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  and to yield to such foolish ideas would demoralise the men, said
  he would engage to keep them out of trouble with the handspike.  I
  let him take the helm, while the rest began a thorough search, all
  keeping abreast, with lanterns.  We left no corner unsearched.  As
  there were only the big wooden boxes, there were no odd corners
  where a man could hide.  Men much relieved when search over, and
  went back to work cheerfully.  First mate scowled, but said
  nothing.


  22 July.--Rough weather last three days, and all hands busy
  with sails, no time to be frightened.  Men seem to have
  forgotten their dread.  Mate cheerful again, and all on
  good terms.  Praised men for work in bad weather.  Passed
  Gibraltar and out through Straits.  All well.


  24 July.--There seems some doom over this ship.  Already a hand
  short, and entering the Bay of Biscay with wild weather ahead, and
  yet last night another man lost, disappeared.  Like the first, he
  came off his watch and was not seen again.  Men all in a panic of

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sleep.

The others were dazed at first, but as remembrance came back to them
they cried and sobbed in a hysterical manner.  I was stern with them,
however, and would not let them talk.  I told them that one life was
bad enough to lose, and if they delayed they would sacrifice Miss
Lucy.  So, sobbing and crying they went about their way, half clad as
they were, and prepared fire and water.  Fortunately, the kitchen and
boiler fires were still alive, and there was no lack of hot water.  We
got a bath and carried Lucy out as she was and placed her in it.
Whilst we were busy chafing her limbs there was a knock at the hall
door.  One of the maids ran off, hurried on some more clothes, and
opened it.  Then she returned and whispered to us that there was a
gentleman who had come with a message from Mr. Holmwood.  I bade her
simply tell him that he must wait, for we could see no one now.  She
went away with the message, and, engrossed with our work, I clean
forgot all about him.

I never saw in all my experience the Professor work in such deadly
earnest.  I knew, as he knew, that it was a stand-up fight with death,
and in a pause told him so.  He answered me in a way that I did not

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will I have left you everything.'  I cried, Lucy dear, as
Jonathan and the old man clasped hands.  Our evening was a
very, very happy one.

"So here we are, installed in this beautiful old house, and
from both my bedroom and the drawing room I can see the
great elms of the cathedral close, with their great black
stems standing out against the old yellow stone of the cathedral,
and I can hear the rooks overhead cawing and cawing and
chattering and chattering and gossiping all day, after the manner
of rooks--and humans.  I am busy, I need not tell you, arranging
things and housekeeping.  Jonathan and Mr. Hawkins are busy all
day, for now that Jonathan is a partner, Mr. Hawkins wants to
tell him all about the clients.

"How is your dear mother getting on?  I wish I could run up
to town for a day or two to see you, dear, but I dare not
go yet, with so much on my shoulders, and Jonathan wants
looking after still.  He is beginning to put some flesh on
his bones again, but he was terribly weakened by the long
illness.  Even now he sometimes starts out of his sleep in
a sudden way and awakes all trembling until I can coax him

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29 September, in train to London.--When I received Mr. Billington's
courteous message that he would give me any information in his power I
thought it best to go down to Whitby and make, on the spot, such
inquiries as I wanted.  It was now my object to trace that horrid
cargo of the Count's to its place in London.  Later, we may be able to
deal with it.  Billington junior, a nice lad, met me at the station,
and brought me to his father's house, where they had decided that I
must spend the night.  They are hospitable, with true Yorkshire
hospitality, give a guest everything and leave him to do as he likes.
They all knew that I was busy, and that my stay was short, and Mr.
Billington had ready in his office all the papers concerning the
consignment of boxes.  It gave me almost a turn to see again one of
the letters which I had seen on the Count's table before I knew of his
diabolical plans.  Everything had been carefully thought out, and done
systematically and with precision.  He seemed to have been prepared
for every obstacle which might be placed by accident in the way of his
intentions being carried out.  To use an Americanism, he had 'taken no
chances', and the absolute accuracy with which his instructions were
fulfilled was simply the logical result of his care.  I saw the
invoice, and took note of it.  'Fifty cases of common earth, to be used

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God I may never see your sweet face again.  May He bless and keep
you!"

When I went to the station to meet Van Helsing I left the boys behind
me.  Poor Art seemed more cheerful than he has been since Lucy first
took ill, and Quincey is more like his own bright self than he has
been for many a long day.

Van Helsing stepped from the carriage with the eager nimbleness of a
boy.  He saw me at once, and rushed up to me, saying, "Ah, friend
John, how goes all?  Well?  So!  I have been busy, for I come here to
stay if need be.  All affairs are settled with me, and I have much to
tell.  Madam Mina is with you?  Yes.  And her so fine husband?  And
Arthur and my friend Quincey, they are with you, too?  Good!"

As I drove to the house I told him of what had passed, and of how my
own diary had come to be of some use through Mrs. Harker's suggestion,
at which the Professor interrupted me.

"Ah, that wonderful Madam Mina!  She has man's brain, a brain that a
man should have were he much gifted, and a woman's heart.  The good

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DR. SEWARD'S DIARY

1 October, 4 A.M.--Just as we were about to leave the house, an urgent
message was brought to me from Renfield to know if I would see him at
once, as he had something of the utmost importance to say to me.  I
told the messenger to say that I would attend to his wishes in the
morning, I was busy just at the moment.

The attendant added, "He seems very importunate, sir.  I have never
seen him so eager.  I don't know but what, if you don't see him soon,
he will have one of his violent fits."  I knew the man would not have
said this without some cause, so I said, "All right, I'll go now," and
I asked the others to wait a few minutes for me, as I had to go and
see my patient.

"Take me with you, friend John," said the Professor.  "His case in your
diary interest me much, and it had bearing, too, now and again on our

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work is to be a sealed book to her, till at least such time as we can
tell her that all is finished, and the earth free from a monster of
the nether world.  I daresay it will be difficult to begin to keep
silence after such confidence as ours, but I must be resolute, and
tomorrow I shall keep dark over tonight's doings, and shall refuse to
speak of anything that has happened.  I rest on the sofa, so as not to
disturb her.


1 October, later.--I suppose it was natural that we should have all
overslept ourselves, for the day was a busy one, and the night had no
rest at all.  Even Mina must have felt its exhaustion, for though I
slept till the sun was high, I was awake before her, and had to call
two or three times before she awoke.  Indeed, she was so sound asleep
that for a few seconds she did not recognize me, but looked at me with
a sort of blank terror, as one looks who has been waked out of a bad
dream.  She complained a little of being tired, and I let her rest
till later in the day.  We now know of twenty-one boxes having been
removed, and if it be that several were taken in any of these removals
we may be able to trace them all.  Such will, of course, immensely
simplify our labor, and the sooner the matter is attended to the