MINA HARKER'S JOURNAL 30 SeptemberSeward's study two hours after dinner, which had been at six o'clock, we unconsciously formed a sort of board or committeeProfessor Van Helsing took the head of the table, to which DrSeward motioned him as he came into the roomHe made me sit next to him on his right, and asked me to act as secretaryJonathan sat next to meOpposite us were Lord Godalming, DrMorris, Lord Godalming being next the Professor, and Dr The Professor said, "I may, I suppose, take it that we are all acquainted with the facts that are in these papers We all expressed assent, and he went on, "Then it were, I think, good that I tell you something of the kind of enemy with which we have to dealI shall then make known to you something of the history of this man, which has been ascertained for meSo we then can discuss how we shall act, and can take our measure according "There are such beings as vampires, some of us have evidence that they existEven had we not the proof of our own unhappy experience, the teachings and the records of the past give proof enough for sane peoplesI admit that at the first I was scepticWere it not that through long years I have trained myself to keep an open mind, I could not have believed until such time as that fact thunder on my ear'See! See! I prove, I prove' Alas! Had I known at first what now I know, nay, had I even guess at him, one so precious life had been spared to many of us who did love herBut that is gone, and we must so work, that other poor souls perish not, whilst we can saveThe nosferatu do not die like the bee when he sting onceHe is only stronger, and being stronger, have yet more power to work evilThis vampire which is amongst us is of himself so strong in person as twenty men, he is of cunning more than mortal, for his cunning be the growth of ages, he have still the aids of necromancy, which is, as his etymology imply, the divination by the dead, and all the dead that he can come nigh to are for him at command; he is brute, and more than brute; he is devil in callous, and the heart of him is not; he can, within his range, direct the elements, the storm, the fog, the thunder; he can command all the meaner things, the rat, and the owl, and the bat, the moth, and the fox, and the wolf, he can grow and become small; and he can at times vanish and come unknownHow then are we to begin our strike to destroy him? How shall we find his where, and having found it, how can we destroy? My friends, this is much, it is a terrible task that we undertake, and there may be consequence to make the brave shudderFor if we fail in this our fight he must surely win, and then where end we? Life is nothings, I heed him notBut to fail here, is not mere life or deathIt is that we become as him, that we henceforward become foul things of the night like him, without heart or conscience, preying on the bodies and the souls of those we love bestTo us forever are the gates of heaven shut, for who shall open them to us again? We go on for all time abhorred by all, a blot on the face of God's sunshine, an arrow in the side of Him who died for manBut we are face to face with duty, and in such case must we shrink? For me, I say no, but then I am old, and life, with his sunshine, his fair places, his song of birds, his music and his love, lie far behindSome have seen sorrow, but there are fair days yet in storeWhat say you?" Whilst he was speaking, Jonathan had taken my handI feared, oh so much, that the appalling nature of our danger was overcoming him when I saw his hand stretch out, but it was life to me to feel its touch, so strong, so self reliant, so resoluteA brave man's hand can speak for itself, it does not even need a woman's love to hear its music When the Professor had done speaking my husband looked in my eyes, and I in his, there was no need for speaking between us "I answer for Mina and myself," he said "Count me in, Professor," said MrQuincey Morris, laconically as usual "I am with you," said Lord Godalming, "for Lucy's sake, if for no other reason The Professor stood up and, after laying his golden crucifix on the table, held out his hand on either sideI took his right hand, and Lord Godalming his left, Jonathan held my right with his left and stretched across to MrSo as we all took hands our solemn compact was shop made

When Emmeline reached the garret, she found an immense box, in which some heavy pieces of furniture had once been brought, turned on its side, so that the opening faced the wall, or rather the eavesCassy lit a small lamp, and creeping round under the eaves, they established themselves in itIt was spread with a couple of small mattresses and some pillows; a box near by was plentifully stored with candles, provisions, and all the clothing necessary to their journey, which Cassy had arranged into bundles of an astonishingly small compass ?There,? said Cassy, as she fixed the lamp into a small hook, which she had driven into the side of the box for that purpose; ?this is to be our home for the presentHow do you like it?? ?Are you sure they won?t come and search the garret?? ?I?d like to see Simon Legree doing that,? said Cassy?No, indeed; he will be too glad to keep awayAs to the servants, they would any of them stand and be shot, sooner than show their faces here Somewhat reassured, Emmeline settled herself back on her pillow ?What did you mean, Cassy, by saying you would kill me?? she said, simply ?I meant to stop your fainting,? said Cassy, ?and I did do itAnd now I tell you, Emmeline, you must make up your mind not to faint, let what will come; there?s no sort of need of itIf I had not stopped you, that wretch might have had his hands on you now The two remained some time in silenceCassy busied herself with a French book; Emmeline, overcome with the exhaustion, fell into a doze, and slept some timeShe was awakened by loud shouts and outcries, the tramp of horses? feet, and the baying of dogsShe started up, with a faint shriek ?Only the hunt coming back,? said Cassy, coolly; ?never fearLook out of this knot-holeDon?t you see ?em all down there? Simon has to give up, for this nightLook, how muddy his horse is, flouncing about in the swamp; the dogs, too, look rather crestfallenAh, my good sir, you?ll have to try the race again and again,?the game isn?t there ?O, don?t speak a word!? said Emmeline; ?what if they should hear you?? ?If they do hear anything, it will make them very particular to keep away,? said Cassy?No danger; we may make any noise we please, and it will only add to the effect At length the stillness of midnight settled down over the houseLegree, cursing his ill luck, and vowing dire vengeance on the morrow, went to bed Chapter 40 The Martyr ?Deem not the just by Heaven forgot! Though life its common gifts deny,? Though, with a crushed and bleeding heart, And spurned of man, he goes to die! For God hath marked each sorrowing day, And numbered every bitter tear, And heaven?s long years of bliss shall pay For all his children suffer here The longest way must have its close,?the gloomiest night will wear on to a morningAn eternal, inexorable lapse of moments is ever hurrying the day of the evil to an eternal night, and the night of the just to an eternal dayWe have walked with our humble friend thus far in the valley of slavery; first through flowery fields of ease and indulgence, then through heart-breaking separations from all that man holds dearAgain, we have waited with him in a sunny island, where generous hands concealed his chains with flowers; and, lastly, we have followed him when the last ray of earthly hope went out in night, and seen how, in the blackness of earthly darkness, the firmament of the unseen has blazed with stars of new and significant lustre The morning-star now stands over the tops of the mountains, and gales and breezes, not of earth, show that the gates of day are unclosing The escape of Cassy and Emmeline irritated the before surly temper of Legree to the last degree; and his fury, as was to be expected, fell upon the defenceless head of TomWhen he hurriedly announced the tidings among his hands, there was a sudden light in Tom?s eye, a sudden upraising of his hands, that did not escape himHe saw that he did not join the muster of the pursuersHe thought of forcing him to do it; but, having had, of old, experience of his inflexibility when commanded to take part in any deed of inhumanity, he would not, in his hurry, stop to enter into any conflict with him Tom, therefore, remained behind, with a few who had learned of him to pray, and offered up prayers for the escape of the fugitives When Legree returned, baffled and disappointed, all the long-working hatred of his soul towards his slave began to gather in a deadly and desperate formHad not this man braved him,?steadily, powerfully, resistlessly,?ever since he bought him? Was there not a spirit in him which, silent as it was, burned on him like the fires of perdition? ?I hate him!? said Legree, that night, as he sat up in his bed; ?I hate him! And isn?t he MINE? Can?t I do what I like with him? Who?s to hinder, I wonder?? And Legree clenched his fist, and shook it, as if he had something in his hands that he could rend in pieces But, then, Tom was a faithful, valuable servant; and, although Legree hated him the more for that, yet the consideration was still somewhat of a restraint to him The next morning, he determined to say nothing, as yet; to assemble a party, from some neighboring plantations, with dogs and guns; to surround the swamp, and go about the hunt shop systematically

But as to putting them on any sort of equality with us, you know, as if we could be compared, why, it?s impossible! Now, StClare really has talked to me as if keeping Mammy from her husband was like keeping me from mineThere?s no comparing in this wayMammy couldn?t have the feelings that I shouldIt?s a different thing altogether,?of course, it is,?and yet StClare pretends not to see itAnd just as if Mammy could love her little dirty babies as I love Eva! Yet StClare once really and soberly tried to persuade me that it was my duty, with my weak health, and all I suffer, to let Mammy go back, and take somebody else in her placeThat was a little too much even for me to bearI don?t often show my feelings, I make it a principle to endure everything in silence; it?s a wife?s hard lot, and I bear itBut I did break out, that time; so that he has never alluded to the subject sinceBut I know by his looks, and little things that he says, that he thinks so as much as ever; and it?s so trying, so provoking!? Miss Ophelia looked very much as if she was afraid she should say something; but she rattled away with her needles in a way that had volumes of meaning in it, if Marie could only have understood it ?So, you just see,? she continued, ?what you?ve got to manageA household without any rule; where servants have it all their own way, do what they please, and have what they please, except so far as I, with my feeble health, have kept up governmentI keep my cowhide about, and sometimes I do lay it on; but the exertion is always too much for meClare would only have this thing done as others do?? ?And how?s that?? ?Why, send them to the calaboose, or some of the other places to be floggedIf I wasn?t such a poor, feeble piece, I believe I should manage with twice the energy that StClare contrive to manage?? said Miss Ophelia?You say he never strikes a blow ?Well, men have a more commanding way, you know; it is easier for them; besides, if you ever looked full in his eye, it?s peculiar,?that eye,?and if he speaks decidedly, there?s a kind of flashI?m afraid of it, myself; and the servants know they must mindI couldn?t do as much by a regular storm and scolding as StClare can by one turn of his eye, if once he is in earnestO, there?s no trouble about StClare; that?s the reason he?s no more feeling for meBut you?ll find, when you come to manage, that there?s no getting along without severity,?they are so bad, so deceitful, so lazy? ?The old tune,? said St?What an awful account these wicked creatures will have to settle, at last, especially for being lazy! You see, cousin,? said he, as he stretched himself at full length on a lounge opposite to Marie, ?it?s wholly inexcusable in them, in the light of the example that Marie and I set them,?this lazinessClare, you are too bad!? said Marie ?Am I, now? Why, I thought I was talking good, quite remarkably for meI try to enforce your remarks, Marie, always ?You know you meant no such thing, St ?O, I must have been mistaken, thenThank you, my dear, for setting me right ?You do really try to be provoking,? said Marie ?O, come, Marie, the day is growing warm, and I have just had a long quarrel with Dolph, which has fatigued me excessively; so, pray be agreeable, now, and let a fellow repose in the light of your smile ?What?s the matter about Dolph?? said Marie?That fellow?s impudence has been growing to a point that is perfectly intolerable to meI only wish I had the undisputed management of him a whileI?d bring him down!? ?What you say, my dear, is marked with your usual acuteness and good sense,? said shop St

It was late in the afternoon, and the rays of the sun formed a kind of glory behind her, as she came forward in her white dress, with her golden hair and glowing cheeks, her eyes unnaturally bright with the slow fever that burned in her veinsClare had called her to show a statuette that he had been buying for her; but her appearance, as she came on, impressed him suddenly and painfullyThere is a kind of beauty so intense, yet so fragile, that we cannot bear to look at itHer father folded her suddenly in his arms, and almost forgot what he was going to tell her ?Eva, dear, you are better now-a-days,?are you not?? ?Papa,? said Eva, with sudden firmness ?I?ve had things I wanted to say to you, a great whileI want to say them now, before I get weakerClare trembled as Eva seated herself in his lapShe laid her head on his bosom, and said, ?It?s all no use, papa, to keep it to myself any longerThe time is coming that I am going to leave youI am going, and never to come back!? and Eva sobbed ?O, now, my dear little Eva!? said StClare, trembling as he spoke, but speaking cheerfully, ?you?ve got nervous and low-spirited; you mustn?t indulge such gloomy thoughtsSee here, I?ve bought a statuette for you!? ?No, papa,? said Eva, putting it gently away, ?don?t deceive yourself!?I am not any better, I know it perfectly well,?and I am going, before longI am not nervous,?I am not low-spiritedIf it were not for you, papa, and my friends, I should be perfectly happyI want to go,?I long to go!? ?Why, dear child, what has made your poor little heart so sad? You have had everything, to make you happy, that could be given you ?I had rather be in heaven; though, only for my friends? sake, I would be willing to liveThere are a great many things here that make me sad, that seem dreadful to me; I had rather be there; but I don?t want to leave you,?it almost breaks my heart!? ?What makes you sad, and seems dreadful, Eva?? ?O, things that are done, and done all the timeI feel sad for our poor people; they love me dearly, and they are all good and kind to meI wish, papa, they were all free ?Why, Eva, child, don?t you think they are well enough off now?? ?O, but, papa, if anything should happen to you, what would become of them? There are very few men like you, papaUncle Alfred isn?t like you, and mamma isn?t; and then, think of poor old Prue?s owners! What horrid things people do, and can do!? and Eva shuddered ?My dear child, you are too sensitiveI?m sorry I ever let you hear such stories ?O, that?s what troubles me, papaYou want me to live so happy, and never to have any pain,?never suffer anything,?not even hear a sad story, when other poor creatures have nothing but pain and sorrow, an their lives;?it seems selfishI ought to know such things, I ought to feel about them! Such things always sunk into my heart; they went down deep; I?ve thought and thought about themPapa, isn?t there any way to have all slaves made free?? ?That?s a difficult question, dearestThere?s no doubt that this way is a very bad one; a great many people think so; I do myself I heartily wish that there were not a slave in the land; but, then, I don?t know what is to be done about it!? ?Papa, you are such a good man, and so noble, and kind, and you always have a way of saying things that is so pleasant, couldn?t you go all round and try to persuade people to do right about this? When I am dead, papa, then you will think of me, and do it for my sakeI would do it, if I could ?When you are dead, Eva,? said St?O, child, don?t talk to me so! You are all I have on earth ?Poor old Prue?s child was all that she had,?and yet she had to hear it crying, and she couldn?t help it! Papa, these poor creatures love their children as much as you do meO! do something for them! There?s poor Mammy loves her children; I?ve seen her cry when she talked about themAnd Tom loves his children; and it?s dreadful, papa, that such things are happening, all the time!? ?There, there, darling,? said StClare, soothingly; ?only don?t distress yourself, don?t talk of dying, and I will do anything you wish ?And promise me, dear father, that Tom shall have his freedom as soon as??she stopped, and said, in a hesitating tone??I am gone!? ?Yes, dear, I will do anything in the world,?anything you could ask me to ?Dear papa,? said the child, laying her burning cheek against his, ?how I wish we could go together!? ?Where, dearest?? said St ?To our Saviour?s home; it?s so sweet and peaceful there?it is all so loving there!? The child spoke unconsciously, as of a place where she had often been?Don?t you want to go, papa?? she shop said

The attitude of the two had a terrible resemblance to a child forcing a kitten's nose into a saucer of milk to compel it to drinkAs we burst into the room, the Count turned his face, and the hellish look that I had heard described seemed to leap into itHis eyes flamed red with devilish passionThe great nostrils of the white aquiline nose opened wide and quivered at the edge, and the white sharp teeth, behind the full lips of the blood dripping mouth, clamped together like those of a wild beastWith a wrench, which threw his victim back upon the bed as though hurled from a height, he turned and sprang at usBut by this time the Professor had gained his feet, and was holding towards him the envelope which contained the Sacred WaferThe Count suddenly stopped, just as poor Lucy had done outside the tomb, and cowered backFurther and further back he cowered, as we, lifting our crucifixes, advancedThe moonlight suddenly failed, as a great black cloud sailed across the skyAnd when the gaslight sprang up under Quincey's match, we saw nothing but a faint vapourThis, as we looked, trailed under the door, which with the recoil from its bursting open, had swung back to its old positionVan Helsing, Art, and I moved forward to MrsHarker, who by this time had drawn her breath and with it had given a scream so wild, so ear-piercing, so despairing that it seems to me now that it will ring in my ears till my dying dayFor a few seconds she lay in her helpless attitude and disarrayHer face was ghastly, with a pallor which was accentuated by the blood which smeared her lips and cheeks and chinFrom her throat trickled a thin stream of bloodHer eyes were mad with terrorThen she put before her face her poor crushed hands, which bore on their whiteness the red mark of the Count's terrible grip, and from behind them came a low desolate wail which made the terrible scream seem only the quick expression of an endless griefVan Helsing stepped forward and drew the coverlet gently over her body, whilst Art, after looking at her face for an instant despairingly, ran out of the room Van Helsing whispered to me, "Jonathan is in a stupor such as we know the Vampire can produceWe can do nothing with poor Madam Mina for a few moments till she recovers herselfI must wake him!" He dipped the end of a towel in cold water and with it began to flick him on the face, his wife all the while holding her face between her hands and sobbing in a way that was heart breaking to hearI raised the blind, and looked out of the windowThere was much moonshine, and as I looked I could see Quincey Morris run across the lawn and hide himself in the shadow of a great yew treeIt puzzled me to think why he was doing thisBut at the instant I heard Harker's quick exclamation as he woke to partial consciousness, and turned to the bedOn his face, as there might well be, was a look of wild amazementHe seemed dazed for a few seconds, and then full consciousness seemed to burst upon him all at once, and he started up His wife was aroused by the quick movement, and turned to him with her arms stretched out, as though to embrace himInstantly, however, she drew them in again, and putting her elbows together, held her hands before her face, and shuddered till the bed beneath her shook "In God's name what does this mean?" Harker cried outVan Helsing, what is it? What has happened? What is wrong? Mina, dear what is it? What does that blood mean? My God, my God! Has it come to this!" And, raising himself to his knees, he beat his hands wildly together"Good God help us! Help her! Oh, help her!" With a quick movement he jumped from bed, and began to pull on his clothes, all the man in him awake at the need for instant exertion"What has happened? Tell me all about it!" he cried without pausingVan Helsing, you love Mina, I knowOh, do something to save herIt cannot have gone too far yetGuard her while I look for him!" His wife, through her terror and horror and distress, saw some sure danger to himInstantly forgetting her own grief, she seized hold of him and cried out "No! No! Jonathan, you must not leave shop me