Ten minutes since, I caught Betteredge at an unoccupied moment, and told

him what I wanted. Without a word of objection, without so much as an

attempt to produce his pocket-book, he led the way (making allowances

for me at every step) to the store-room in which the medicine chest is

kept.

I discovered the bottle, carefully guarded by a glass stopper tied

over with leather. The preparation which it contained was, as I had

anticipated, the common Tincture of Opium. Finding the bottle still well

filled, I have resolved to use it, in preference to employing either of

the two preparations with which I had taken care to provide myself, in

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case of emergency.

The question of the quantity which I am to administer presents certain

difficulties. I have thought it over, and have decided on increasing the

dose.

My notes inform me that Mr. Candy only administered twenty-five minims.

This is a small dose to have produced the results which followed--even

in the case of a person so sensitive as Mr. Blake. I think it highly

probable that Mr. Candy gave more than he supposed himself to have

given--knowing, as I do, that he has a keen relish of the pleasures of

the table, and that he measured out the laudanum on the birthday, after

dinner. In any case, I shall run the risk of enlarging the dose to forty

minims. On this occasion, Mr. Blake knows beforehand that he is going to

take the laudanum--which is equivalent, physiologically speaking, to his

having (unconsciously to himself) a certain capacity in him to resist

the effects. If my view is right, a larger quantity is therefore

imperatively required, this time, to repeat the results which the

smaller quantity produced, last year.

* * * * * Ten o'clock.--The witnesses, or the company (which shall I call them?)

reached the house an hour since.

A little before nine o'clock, I prevailed on Mr. Blake to accompany me

to his bedroom; stating, as a reason, that I wished him to look round

it, for the last time, in order to make quite sure that nothing had been

forgotten in the refurnishing of the room. I had previously arranged

with Betteredge, that the bedchamber prepared for Mr. Bruff should

be the next room to Mr. Blake's, and that I should be informed of the

lawyer's arrival by a knock at the door. Five minutes after the clock in

the hall had struck nine, I heard the knock; and, going out immediately,

met Mr. Bruff in the corridor.

My personal appearance (as usual) told against me. Mr. Bruff's distrust

looked at me plainly enough out of Mr. Bruff's eyes. Being well used

to producing this effect on strangers, I did not hesitate a moment in

saying what I wanted to say, before the lawyer found his way into Mr.

Blake's room.




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