“You must promise me, my dear sir, not to trouble yourself with unnecessarily exciting thoughts; confine yourself strictly to the narrative of facts; and recollect, above all, that even if the thing that infests you be, you seem to suppose a reality with an actual independent life and will, yet it can have no power to hurt you, unless it be given from above:  its access to your senses depends mainly upon your physical condition—­this is, under God, your comfort and reliance:  we are all alike environed.  It is only that in your case, the ’paries,’ the veil of the flesh, the screen, is a little out of repair, and sights and sounds are transmitted.  We must enter on a new course, sir,—­be encouraged.  I’ll give to-night to the careful consideration of the whole case.”

“You are very good, sir; you think it worth trying, you don’t give me quite up; but, sir, you don’t know, it is gaining such an influence over me:  it orders me about, it is such a tyrant, and I’m growing so helpless.  May God deliver me!”

“It orders you about—­of course you mean by speech?”

“Yes, yes; it is always urging me to crimes, to injure others, or myself.  You see, Doctor, the situation is urgent, it is indeed.  When I was in Shropshire, a few weeks ago” (Mr. Jennings was speaking rapidly and trembling now, holding my arm with one hand, and looking in my face), “I went out one day with a party of friends for a walk:  my persecutor, I tell you, was with me at the time.  I lagged behind the rest:  the country near the Dee, you know, is beautiful.  Our path happened to lie near a coal mine, and at the verge of the wood is a perpendicular shaft, they say, a hundred and fifty feet deep.  My niece had remained behind with me—­she knows, of course nothing of the nature of my sufferings.  She knew, however, that I had been ill, and was low, and she remained to prevent my being quite alone.  As we loitered slowly on together, the brute that accompanied me was urging me to throw myself down the shaft.  I tell you now—­oh, sir, think of it!—­the one consideration that saved me from that hideous death was the fear lest the shock of witnessing the occurrence should be too much for the poor girl.  I asked her to go on and walk with her friends, saying that I could go no further.  She made excuses, and the more I urged her the firmer she became.  She looked doubtful and frightened.  I suppose there was something in my looks or manner that alarmed her; but she would not go, and that literally saved me.  You had no idea, sir, that a living man could be made so abject a slave of Satan,” he said, with a ghastly groan and a shudder.

There was a pause here, and I said, “You were preserved nevertheless.  It was the act of God.  You are in His hands and in the power of no other being:  be therefore confident for the future.”

CHAPTER X

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