we could not forget our awful situation. The full solemnity of
the event loomed ever at the back of our minds and tempered our
thoughts. But surely it is the soul which has never faced death
which shies strongly from it at the end. To each of us men it
had, for one great epoch in our lives, been a familiar presence.
As to the lady, she leaned upon the strong guidance of her
mighty husband and was well content to go whither his path might
lead. The future was our fate. The present was our own. We
passed it in goodly comradeship and gentle merriment. Our minds
were, as I have said, singularly lucid. Even I struck sparks at
times. As to Challenger, he was wonderful! Never have I so
realized the elemental greatness of the man, the sweep and power
of his understanding. Summerlee drew him on with his chorus of
subacid criticism, while Lord John and I laughed at the contest
and the lady, her hand upon his sleeve, controlled the
bellowings of the philosopher. Life, death, fate, the destiny of
man--these were the stupendous subjects of that memorable hour,
made vital by the fact that as the meal progressed strange,
sudden exaltations in my mind and tinglings in my limbs
proclaimed that the invisible tide of death was slowly and
gently rising around us. Once I saw Lord John put his hand
suddenly to his eyes, and once Summerlee dropped back for an
instant in his chair. Each breath we breathed was charged with
strange forces. And yet our minds were happy and at ease.
Presently Austin laid the cigarettes upon the table and was
about to withdraw.

"Austin!" said his master.

"Yes, sir?"