The Parasite | Page 7

that she should
see my want of control.
"You must know what this means to me!" I cried. "It is the blasting of
all my hopes and the ruin of my life! You surely will not inflict such a
punishment upon me unheard. You will let me know what is the matter.
Consider how impossible it would be for me, under any circumstances,
to treat you so. For God's sake, Agatha, let me know what I have
done!"
She walked past me without a word and opened the door.
"It is quite useless, Austin," said she. "You must consider our
engagement at an end." An instant later she was gone, and, before I
could recover myself sufficiently to follow her, I heard the hall-door
close behind her.

I rushed into my room to change my coat, with the idea of hurrying
round to Mrs. Marden's to learn from her what the cause of my
misfortune might be. So shaken was I that I could hardly lace my boots.
Never shall I forget those horrible ten minutes. I had just pulled on my
overcoat when the clock upon the mantel-piece struck ten.
Ten! I associated the idea with Miss Penclosa's note. It was lying
before me on the table, and I tore it open. It was scribbled in pencil in a
peculiarly angular handwriting.
"MY DEAR PROFESSOR GILROY [it said]: Pray excuse the personal
nature of the test which I am giving you. Professor Wilson happened to
mention the relations between you and my subject of this evening, and
it struck me that nothing could be more convincing to you than if I
were to suggest to Miss Marden that she should call upon you at
half-past nine to-morrow morning and suspend your engagement for
half an hour or so. Science is so exacting that it is difficult to give a
satisfying test, but I am convinced that this at least will be an action
which she would be most unlikely to do of her own free will. Forget
any thing that she may have said, as she has really nothing whatever to
do with it, and will certainly not recollect any thing about it. I write this
note to shorten your anxiety, and to beg you to forgive me for the
momentary unhappiness which my suggestion must have caused you.
"Yours faithfully; "HELEN PENCLOSA.
Really, when I had read the note, I was too relieved to be angry. It was
a liberty. Certainly it was a very great liberty indeed on the part of a
lady whom I had only met once. But, after all, I had challenged her by
my scepticism. It may have been, as she said, a little difficult to devise
a test which would satisfy me.
And she had done that. There could be no question at all upon the point.
For me hypnotic suggestion was finally established. It took its place
from now onward as one of the facts of life. That Agatha, who of all
women of my acquaintance has the best balanced mind, had been
reduced to a condition of automatism appeared to be certain. A person
at a distance had worked her as an engineer on the shore might guide a
Brennan torpedo. A second soul had stepped in, as it were, had pushed

her own aside, and had seized her nervous mechanism, saying: "I will
work this for half an hour." And Agatha must have been unconscious as
she came and as she returned. Could she make her way in safety
through the streets in such a state? I put on my hat and hurried round to
see if all was well with her.
Yes. She was at home. I was shown into the drawing- room and found
her sitting with a book upon her lap.
"You are an early visitor, Austin," said she, smiling.
"And you have been an even earlier one," I answered.
She looked puzzled. "What do you mean?" she asked.
"You have not been out to-day?"
"No, certainly not."
"Agatha," said I seriously, "would you mind telling me exactly what
you have done this morning?"
She laughed at my earnestness.
"You've got on your professional look, Austin. See what comes of
being engaged to a man of science. However, I will tell you, though I
can't imagine what you want to know for. I got up at eight. I
breakfasted at half-past. I came into this room at ten minutes past nine
and began to read the `Memoirs of Mme. de Remusat.' In a few minutes
I did the French lady the bad compliment of dropping to sleep over her
pages, and I did you, sir, the very flattering one of dreaming about you.
It is only a few minutes since I woke up."
"And found yourself where you