Summary

"Return" takes form as a letter that Phineas writes to his brother, Andrew. Phineas survived his bout with cholera, but not without difficulty. He understands the suffering that the reverend and Miss Lisle endured. Indeed, his body began to fail him and he only survived because his "instinctive faculties refused the same fate" (324). As Phineas returned to health, so too did the streets of Bangkok, and the capital has resumed its vitality.

Upon the reverend's death, the Society decided to close the mission in Siam. They offered Phineas a position in China instead. Phineas plans to decline it--he wants to stay in Siam. His decision, he writes, became clear when he was sick. Winston, who had heard of the reverend's death, returned to the mission with Bunsahk and his son. Bunmahk dips a rag into a dark liquid and puts it toward...