUMULT
　　Graham’slastimpressionbeforehefaintedwasofaclamorousringingofbells。Helearntafterwardsthathewasinsensible，hangingbetweenlifeanddeath，forthebetterpartofanhour。Whenherecoveredhissenses，hewasbackonhistranslucentcouch，andtherewasastirringwarmthatheartandthroat。Thedarkapparatus，heperceived，hadbeenremovedfromhisarm，whichwasbandaged。Thewhiteframeworkwasstillabouthim，butthegreenishtransparentsubstancethathadfilleditwasaltogethergone。Amaninadeepvioletrobe，oneofthosewhohadbeenonthebalcony，waslookingkeenlyintohisface。
　　Remotebutinsistentwasaclamourofbellsandconfusedsounds，thatsuggestedtohismindthepictureofagreatnumberofpeopleshoutingtogether。
　　Somethingseemedtofallacrossthistumult，adoorsuddenlyclosed。
　　Grahammovedhishead。"Whatdoesthisallmean？"hesaidslowly。"WhereamI？"
　　Hesawthered—hairedmanwhohadbeenfirsttodiscoverhim。Avoiceseemedtobeaskingwhathehadsaid，andwasabruptlystilled。
　　Themaninvioletansweredinasoftvoice，speakingEnglishwithaslightlyforeignaccent，orsoatleastitseemedtotheSleeper’sears，"Youarequitesafe。
　　Youwerebroughthitherfromwhereyoufellasleep。
　　Itisquitesafe。Youhavebeenheresometime——
　　sleeping。Inatrance。"
　　HesaidsomethingfurtherthatGrahamcouldnothear，andalittlephialwashandedacrosstohim。
　　Grahamfeltacoolingspray，afragrantmistplayedoverhisforeheadforamoment，andhissenseofrefreshmentincreased。Heclosedhiseyesinsatisfaction。
　　"Better？"askedthemaninviolet，asGraham’seyesreopened。Hewasapleasant—facedmanofthirty，perhaps，withapointedflaxenbeard，andaclaspofgoldattheneckofhisvioletrobe。
　　"Yes，"saidGraham。
　　"Youhavebeenasleepsometime。Inacataleptictrance。Youhaveheard？Catalepsy？Itmayseemstrangetoyouatfirst，butIcanassureyoueverythingiswell。"
　　Grahamdidnotanswer，butthesewordsservedtheirreassuringpurpose。Hiseyeswentfromfacetofaceofthethreepeopleabouthim。Theywereregardinghimstrangely。HeknewheoughttobesomewhereinCornwall，buthecouldnotsquarethesethingswiththatimpression。
　　AmatterthathadbeeninhismindduringhislastwakingmomentsatBoscastlerecurred，athingresolveduponandsomehowneglected。Heclearedhisthroat。
　　"Haveyouwiredmycousin？"heasked。"E。
　　Warming，27，ChanceryLane？"
　　Theywereallassiduoustohear。Buthehadtorepeatit。"Whatanodd__blurr__inhisaccent！"
　　whisperedthered—hairedman。"Wire，sir？"saidtheyoungmanwiththeflaxenbeard，evidentlypuzzled。
　　"Hemeanssendanelectrictelegram，"volunteeredthethird，apleasant—facedyouthofnineteenortwenty。
　　Theflaxen—beardedmangaveacryofcomprehension。
　　"Howstupidofme！Youmaybesureeverythingshallbedone，sir，"hesaidtoGraham。"Iamafraiditwouldbedifficultto——wiretoyourcousin。HeisnotinLondonnow。Butdon’ttroubleaboutarrangementsyet；youhavebeenasleepaverylongtimeandtheimportantthingistogetoverthat，sir。"（Grahamconcludedthewordwassir，butthismanpronouncedit"Sire。"）
　　"Oh！"saidGraham，andbecamequiet。
　　Itwasallverypuzzling，butapparentlythesepeopleinunfamiliardressknewwhattheywereabout。Yettheywereoddandtheroomwasodd。Itseemedhewasinsomenewlyestablishedplace。Hehadasuddenflashofsuspicion。Surelythiswasn’tsomehallofpublicexhibition！IfitwashewouldgiveWarmingapieceofhismind。Butitscarcelyhadthatcharacter。Andinaplaceofpublicexhibitionhewouldnothavediscoveredhimselfnaked。
　　Thensuddenly，quiteabruptly，herealisedwhathadhappened。Therewasnoperceptibleintervalofsuspicion，nodawntohisknowledge。Abruptlyheknewthathistrancehadlastedforavastinterval；asifbysomeprocessesofthoughtreadingheinterpretedtheaweinthefacesthatpeeredintohis。Helookedatthemstrangely，fullofintenseemotion。Itseemedtheyreadhiseyes。Heframedhislipstospeakandcouldnot。Aqueerimpulsetohidehisknowledgecameintohismindalmostatthemomentofhisdiscovery。
　　Helookedathisbarefeet，regardingthensilently。Hisimpulsetospeakpassed。Hewastremblingexceedingly。
　　Theygavehimsomepinkfluidwithagreenishfluorescenceandameatytaste，andtheassuranceofreturningstrengthgrew。
　　"That——thatmakesmefeelbetter，"hesaidhoarsely，andthereweremurmursofrespectfulapproval。Heknewnowquiteclearly。Hemadetospeakagain，andagainhecouldnot。
　　Hepressedhisthroatandtriedathirdtime。
　　"Howlong？"heaskedinalevelvoice。"HowlonghaveIbeenasleep？"
　　"Someconsiderabletime，"saidtheflaxen—beardedman，glancingquicklyattheothers。
　　"Howlong？"
　　"Averylongtime。"
　　"Yes——yes，"saidGraham，suddenlytesty。"ButIwant——Isit——itis——someyears？Manyyears？
　　Therewassomething——Iforgetwhat。Ifeel——
　　confused。Butyou——"Hesobbed。"Youneednotfencewithme。Howlong——？"
　　Hestopped，breathingirregularly。Hesqueezedhiseyeswithhisknucklesandsatwaitingforananswer。
　　Theyspokeinundertones。
　　"Fiveorsix？"heaskedfaintly。"More？"
　　"Verymuchmorethanthat。"
　　"Morel"
　　"More。"
　　Helookedatthemanditseemedasthoughimpsweretwitchingthemusclesofhisface。Helookedhisquestion。
　　"Manyyears，"saidthemanwiththeredbeard。
　　Grahamstruggledintoasittingposition。Hewipedarheumytearfromhisfacewithaleanhand。
　　"Manyyears！"herepeated。Heshuthiseyestight，openedthem，andsatlookingabouthim，fromoneunfamiliarthingtoanother。
　　"Howmanyyears？"heasked。
　　"Youmustbepreparedtobesurprised。"
　　"Well？"
　　"Morethanagrossofyears。"
　　Hewasirritatedatthestrangeword。"Morethana__what__？"
　　Twoofthemspoketogether。Somequickremarksthatweremadeabout"decimal"hedidnotcatch。
　　"Howlongdidyousay？"askedGraham。"Howlong？Don’tlooklikethat。Tellme。"
　　Amongtheremarksinanundertone，hisearcaughtsixwords："Morethanacoupleofcenturies。"
　　__"Whats？"__hecried，turningontheyouthwhohethoughthadspoken。"Whosays——？Whatwasthat？Acoupleofcenturies！"
　　"Yes，"saidthemanwiththeredbeard。"Twohundredyears。"
　　Grahamrepeatedthewords。Hehadbeenpreparedtohearofavastrepose，andyettheseconcretecenturiesdefeatedhim。
　　"Twohundredyears，"hesaidagain，withthefigureofagreatgulfopeningveryslowlyinhismind；andthen，"Oh，but——！"
　　Theysaidnothing。
　　"You——didyousay——？"
　　"Twohundredyears。Twocenturiesofyears，"
　　saidthemanwiththeredbeard。
　　Therewasapause。Grahamlookedattheirfacesandsawthatwhathehadheardwasindeedtrue。
　　"Butitcan’tbe，"hesaidquerulously。"Iamdreaming。Trances。Trancesdon’tlast。Thatisnotright——thisisajokeyouhaveplayeduponme！Tellme——somedaysago，perhaps，IwaswalkingalongthecoastofCornwall——？"
　　Hisvoicefailedhim。
　　Themanwiththeflaxenbeardhesitated。"I’mnotverystronginhistory，sir，"hesaidweakly，andglancedattheothers。
　　"Thatwasit，sir，"saidtheyoungster。"Boscastle，intheoldDuchyofCornwall——it’sinthesouthwestcountrybeyondthedairymeadows。Thereisahousetherestill。Ihavebeenthere。"
　　"Boscastle！"Grahamturnedhiseyestotheyoungster。"Thatwasit——Boscastle。LittleBoscastle。
　　Ifellasleep——somewherethere。Idon’texactlyremember。Idon’texactlyremember。"
　　Hepressedhisbrowsandwhispered，"Morethantwohundredyears！"I
　　Hebegantospeakquicklywithatwitchingface，buthisheartwascoldwithinhim。"Butifitistwohundredyears，everysoulIknow，everyhumanbeingthateverIsaworspoketobeforeIwenttosleep，mustbedead。"
　　Theydidnotanswerhim。
　　"TheQueenandtheRoyalFamily，herMinisters，ofChurchandState。Highandlow，richandpoor，onewithanother——"
　　"IsthereEnglandstill？"
　　"That’sacomfort！IsthereLondon？"
　　E"This__is__London，eh？Andyouaremyassistant——
　　custodian；assistant—custodian。Andthese——？Eh？
　　Assistant—custodiansto？"
　　Hesatwithagauntstareonhisface。"ButwhyamIhere？No！Don’ttalk。Bequiet。Letme——"
　　Hesatsilent，rubbedhiseyes，and，uncoveringthem，foundanotherlittleglassofpinkishfluidheldtowardshim。Hetookthedose。Itwasalmostimmediatelysustaining。Directlyhehadtakenithebegantoweepnaturallyandrefreshingly。
　　Presentlyhelookedattheirfaces，suddenlylaughedthroughhistears，alittlefoolishly。"But——two——
　　hun——dred——years！"hesaid。Hegrimacedhystericallyandcovereduphisfaceagain。
　　Afteraspacehegrewcalm。Hesatup，hishandshangingoverhiskneesinalmostpreciselythesameattitudeinwhichIsbisterhadfoundhimonthecliffatPentargen。Hisattentionwasattractedbyathickdomineeringvoice，thefootstepsofanadvancingpersonage。
　　"Whatareyoudoing？WhywasInotwarned？Surelyyoucouldtell？Someonewillsufferforthis。Themanmustbekeptquiet。Arethedoorwaysclosed？Allthedoorways？Hemustbekeptperfectlyquiet。Hemustnotbetold。Hashebeentoldanything？"
　　Themanwiththefairbeardmadesomeinaudibleremark，andGrahamlookingoverhisshouldersawapproachingaveryshort，fat，andthicksetbeardlessman，withaquilinenoseandheavyneckandchin。
　　Verythickblackandslightlyslopingeyebrowsthatalmostmetoverhisnoseandoverhungdeepgreyeyes，gavehisfaceanoddlyformidableexpression。
　　HescowledmomentarilyatGrahamandthenhisregardreturnedtothemanwiththeflaxenbeard。
　　"Theseothers，"hesaidinavoiceofextremeirritation。"Youhadbettergo。"
　　"Go？"saidthered—beardedman。
　　"Certainly——gonow。Butseethedoorwaysareclosedasyougo。"
　　Thetwomenaddressedturnedobediently，afteronereluctantglanceatGraham，andinsteadofgoingthroughthearchwayasheexpected，walkedstraighttothedeadwalloftheapartmentoppositethearchway。
　　Andthencameastrangething；alongstripofthisapparentlysolidwallrolledupwithasnap，hungoverthetworetreatingmenandfellagain，andimmediatelyGrahamwasalonewiththenewcomerandthepurple—robedmanwiththeflaxenbeard。
　　ForaspacethethicksetmantooknottheslightestnoticeofGraham，butproceededtointerrogatetheother——obviouslyhissubordinate——uponthetreatmentoftheircharge。Hespokeclearly，butinphrasesonlypartiallyintelligibletoGraham。Theawakeningseemednotonlyamatterofsurprisebutofconsternationandannoyancetohim。Hewasevidentlyprofoundlyexcited。
　　"Youmustnotconfusehismindbytellinghimthings，"herepeatedagainandagain。"Youmustnotconfusehismind。"
　　Hisquestionsanswered，heturnedquicklyandeyedtheawakenedsleeperwithanambiguousexpression。
　　"Feelqueer？"heasked。