第15章

Theoldcrone“nichered”alaughunderherbonnetandbandage;shethendrewoutashortblackpipe，andlightingitbegantosmoke。Havingindulgedawhileinthissedative，sheraisedherbentbody，tookthepipefromherlips，andwhilegazingsteadilyatthefire，saidverydeliberately—“Youarecold;youaresick;andyouaresilly。”

“Proveit，”Irejoined。

“Iwill，infewwords。Youarecold，becauseyouarealone:nocontactstrikesthefirefromyouthatisinyou。Youaresick;becausethebestoffeelings，thehighestandthesweetestgiventoman，keepsfarawayfromyou。Youaresilly，because，sufferasyoumay，youwillnotbeckonittoapproach，norwillyoustironesteptomeetitwhereitwaitsyou。”

Sheagainputhershortblackpipetoherlips，andrenewedhersmokingwithvigour。

“Youmightsayallthattoalmostanyonewhoyouknewlivedasasolitarydependentinagreathouse。”

“Imightsayittoalmostanyone:butwoulditbetrueofalmostanyone？”

“Inmycircumstances。”

“Yes;justso，inyourcircumstances:butfindmeanotherpreciselyplacedasyouare。”

“Itwouldbeeasytofindyouthousands。”

“Youcouldscarcelyfindmeone。Ifyouknewit，youarepeculiarlysituated:verynearhappiness;yes，withinreachofit。Thematerialsareallprepared;thereonlywantsamovementtocombinethem。Chancelaidthemsomewhatapart;letthembeonceapproachedandblissresults。”

“Idon’tunderstandenigmas。Inevercouldguessariddleinmylife。”

“Ifyouwishmetospeakmoreplainly，showmeyourpalm。”

“AndImustcrossitwithsilver，Isuppose？”

“Tobesure。”

Igaveherashilling:sheputitintoanoldstocking—footwhichshetookoutofherpocket，andhavingtieditroundandreturnedit，shetoldmetoholdoutmyhand。Idid。Sheachedherfacetothepalm，andporedoveritwithouttouchingit。

“Itistoofine，”saidshe。“Icanmakenothingofsuchahandasthat;almostwithoutlines:besides，whatisinapalm？Destinyisnotwrittenthere。”

“Ibelieveyou，”saidI。

“No，”shecontinued，“itisintheface:ontheforehead，abouttheeyes，inthelinesofthemouth。Kneel，andliftupyourhead。”

“Ah！nowyouarecomingtoreality，”Isaid，asIobeyedher。“Ishallbegintoputsomefaithinyoupresently。”

Ikneltwithinhalfayardofher。Shestirredthefire，sothatarippleoflightbrokefromthedisturbedcoal:theglare，however，asshesat，onlythrewherfaceintodeepershadow:mine，itillumined。

“Iwonderwithwhatfeelingsyoucametometo—night，”shesaid，whenshehadexaminedmeawhile。“Iwonderwhatthoughtsarebusyinyourheartduringallthehoursyousitinyonderroomwiththefinepeopleflittingbeforeyoulikeshapesinamagic—lantern:justaslittlesympatheticcommunionpassingbetweenyouandthemasiftheywerereallymereshadowsofhumanforms，andnottheactualsubstance。”

“Ifeeltiredoften，sleepysometimes，butseldomsad。”

“Thenyouhavesomesecrethopetobuoyyouupandpleaseyouwithwhispersofthefuture？”

“NotI。TheutmostIhopeis，tosavemoneyenoughoutofmyearningstosetupaschoolsomedayinalittlehouserentedbymyself。”

“Ameannutrimentforthespirittoexiston:andsittinginthatwindow—seat（youseeIknowyourhabits）—”

“Youhavelearnedthemfromtheservants。”

“Ah！youthinkyourselfsharp。Well，perhapsIhave:tospeaktruth，Ihaveanacquaintancewithoneofthem，Mrs。Poole—”

IstartedtomyfeetwhenIheardthename。

“Youhave—haveyou？”thoughtI;“thereisdiablerieinthebusinessafterall，then！”

“Don’tbealarmed，”continuedthestrangebeing;“she’sasafehandisMrs。Poole:closeandquiet;anyonemayreposeconfidenceinher。But，asIwassaying:sittinginthatwindow—seat，doyouthinkofnothingbutyourfutureschool？Haveyounopresentinterestinanyofthecompanywhooccupythesofasandchairsbeforeyou？Istherenotonefaceyoustudy？onefigurewhosemovementsyoufollowwithatleastcuriosity？”

“Iliketoobserveallthefacesandallthefigures。”

“Butdoyouneversingleonefromtherest—oritmaybe，two？”

“Idofrequently;whenthegesturesorlooksofapairseemtellingatale:itamusesmetowatchthem。”

“Whattaledoyoulikebesttohear？”

“Oh，Ihavenotmuchchoice！Theygenerallyrunonthesametheme—courtship;andpromisetoendinthesamecatastrophe—marriage。”

“Anddoyoulikethatmonotonoustheme？”

“Positively，Idon’tcareaboutit:itisnothingtome。”

“Nothingtoyou？Whenalady，youngandfulloflifeandhealth，charmingwithbeautyandendowedwiththegiftsofrankandfortune，sitsandsmilesintheeyesofagentlemanyou—”

“Iwhat？”

“Youknow—andperhapsthinkwellof。”

“Idon’tknowthegentlemenhere。Ihavescarcelyinterchangedasyllablewithoneofthem;andastothinkingwellofthem，Iconsidersomerespectable，andstately，andmiddle—aged，andothersyoung，dashing，handsome，andlively:butcertainlytheyareallatlibertytobetherecipientsofwhosesmilestheyplease，withoutmyfeelingdisposedtoconsiderthetransactionofanymomenttome。”

“Youdon’tknowthegentlemenhere？Youhavenotexchangedasyllablewithoneofthem？Willyousaythatofthemasterofthehouse！”

“Heisnotathome。”

“Aprofoundremark！Amostingeniousquibble！HewenttoMillcotethismorning，andwillbebackhereto—nightorto—morrow:doesthatcircumstanceexcludehimfromthelistofyouracquaintance—blothim，asitwere，outofexistence？”

“No;butIcanscarcelyseewhatMr。Rochesterhastodowiththethemeyouhadintroduced。”

“Iwastalkingofladiessmilingintheeyesofgentlemen;andoflatesomanysmileshavebeenshedintoMr。Rochester’seyesthattheyoverflowliketwocupsfilledabovethebrim:haveyouneverremarkedthat？”

“Mr。Rochesterhasarighttoenjoythesocietyofhisguests。”

“Noquestionabouthisright:buthaveyouneverobservedthat，ofallthetalestoldhereaboutmatrimony，Mr。Rochesterhasbeenfavouredwiththemostlivelyandthemostcontinuous？”

“Theeagernessofalistenerquickensthetongueofanarrator。”Isaidthisrathertomyselfthantothegipsy，whosestrangetalk，voice，manner，hadbythistimewrappedmeinakindofdream。Oneunexpectedsentencecamefromherlipsafteranother，tillIgotinvolvedinawebofmystification;andwonderedwhatunseenspirithadbeensittingforweeksbymyheartwatchingitsworkingsandtakingrecordofeverypulse。

“Eagernessofalistener！”repeatedshe:“yes;Mr。Rochesterhassatbythehour，hisearinclinedtothefascinatinglipsthattooksuchdelightintheirtaskofcommunicating;andMr。Rochesterwassowillingtoreceiveandlookedsogratefulforthepastimegivenhim;youhavenoticedthis？”

“Grateful！Icannotrememberdetectinggratitudeinhisface。”

“Detecting！Youhaveanalysed，then。Andwhatdidyoudetect，ifnotgratitude？”

Isaidnothing。

“Youhaveseenlove:haveyounot？—and，lookingforward，youhaveseenhimmarried，andbeheldhisbridehappy？”

“Humph！Notexactly。Yourwitch’sskillisratheratfaultsometimes。”

“Whatthedevilhaveyouseen，then？”

“Nevermind:Icameheretoinquire，nottoconfess。IsitknownthatMr。Rochesteristobemarried？”

“Yes;andtothebeautifulMissIngram。”

“Shortly？”

“Appearanceswouldwarrantthatconclusion:and，nodoubt（though，withanaudacitythatwantschastisingoutofyou，youseemtoquestionit），theywillbeasuperlativelyhappypair。Hemustlovesuchahandsome，noble，witty，accomplishedlady;andprobablysheloveshim，or，ifnothisperson，atleasthispurse。IknowsheconsiderstheRochesterestateeligibletothelastdegree;though（Godpardonme！）Itoldhersomethingonthatpointaboutanhouragowhichmadeherlookwondrousgrave:thecornersofhermouthfellhalfaninch。Iwouldadviseherblackavicedsuitortolookout:ifanothercomes，withalongerorclearerrent—roll，—he’sdished—”

“But，mother，IdidnotcometohearMr。Rochester’sfortune:Icametohearmyown;andyouhavetoldmenothingofit。”

“Yourfortuneisyetdoubtful:whenIexaminedyourface，onetraitcontradictedanother。Chancehasmetedyouameasureofhappiness:thatIknow。IknewitbeforeIcameherethisevening。Shehaslaiditcarefullyononesideforyou。Isawherdoit。Itdependsonyourselftostretchoutyourhand，andtakeitup:butwhetheryouwilldoso，istheproblemIstudy。Kneelagainontherug。”

“Don’tkeepmelong;thefirescorchesme。”

Iknelt。Shedidnotstooptowardsme，butonlygazed，leaningbackinherchair。Shebeganmuttering，—

“Theflameflickersintheeye;theeyeshineslikedew;itlookssoftandfulloffeeling;itsmilesatmyjargon:itissusceptible;impressionfollowsimpressionthroughitsclearsphere;whereitceasestosmile，itissad;anunconsciouslassitudeweighsonthelid:thatsignifiesmelancholyresultingfromloneliness。Itturnsfromme;itwillnotsufferfurtherscrutiny;itseemstodeny，byamockingglance，thetruthofthediscoveriesIhavealreadymade，—todisownthechargebothofsensibilityandchagrin:itsprideandreserveonlyconfirmmeinmyopinion。Theeyeisfavourable。

“Astothemouth，itdelightsattimesinlaughter;itisdisposedtoimpartallthatthebrainconceives;thoughIdaresayitwouldbesilentonmuchtheheartexperiences。Mobileandflexible，itwasneverintendedtobecompressedintheeternalsilenceofsolitude:itisamouthwhichshouldspeakmuchandsmileoften，andhavehumanaffectionforitsinterlocutor。Thatfeaturetooispropitious。

“Iseenoenemytoafortunateissuebutinthebrow;andthatbrowprofessestosay，—‘Icanlivealone，ifself—respect，andcircumstancesrequiremesotodo。Ineednotsellmysoultobuybliss。Ihaveaninwardtreasurebornwithme，whichcankeepmealiveifallextraneousdelightsshouldbewithheld，orofferedonlyatapriceIcannotaffordtogive。’Theforeheaddeclares，‘Reasonsitsfirmandholdsthereins，andshewillnotletthefeelingsburstawayandhurryhertowildchasms。Thepassionsmayragefuriously，liketrueheathens，astheyare;andthedesiresmayimagineallsortsofvainthings:butjudgmentshallstillhavethelastwordineveryargument，andthecastingvoteineverydecision。Strongwind，earthquake—shock，andfiremaypassby:butIshallfollowtheguidingofthatstillsmallvoicewhichinterpretsthedictatesofconscience。’

“Wellsaid，forehead;yourdeclarationshallberespected。Ihaveformedmyplans—rightplansIdeemthem—andinthemIhaveattendedtotheclaimsofconscience，thecounselsofreason。Iknowhowsoonyouthwouldfadeandbloomperish，if，inthecupofblissoffered，butonedregofshame，oroneflavourofremorseweredetected;andIdonotwantsacrifice，sorrow，dissolution—suchisnotmytaste。Iwishtofoster，nottoblight—toearngratitude，nottowringtearsofblood—no，norofbrine:myharvestmustbeinsmiles，inendearments，insweet—Thatwilldo。IthinkIraveinakindofexquisitedelirium。Ishouldwishnowtoprotractthismomentadinfinitum;butIdarenot。SofarIhavegovernedmyselfthoroughly。IhaveactedasIinwardlysworeIwouldact;butfurthermighttrymebeyondmystrength。Rise，MissEyre:leaveme;theplayisplayedout’。”

WherewasI？DidIwakeorsleep？HadIbeendreaming？DidIdreamstill？Theoldwoman’svoicehadchanged:heraccent，hergesture，andallwerefamiliartomeasmyownfaceinaglass—asthespeechofmyowntongue。Igotup，butdidnotgo。Ilooked;Istirredthefire，andIlookedagain:butshedrewherbonnetandherbandagecloseraboutherface，andagainbeckonedmetodepart。Theflameilluminatedherhandstretchedout:rousednow，andonthealertfordiscoveries，Iatoncenoticedthathand。Itwasnomorethewitheredlimbofeldthanmyown;itwasaroundedsupplemember，withsmoothfingers，symmetricallyturned;abroadringflashedonthelittlefinger，andstoopingforward，Ilookedatit，andsawagemIhadseenahundredtimesbefore。AgainIlookedattheface;whichwasnolongerturnedfromme—onthecontrary，thebonnetwasdoffed，thebandagedisplaced，theheadadvanced。

“Well，Jane，doyouknowme？”askedthefamiliarvoice。

“Onlytakeofftheredcloak，sir，andthen—”

“Butthestringisinaknot—helpme。”

“Breakit，sir。”

“There，then—‘Off，yelendings！’”AndMr。Rochestersteppedoutofhisdisguise。

“Now，sir，whatastrangeidea！”

“Butwellcarriedout，eh？Don’tyouthinkso？”

“Withtheladiesyoumusthavemanagedwell。”

“Butnotwithyou？”

“Youdidnotactthecharacterofagipsywithme。”

“WhatcharacterdidIact？Myown？”

“No;someunaccountableone。Inshort，Ibelieveyouhavebeentryingtodrawmeout—orin;youhavebeentalkingnonsensetomakemetalknonsense。Itisscarcelyfair，sir。”

“Doyouforgiveme，Jane？”

“IcannottelltillIhavethoughtitallover。If，onreflection，IfindIhavefallenintonogreatabsurdity，Ishalltrytoforgiveyou;butitwasnotright。”

“Oh，youhavebeenverycorrect—verycareful，verysensible。”

Ireflected，andthought，onthewhole，Ihad。Itwasacomfort;but，indeed，Ihadbeenonmyguardalmostfromthebeginningoftheinterview。SomethingofmasqueradeIsuspected。Iknewgipsiesandfortune—tellersdidnotexpressthemselvesasthisseemingoldwomanhadexpressedherself;besidesIhadnotedherfeignedvoice，heranxietytoconcealherfeatures。ButmymindhadbeenrunningonGracePoole—thatlivingenigma，thatmysteryofmysteries，asIconsideredher。IhadneverthoughtofMr。Rochester。

“Well，”saidhe，“whatareyoumusingabout？Whatdoesthatgravesmilesignify？”

“Wonderandself—congratulation，sir。Ihaveyourpermissiontoretirenow，Isuppose？”

“No;stayamoment;andtellmewhatthepeopleinthedrawing—roomyonderaredoing。”

“Discussingthegipsy，Idaresay。”

“Sitdown！—Letmehearwhattheysaidaboutme。”

“Ihadbetternotstaylong，sir;itmustbeneareleveno’clock。Oh，areyouaware，Mr。Rochester，thatastrangerhasarrivedheresinceyouleftthismorning？”

“Astranger！—no;whocanitbe？Iexpectednoone;ishegone？”

“No;hesaidhehadknownyoulong，andthathecouldtakethelibertyofinstallinghimselfheretillyoureturned。”

“Thedevilhedid！Didhegivehisname？”

“HisnameisMason，sir;andhecomesfromtheWestIndies;fromSpanishTown，inJamaica，Ithink。”

Mr。Rochesterwasstandingnearme;hehadtakenmyhand，asiftoleadmetoachair。AsIspokehegavemywristaconvulsivegrip;thesmileonhislipsfroze:apparentlyaspasmcaughthisbreath。

“Mason！—theWestIndies！”hesaid，inthetoneonemightfancyaspeakingautomatontoenounceitssinglewords;“Mason！—theWestIndies！”hereiterated;andhewentoverthesyllablesthreetimes，growing，intheintervalsofspeaking，whiterthanashes:hehardlyseemedtoknowwhathewasdoing。

“Doyoufeelill，sir？”Iinquired。

“Jane，I’vegotablow;I’vegotablow，Jane！”Hestaggered。

“Oh，leanonme，sir。”

“Jane，youofferedmeyourshoulderoncebefore;letmehaveitnow。”

“Yes，sir，yes;andmyarm。”

Hesatdown，andmademesitbesidehim。Holdingmyhandinbothhisown，hechafedit;gazingonme，atthesametime，withthemosttroubledanddrearylook。

“Mylittlefriend！”saidhe，“IwishIwereinaquietislandwithonlyyou;andtrouble，anddanger，andhideousrecollectionsremovedfromme。”

“CanIhelpyou，sir？—I’dgivemylifetoserveyou。”

“Jane，ifaidiswanted，I’llseekitatyourhands;Ipromiseyouthat。”

“Thankyou，sir。Tellmewhattodo，—I’lltry，atleast，todoit。”

“Fetchmenow，Jane，aglassofwinefromthedining—room:theywillbeatsupperthere;andtellmeifMasoniswiththem，andwhatheisdoing。”

Iwent。Ifoundallthepartyinthedining—roomatsupper，asMr。Rochesterhadsaid;theywerenotseatedattable，—thesupperwasarrangedonthesideboard;eachhadtakenwhathechose，andtheystoodabouthereandthereingroups，theirplatesandglassesintheirhands。Everyoneseemedinhighglee;laughterandconversationweregeneralandanimated。Mr。Masonstoodnearthefire，talkingtoColonelandMrs。Dent，andappearedasmerryasanyofthem。Ifilledawine—glass（IsawMissIngramwatchmefrowninglyasIdidso:shethoughtIwastakingaliberty，Idaresay），andIreturnedtothelibrary。

Mr。Rochester’sextremepallorhaddisappeared，andhelookedoncemorefirmandstern。Hetooktheglassfrommyhand。

“Hereistoyourhealth，ministrantspirit！”hesaid。Heswallowedthecontentsandreturnedittome。“Whataretheydoing，Jane？”

“Laughingandtalking，sir。”

“Theydon’tlookgraveandmysterious，asiftheyhadheardsomethingstrange？”

“Notatall:theyarefullofjestsandgaiety。”

“AndMason？”

“Hewaslaughingtoo。”

“Ifallthesepeoplecameinabodyandspatatme，whatwouldyoudo，Jane？”

“Turnthemoutoftheroom，sir，ifIcould。”

Hehalfsmiled。“ButifIweretogotothem，andtheyonlylookedatmecoldly，andwhisperedsneeringlyamongsteachother，andthendroppedoffandleftmeonebyone，whatthen？Wouldyougowiththem？”

“Iratherthinknot，sir:Ishouldhavemorepleasureinstayingwithyou。”

“Tocomfortme？”

“Yes，sir，tocomfortyou，aswellasIcould。”

“Andiftheylaidyouunderabanforadheringtome？”

“I，probably，shouldknownothingabouttheirban;andifIdid，Ishouldcarenothingaboutit。”

“Then，youcoulddarecensureformysake？”

“Icoulddareitforthesakeofanyfriendwhodeservedmyadherence;asyou，Iamsure，do。”

“Gobacknowintotheroom;stepquietlyuptoMason，andwhisperinhisearthatMr。Rochesteriscomeandwishestoseehim:showhiminhereandthenleaveme。”

“Yes，sir。”

Ididhisbehest。ThecompanyallstaredatmeasIpassedstraightamongthem。IsoughtMr。Mason，deliveredthemessage，andprecededhimfromtheroom:Iusheredhimintothelibrary，andthenIwentupstairs。

Atalatehour，afterIhadbeeninbedsometime，Iheardthevisitorsrepairtotheirchambers:IdistinguishedMr。Rochester’svoice，andheardhimsay，“Thisway，Mason;thisisyourroom。”

Hespokecheerfully:thegaytonessetmyheartatease。Iwassoonasleep。

Chapter20

Ihadforgottentodrawmycurtain，whichIusuallydid，andalsotoletdownmywindow—blind。Theconsequencewas，thatwhenthemoon，whichwasfullandbright（forthenightwasfine），cameinhercoursetothatspaceintheskyoppositemycasement，andlookedinatmethroughtheunveiledpanes，hergloriousgazerousedme。Awakinginthedeadofnight，Iopenedmyeyesonherdisk—silver—whiteandcrystalclear。Itwasbeautiful，buttoosolemn;Ihalfrose，andstretchedmyarmtodrawthecurtain。

GoodGod！Whatacry！

Thenight—itssilence—itsrest，wasrentintwainbyasavage，asharp，ashrillysoundthatranfromendtoendofThornfieldHall。

Mypulsestopped:myheartstoodstill;mystretchedarmwasparalysed。Thecrydied，andwasnotrenewed。Indeed，whateverbeingutteredthatfearfulshriekcouldnotsoonrepeatit:notthewidest—wingedcondorontheAndescould，twiceinsuccession，sendoutsuchayellfromthecloudshroudinghiseyrie。Thethingdeliveringsuchutterancemustrestereitcouldrepeattheeffort。

Itcameoutofthethirdstorey;foritpassedoverhead。Andoverhead—yes，intheroomjustabovemychamber—ceiling—Inowheardastruggle:adeadlyoneitseemedfromthenoise;andahalf—smotheredvoiceshouted—

“Help！help！help！”threetimesrapidly。

“Willnoonecome？”itcried;andthen，whilethestaggeringandstampingwentonwildly，Idistinguishedthroughplankandplaster:—

“Rochester！Rochester！forGod’ssake，come！”

Achamber—dooropened:someoneran，orrushed，alongthegallery。Anotherstepstampedontheflooringaboveandsomethingfell;andtherewassilence。

Ihadputonsomeclothes，thoughhorrorshookallmylimbs;Iissuedfrommyapartment。Thesleeperswereallaroused:ejaculations，terrifiedmurmurssoundedineveryroom;doorafterdoorunclosed;onelookedoutandanotherlookedout;thegalleryfilled。Gentlemenandladiesalikehadquittedtheirbeds;and“Oh！whatisit？”—“Whoishurt？”—“Whathashappened？”—“Fetchalight！”—“Isitfire？”—“Arethererobbers？”—“Whereshallwerun？”wasdemandedconfusedlyonallhands。Butforthemoonlighttheywouldhavebeenincompletedarkness。Theyrantoandfro;theycrowdedtogether:somesobbed，somestumbled:theconfusionwasinextricable。

“WherethedevilisRochester？”criedColonelDent。“Icannotfindhiminhisbed。”

“Here！here！”wasshoutedinreturn。“Becomposed，allofyou:I’mcoming。”

Andthedoorattheendofthegalleryopened，andMr。Rochesteradvancedwithacandle:hehadjustdescendedfromtheupperstorey。Oneoftheladiesrantohimdirectly;sheseizedhisarm:itwasMissIngram。

“Whatawfuleventhastakenplace？”saidshe。“Speak！letusknowtheworstatonce！”

“Butdon’tpullmedownorstrangleme，”hereplied:fortheMissesEshtonwereclingingabouthimnow;andthetwodowagers，invastwhitewrappers，werebearingdownonhimlikeshipsinfullsail。

“All’sright！—all’sright！”hecried。“It’samererehearsalofMuchAdoaboutNothing。Ladies，keepoff，orIshallwaxdangerous。”

Anddangeroushelooked:hisblackeyesdartedsparks。Calminghimselfbyaneffort，headded—

“Aservanthashadthenightmare;thatisall。She’sanexcitable，nervousperson:sheconstruedherdreamintoanapparition，orsomethingofthatsort，nodoubt;andhastakenafitwithfright。Now，then，Imustseeyouallbackintoyourrooms;for，tillthehouseissettled，shecannotbelookedafter。Gentlemen，havethegoodnesstosettheladiestheexample。MissIngram，Iamsureyouwillnotfailinevincingsuperioritytoidleterrors。AmyandLouisa，returntoyournestslikeapairofdoves，asyouare。Mesdames”（tothedowagers），“youwilltakecoldtoadeadcertainty，ifyoustayinthischillgalleryanylonger。”

Andso，bydintofalternatecoaxingandcommanding，hecontrivedtogetthemalloncemoreenclosedintheirseparatedormitories。Ididnotwaittobeorderedbacktomine，butretreatedunnoticed，asunnoticedIhadleftit。

Not，however，togotobed:onthecontrary，Ibegananddressedmyselfcarefully。ThesoundsIhadheardafterthescream，andthewordsthathadbeenuttered，hadprobablybeenheardonlybyme;fortheyhadproceededfromtheroomabovemine:buttheyassuredmethatitwasnotaservant’sdreamwhichhadthusstruckhorrorthroughthehouse;andthattheexplanationMr。Rochesterhadgivenwasmerelyaninventionframedtopacifyhisguests。Idressed，then，tobereadyforemergencies。Whendressed，IsatalongtimebythewindowlookingoutoverthesilentgroundsandsilveredfieldsandwaitingforIknewnotwhat。Itseemedtomethatsomeeventmustfollowthestrangecry，struggle，andcall。

No:stillnessreturned:eachmurmurandmovementceasedgradually，andinaboutanhourThornfieldHallwasagainashushedasadesert。Itseemedthatsleepandnighthadresumedtheirempire。Meantimethemoondeclined:shewasabouttoset。Notlikingtositinthecoldanddarkness，IthoughtIwouldliedownonmybed，dressedasIwas。Ileftthewindow，andmovedwithlittlenoiseacrossthecarpet;asIstoopedtotakeoffmyshoes，acautioushandtappedlowatthedoor。

“AmIwanted？”Iasked。

“Areyouup？”askedthevoiceIexpectedtohear，viz。，mymaster’s。

“Yes，sir。”

“Anddressed？”

“Yes。”

“Comeout，then，quietly。”

Iobeyed。Mr。Rochesterstoodinthegalleryholdingalight。

“Iwantyou，”hesaid:“comethisway:takeyourtime，andmakenonoise。”

Myslipperswerethin:Icouldwalkthemattedfloorassoftlyasacat。Heglidedupthegalleryandupthestairs，andstoppedinthedark，lowcorridorofthefatefulthirdstorey:Ihadfollowedandstoodathisside。

“Haveyouaspongeinyourroom？”heaskedinawhisper。

“Yes，sir。”

“Haveyouanysalts—volatilesalts？Yes。”

“Gobackandfetchboth。”

Ireturned，soughtthespongeonthewashstand，thesaltsinmydrawer，andoncemoreretracedmysteps。Hestillwaited;heheldakeyinhishand:approachingoneofthesmall，blackdoors，heputitinthelock;hepaused，andaddressedmeagain。

“Youdon’tturnsickatthesightofblood？”

“IthinkIshallnot:Ihaveneverbeentriedyet。”

IfeltathrillwhileIansweredhim;butnocoldness，andnofaintness。

“Justgivemeyourhand，”hesaid:“itwillnotdotoriskafaintingfit。”

Iputmyfingersintohis。“Warmandsteady，”washisremark:heturnedthekeyandopenedthedoor。

IsawaroomIrememberedtohaveseenbefore，thedayMrs。Fairfaxshowedmeoverthehouse:itwashungwithtapestry;butthetapestrywasnowloopedupinonepart，andtherewasadoorapparent，whichhadthenbeenconcealed。Thisdoorwasopen;alightshoneoutoftheroomwithin:Iheardthenceasnarling，snatchingsound，almostlikeadogquarrelling。Mr。Rochester，puttingdownhiscandle，saidtome，“Waitaminute，”andhewentforwardtotheinnerapartment。Ashoutoflaughtergreetedhisentrance;noisyatfirst，andterminatinginGracePoole’sowngoblinha！ha！Shethenwasthere。Hemadesomesortofarrangementwithoutspeaking，thoughIheardalowvoiceaddresshim:hecameoutandclosedthedoorbehindhim。

“Here，Jane！”hesaid;andIwalkedroundtotheothersideofalargebed，whichwithitsdrawncurtainsconcealedaconsiderableportionofthechamber。Aneasy—chairwasnearthebed—head:amansatinit，dressedwiththeexceptionofhiscoat;hewasstill;hisheadleantback;hiseyeswereclosed。Mr。Rochesterheldthecandleoverhim;Irecognisedinhispaleandseeminglylifelessface—thestranger，Mason:Isawtoothathislinenononeside，andonearm，wasalmostsoakedinblood。

“Holdthecandle，”saidMr。Rochester，andItookit:hefetchedabasinofwaterfromthewashstand:“Holdthat，”saidhe。Iobeyed。Hetookthesponge，dippeditin，andmoistenedthecorpse—likeface;heaskedformysmelling—bottle，andappliedittothenostrils。Mr。Masonshortlyunclosedhiseyes;hegroaned。Mr。Rochesteropenedtheshirtofthewoundedman，whosearmandshoulderwerebandaged:hespongedawayblood，tricklingfastdown。