The tiny wounds of the throats disappear, and they go back to their play unknowing ever of what has beenBut of the most blessed of all, when this now UnDead be made to rest as true dead, then the soul of the poor lady whom we love shall again be freeInstead of working wickedness by night and growing more debased in the assimilating of it by day, she shall take her place with the other AngelsSo that, my friend, it will be a blessed hand for her that shall strike the blow that sets her freeTo this I am willing, but is there none amongst us who has a better right? Will it be no joy to think of hereafter in the silence of the night when sleep is not, 'It was my hand that sent her to the starsIt was the hand of him that loved her best, the hand that of all she would herself have chosen, had it been to her to choose?' Tell me if there be such a one amongst us?" We all looked at ArthurHe saw too, what we all did, the infinite kindness which suggested that his should be the hand which would restore Lucy to us as a holy, and not an unholy, memoryHe stepped forward and said bravely, though his hand trembled, and his face was as pale as snow, "My true friend, from the bottom of my broken heart I thank youTell me what I am to do, and I shall not falter!" Van Helsing laid a hand on his shoulder, and said, "Brave lad! A moment's courage, and it is doneThis stake must be driven through herIt well be a fearful ordeal, be not deceived in that, but it will be only a short time, and you will then rejoice more than your pain was greatFrom this grim tomb you will emerge as though you tread on airBut you must not falter when once you have begunOnly think that we, your true friends, are round you, and that we pray for you all the time "Go on," said Arthur hoarsely"Tell me what I am to do "Take this stake in your left hand, ready to place to the point over the heart, and the hammer in your rightThen when we begin our prayer for the dead, I shall read him, I have here the book, and the others shall follow, strike in God's name, that so all may be well with the dead that we love and that the UnDead pass away Arthur took the stake and the hammer, and when once his mind was set on action his hands never trembled nor even quiveredVan Helsing opened his missal and began to read, and Quincey and I followed as well as we could Arthur placed the point over the heart, and as I looked I could see its dint in the white fleshThen he struck with all his might The thing in the coffin writhed, and a hideous, blood-curdling screech came from the opened red lipsThe body shook and quivered and twisted in wild contortionsThe sharp white teeth champed together till the lips were cut, and the mouth was smeared with a crimson foamBut Arthur never falteredHe looked like a figure of Thor as his untrembling arm rose and fell, driving deeper and deeper the mercy-bearing stake, whilst the blood from the pierced heart welled and spurted up around itHis face was set, and high duty seemed to shine through itThe sight of it gave us courage so that our voices seemed to ring through the little vault And then the writhing and quivering of the body became less, and the teeth seemed to champ, and the face to quiverThe terrible task was over The hammer fell from Arthur's handHe reeled and would have fallen had we not caught himThe great drops of sweat sprang from his forehead, and his breath came in broken gaspsIt had indeed been an awful strain on him, and had he not been forced to his task by more than human considerations he could never have gone through with itFor a few minutes we were so taken up with him that we did not look towards the coffinWhen we did, however, a murmur of startled surprise ran from one to the other of usWe gazed so eagerly that Arthur rose, for he had been seated on the ground, and came and looked too, and then a glad strange light broke over his face and dispelled altogether the gloom of horror that lay upon it There, in the coffin lay no longer the foul Thing that we had so dreaded and grown to hate that the work of her destruction was yielded as a privilege to the one best entitled to it, but Lucy as we had seen her in life, with her face of unequalled sweetness and purityTrue that there were there, as we had seen them in life, the traces of care and pain and shop waste

?That he won?t do,? said Cassy ?Won?t,?eh?? ?No, he won?t,? said Cassy ?I?d like to know why, Mistress,? said Legree, in the extreme of scorn ?Because he?s done right, and he knows it, and won?t say he?s done wrong ?Who a cuss cares what he knows? The nigger shall say what I please, or?? ?Or, you?ll lose your bet on the cotton crop, by keeping him out of the field, just at this very press ?But he will give up,?course, he will; don?t I know what niggers is? He?ll beg like a dog, this morning He won?t, Simon; you don?t know this kindYou may kill him by inches,?you won?t get the first word of confession out of him ?We?ll see,?where is he?? said Legree, going out ?In the waste-room of the gin-house,? said Cassy Legree, though he talked so stoutly to Cassy, still sallied forth from the house with a degree of misgiving which was not common with himHis dreams of the past night, mingled with Cassy?s prudential suggestions, considerably affected his mindHe resolved that nobody should be witness of his encounter with Tom; and determined, if he could not subdue him by bullying, to defer his vengeance, to be wreaked in a more convenient season The solemn light of dawn?the angelic glory of the morning-star?had looked in through the rude window of the shed where Tom was lying; and, as if descending on that star-beam, came the solemn words, ?I am the root and offspring of David, and the bright and morning star The mysterious warnings and intimations of Cassy, so far from discouraging his soul, in the end had roused it as with a heavenly callHe did not know but that the day of his death was dawning in the sky; and his heart throbbed with solemn throes of joy and desire, as he thought that the wondrous all, of which he had often pondered,?the great white throne, with its ever radiant rainbow; the white-robed multitude, with voices as many waters; the crowns, the palms, the harps,?might all break upon his vision before that sun should set againAnd, therefore, without shuddering or trembling, he heard the voice of his persecutor, as he drew near ?Well, my boy,? said Legree, with a contemptuous kick, ?how do you find yourself? Didn?t I tell yer I could larn yer a thing or two? How do yer like it?eh? How did yer whaling agree with yer, Tom? An?t quite so crank as ye was last nightYe couldn?t treat a poor sinner, now, to a bit of sermon, could ye,?eh?? Tom answered nothing ?Get up, you beast!? said Legree, kicking him again This was a difficult matter for one so bruised and faint; and, as Tom made efforts to do so, Legree laughed brutally ?What makes ye so spry, this morning, Tom? Cotched cold, may be, last night Tom by this time had gained his feet, and was confronting his master with a steady, unmoved front ?The devil, you can!? said Legree, looking him over?I believe you haven?t got enough yetNow, Tom, get right down on yer knees and beg my pardon, for yer shines last night ?Down, you dog!? said Legree, striking him with his riding-whip ?Mas?r Legree,? said Tom, ?I can?t do itI did only what I thought was rightI shall do just so again, if ever the time comesI never will do a cruel thing, come what may ?Yes, but ye don?t know what may come, Master TomYe think what you?ve got is somethingI tell you ?tan?t anything,?nothing ?t allHow would ye like to be tied to a tree, and have a slow fire lit up around ye;?wouldn?t that be pleasant,?eh, Tom?? ?Mas?r,? said Tom, ?I know ye can do dreadful things; but,??he stretched himself upward and clasped his hands,??but, after ye?ve killed the body, there an?t no more ye can doAnd O, there?s all ETERNITY to come, after that!? ETERNITY,?the word thrilled through the black man?s soul with light and power, as he spoke; it thrilled through the sinner?s soul, too, like the bite of a scorpionLegree gnashed on him with his teeth, but rage kept him silent; and Tom, like a man disenthralled, spoke, in a clear and cheerful voice, ?Mas?r Legree, as ye bought me, I?ll be a true and faithful servant to yeI?ll give ye all the work of my hands, all my time, all my strength; but my soul I won?t give up to mortal manI will hold on to the Lord, and put his commands before all,?die or live; you may be sure on ?tMas?r Legree, I ain?t a grain afeard to shop die

Time is now to be dreaded, since once he put that mark upon your throat I was just in time to catch her as she fell forward in a faint CHAPTER 24 DRSEWARD'S PHONOGRAPH DIARY SPOKEN BY VAN HELSING This to Jonathan Harker You are to stay with your dear Madam MinaWe shall go to make our search, if I can call it so, for it is not search but knowing, and we seek confirmation onlyBut do you stay and take care of her todayThis is your best and most holiest officeThis day nothing can find him here Let me tell you that so you will know what we four know already, for I have tell themHe, our enemy, have gone awayHe have gone back to his Castle in TransylvaniaI know it so well, as if a great hand of fire wrote it on the wallHe have prepare for this in some way, and that last earth box was ready to ship somewheresFor this he took the moneyFor this he hurry at the last, lest we catch him before the sun go downIt was his last hope, save that he might hide in the tomb that he think poor Miss Lucy, being as he thought like him, keep open to himBut there was not of timeWhen that fail he make straight for his last resource, his last earth-work I might say did I wish double ententeHe is clever, oh so clever! He know that his game here was finishAnd so he decide he go back homeHe find ship going by the route he came, and he go in it We go off now to find what ship, and whither boundWhen we have discover that, we come back and tell you allThen we will comfort you and poor Madam Mina with new hopeFor it will be hope when you think it over, that all is not lostThis very creature that we pursue, he take hundreds of years to get so far as LondonAnd yet in one day, when we know of the disposal of him we drive him outHe is finite, though he is powerful to do much harm and suffers not as we doBut we are strong, each in our purpose, and we are all more strong togetherTake heart afresh, dear husband of Madam MinaThis battle is but begun and in the end we shall winSo sure as that God sits on high to watch over His childrenTherefore be of much comfort till we return JONATHAN HARKER'S JOURNAL 4 October-When I read to Mina, Van Helsing's message in the phonograph, the poor girl brightened up considerablyAlready the certainty that the Count is out of the country has given her comfortAnd comfort is strength to herFor my own part, now that his horrible danger is not face to face with us, it seems almost impossible to believe in itEven my own terrible experiences in Castle Dracula seem like a long forgotten shop dream

?O, wal, certainly, jest let it go at that,? said Haley, alarmed; ?you catch the boy for the job;?you allers did trade far with me, Tom, and was up to yer word ?Ye know that,? said Tom; ?I don?t pretend none of your snivelling ways, but I won?t lie in my ?counts with the devil himselfWhat I ses I?ll do, I will do,?you know that, Dan Haley ?Jes so, jes so,?I said so, Tom,? said Haley; ?and if you?d only promise to have the boy for me in a week, at any point you?ll name, that?s all I want ?But it an?t all I want, by a long jump,? said Tom?Ye don?t think I did business with you, down in Natchez, for nothing, Haley; I?ve learned to hold an eel, when I catch himYou?ve got to fork over fifty dollars, flat down, or this child don?t start a peg ?Why, when you have a job in hand that may bring a clean profit of somewhere about a thousand or sixteen hundred, why, Tom, you?re onreasonable,? said Haley ?Yes, and hasn?t we business booked for five weeks to come,?all we can do? And suppose we leaves all, and goes to bush-whacking round arter yer young uns, and finally doesn?t catch the gal,?and gals allers is the devil to catch,?what?s then? would you pay us a cent?would you? I think I see you a doin? it?ugh! No, no; flap down your fiftyIf we get the job, and it pays, I?ll hand it back; if we don?t, it?s for our trouble,?that?s far, an?t it, Marks?? ?Certainly, certainly,? said Marks, with a conciliatory tone; ?it?s only a retaining fee, you see,?he! he! he!?we lawyers, you knowWal, we must all keep good-natured,?keep easy, yer knowTom?ll have the boy for yer, anywhere ye?ll name; won?t ye, Tom?? ?If I find the young un, I?ll bring him on to Cincinnati, and leave him at Granny Belcher?s, on the landing,? said Loker Marks had got from his pocket a greasy pocket-book, and taking a long paper from thence, he sat down, and fixing his keen black eyes on it, began mumbling over its contents: ?Barnes?Shelby County?boy Jim, three hundred dollars for him, dead or alive ?Edwards?Dick and Lucy?man and wife, six hundred dollars; wench Polly and two children?six hundred for her or her head ?I?m jest a runnin? over our business, to see if we can take up this yer handilyLoker,? he said, after a pause, ?we must set Adams and Springer on the track of these yer; they?ve been booked some time ?They?ll charge too much,? said Tom ?I?ll manage that ar; they ?s young in the business, and must spect to work cheap,? said Marks, as he continued to read?Ther?s three on ?em easy cases, ?cause all you?ve got to do is to shoot ?em, or swear they is shot; they couldn?t, of course, charge much for thatThem other cases,? he said, folding the paper, ?will bear puttin? off a spellSo now let?s come to the particularsHaley, you saw this yer gal when she landed?? ?To be sure,?plain as I see you ?And a man helpin? on her up the bank?? said Loker ?Most likely,? said Marks, ?she?s took in somewhere; but where, ?s a questionTom, what do you say?? ?We must cross the river tonight, no mistake,? said Tom ?But there?s no boat about,? said Marks?The ice is running awfully, Tom; an?t it dangerous?? ?Don?no nothing ?bout that,?only it?s got to be done,? said Tom, decidedly ?Dear me,? said Marks, fidgeting, ?it?ll be?I say,? he said, walking to the window, ?it?s dark as a wolf?s mouth, and, Tom?? ?The long and short is, you?re scared, Marks; but I can?t help that,?you?ve got to goSuppose you want to lie by a day or two, till the gal ?s been carried on the underground line up to Sandusky or so, before you start ?O, no; I an?t a grain afraid,? said Marks, ?only?? ?Only what?? said Tom ?Well, about the boatYer see there an?t any boat ?I heard the woman say there was one coming along this evening, and that a man was going to cross over in itNeck or nothing, we must go with him,? said Tom ?I s?pose you?ve got good dogs,? said Haley ?First rate,? said Marks?But what?s the use? you han?t got nothin? o? hers to smell on ?Yes, I have,? said Haley, triumphantly?Here?s her shawl she left on the bed in her hurry; she left her bonnet, too ?That ar?s lucky,? said Loker; ?fork shop over

If I don't sleep at once, chloral, the modern Morpheus! I must be careful not to let it grow into a habitNo, I shall take none tonight! I have thought of Lucy, and I shall not dishonour her by mixing the twoIf need be, tonight shall be sleepless-Glad I made the resolution, gladder that I kept to itI had lain tossing about, and had heard the clock strike only twice, when the night watchman came to me, sent up from the ward, to say that Renfield had escapedI threw on my clothes and ran down at onceMy patient is too dangerous a person to be roaming aboutThose ideas of his might work out dangerously with strangers The attendant was waiting for meHe said he had seen him not ten minutes before, seemingly asleep in his bed, when he had looked through the observation trap in the doorHis attention was called by the sound of the window being wrenched outHe ran back and saw his feet disappear through the window, and had at once sent up for meHe was only in his night gear, and cannot be far off The attendant thought it would be more useful to watch where he should go than to follow him, as he might lose sight of him whilst getting out of the building by the doorHe is a bulky man, and couldn't get through the window I am thin, so, with his aid, I got out, but feet foremost, and as we were only a few feet above ground landed unhurt The attendant told me the patient had gone to the left, and had taken a straight line, so I ran as quickly as I couldAs I got through the belt of trees I saw a white figure scale the high wall which separates our grounds from those of the deserted house I ran back at once, told the watchman to get three or four men immediately and follow me into the grounds of Carfax, in case our friend might be dangerousI got a ladder myself, and crossing the wall, dropped down on the other sideI could see Renfield's figure just disappearing behind the angle of the house, so I ran after himOn the far side of the house I found him pressed close against the old iron-bound oak door of the chapel He was talking, apparently to some one, but I was afraid to go near enough to hear what he was saying, lest I might frighten him, and he should run off Chasing an errant swarm of bees is nothing to following a naked lunatic, when the fit of escaping is upon him! After a few minutes, however, I could see that he did not take note of anything around him, and so ventured to draw nearer to him, the more so as my men had now crossed the wall and were closing him inI heard him say? "I am here to do your bidding, MasterI am your slave, and you will reward me, for I shall be faithfulI have worshipped you long and afar offNow that you are near, I await your commands, and you will not pass me by, will you, dear Master, in your distribution of good things?" He is a selfish old beggar anyhowHe thinks of the loaves and fishes even when he believes his is in a real PresenceHis manias make a startling combinationWhen we closed in on him he fought like a tigerHe is immensely strong, for he was more like a wild beast than a man I never saw a lunatic in such a paroxysm of rage before, and I hope I shall not againIt is a mercy that we have found out his strength and his danger in good timeWith strength and determination like his, he might have done wild work before he was caged He is safe now, at any rateJack Sheppard himself couldn't get free from the strait waistcoat that keeps him restrained, and he's chained to the wall in the padded room His cries are at times awful, but the silences that follow are more deadly still, for he means murder in every turn and movement Just now he spoke coherent words for the first time"I shall be patient, shop Master