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:--
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