“No,” said he.  “I am sick of all that rubbish!” He certainly is a wonderfully interesting study.  I wish I could get some glimpse of his mind or of the cause of his sudden passion.  Stop.  There may be a clue after all, if we can find why today his paroxysms came on at high noon and at sunset.  Can it be that there is a malign influence of the sun at periods which affects certain natures, as at times the moon does others?  We shall see.

TELEGRAM.  SEWARD, LONDON, TO VAN HELSING, AMSTERDAM

“4 September.—­Patient still better today.”

TELEGRAM, SEWARD, LONDON, TO VAN HELSING, AMSTERDAM

“5 September.—­Patient greatly improved.  Good appetite, sleeps naturally, good spirits, colour coming back.”

TELEGRAM, SEWARD, LONDON, TO VAN HELSING, AMSTERDAM

“6 September.—­Terrible change for the worse.  Come at once.  Do not lose an hour.  I hold over telegram to Holmwood till have seen you.”

CHAPTER 10

LETTER, DR. SEWARD TO HON.  ARTHUR HOLMWOOD

6 September

“My dear Art,

“My news today is not so good.  Lucy this morning had gone back a bit.  There is, however, one good thing which has arisen from it.  Mrs. Westenra was naturally anxious concerning Lucy, and has consulted me professionally about her.  I took advantage of the opportunity, and told her that my old master, Van Helsing, the great specialist, was coming to stay with me, and that I would put her in his charge conjointly with myself.  So now we can come and go without alarming her unduly, for a shock to her would mean sudden death, and this, in Lucy’s weak condition, might be disastrous to her.  We are hedged in with difficulties, all of us, my poor fellow, but, please God, we shall come through them all right.  If any need I shall write, so that, if you do not hear from me, take it for granted that I am simply waiting for news, In haste,

“Yours ever,”

John Seward

DR. SEWARD’S DIARY

7 September.—­The first thing Van Helsing said to me when we met at Liverpool Street was, “Have you said anything to our young friend, to lover of her?”

“No,” I said.  “I waited till I had seen you, as I said in my telegram.  I wrote him a letter simply telling him that you were coming, as Miss Westenra was not so well, and that I should let him know if need be.”