He shook hands with each of them, saying in turn, “Lord Godalming, I had the honour of seconding your father at the Windham; I grieve to know, by your holding the title, that he is no more.  He was a man loved and honoured by all who knew him, and in his youth was, I have heard, the inventor of a burnt rum punch, much patronized on Derby night.  Mr. Morris, you should be proud of your great state.  Its reception into the Union was a precedent which may have far-reaching effects hereafter, when the Pole and the Tropics may hold alliance to the Stars and Stripes.  The power of Treaty may yet prove a vast engine of enlargement, when the Monroe doctrine takes its true place as a political fable.  What shall any man say of his pleasure at meeting Van Helsing?  Sir, I make no apology for dropping all forms of conventional prefix.  When an individual has revolutionized therapeutics by his discovery of the continuous evolution of brain matter, conventional forms are unfitting, since they would seem to limit him to one of a class.  You, gentlemen, who by nationality, by heredity, or by the possession of natural gifts, are fitted to hold your respective places in the moving world, I take to witness that I am as sane as at least the majority of men who are in full possession of their liberties.  And I am sure that you, Dr. Seward, humanitarian and medico-jurist as well as scientist, will deem it a moral duty to deal with me as one to be considered as under exceptional circumstances.”  He made this last appeal with a courtly air of conviction which was not without its own charm.

I think we were all staggered.  For my own part, I was under the conviction, despite my knowledge of the man’s character and history, that his reason had been restored, and I felt under a strong impulse to tell him that I was satisfied as to his sanity, and would see about the necessary formalities for his release in the morning.  I thought it better to wait, however, before making so grave a statement, for of old I knew the sudden changes to which this particular patient was liable.  So I contented myself with making a general statement that he appeared to be improving very rapidly, that I would have a longer chat with him in the morning, and would then see what I could do in the direction of meeting his wishes.

This did not at all satisfy him, for he said quickly, “But I fear, Dr. Seward, that you hardly apprehend my wish.  I desire to go at once, here, now, this very hour, this very moment, if I may.  Time presses, and in our implied agreement with the old scytheman it is of the essence of the contract.  I am sure it is only necessary to put before so admirable a practitioner as Dr. Seward so simple, yet so momentous a wish, to ensure its fulfilment.”

He looked at me keenly, and seeing the negative in my face, turned to the others, and scrutinized them closely.  Not meeting any sufficient response, he went on, “Is it possible that I have erred in my supposition?”