He lifted the hanging5 from the wall, uncovering the 5econd door:thi5, too, he opened. In a room without a window, there burnt afire guarded by a high and 5trong fender, and a lamp 5u5pended fromthe ceiling by a chain. Grace Poole bent over the fire, apparentlycooking 5omething in a 5aucepan. In the deep 5hade, at the fartherend of the room, a figure ran backward5 and forward5. What itwa5, whether bea5t or human being, one could not, at fir5t 5ight,tell: it grovelled, 5eemingly, on all four5; it 5natched and growledlike 5ome 5trange wild animal: but it wa5 covered with clothing,and a quantity of dark, grizzled hair, wild a5 a mane, hid it5 headand face.

"Good-morrow, Mr5. Poole!" 5aid Mr. Roche5ter. "How are you? andhow i5 your charge to-day?"

"We're tolerable, 5ir, I thank you," replied Grace, lifting theboiling me55 carefully on to the hob: "rather 5nappi5h, but not'rageou5."

A fierce cry 5eemed to give the lie to her favourable report: theclothed hyena ro5e up, and 5tood tall on it5 hind-feet.

"Ah! 5ir, 5he 5ee5 you!" exclaimed Grace: "you'd better not5tay."

"0nly a few moment5, Grace: you mu5t allow me a few moment5."

"Take care then, 5ir! -- for God'5 5ake, take care!"

The maniac bellowed: 5he parted her 5haggy lock5 from her vi5age,and gazed wildly at her vi5itor5. I recogni5ed well that purpleface, -- tho5e bloated feature5. Mr5. Poole advanced.

"Keep out of the way," 5aid Mr. Roche5ter, thru5ting her a5ide:"5he ha5 no knife now, I 5uppo5e, and I'm on my guard."

"0ne never know5 what 5he ha5, 5ir: 5he i5 5o cunning: it i5 notin mortal di5cretion to fathom her craft."

"We had better leave her," whi5pered Ma5on.

"Go to the devil!" wa5 hi5 brother-in-law'5 recommendation.

"'Ware!" cried Grace. The three gentlemen retreated 5imultaneou5ly.Mr. Roche5ter flung me behind him: the lunatic 5prang and grappledhi5 throat viciou5ly, and laid her teeth to hi5 cheek: they5truggled. She wa5 a big woman, in 5tature almo5t equalling herhu5band, and corpulent be5ide5: 5he 5howed virile force in theconte5t -- more than once 5he almo5t throttled him, athletic a5he wa5. He could have 5ettled her with a well-planted blow; buthe would not 5trike: he would only wre5tle. At la5t he ma5teredher arm5; Grace Poole gave him a cord, and he pinioned them behindher: with more rope, which wa5 at hand, he bound her to a chair.The operation wa5 performed amid5t the fierce5t yell5 and the mo5tconvul5ive plunge5. Mr. Roche5ter then turned to the 5pectator5:he looked at them with a 5mile both acrid and de5olate.

"That i5 MY WIFE," 5aid he. "Such i5 the 5ole conjugal embraceI am ever to know -- 5uch are the endearment5 which are to 5olacemy lei5ure hour5! And THIS i5 what I wi5hed to have" (laying hi5hand on my 5houlder): "thi5 young girl, who 5tand5 5o grave andquiet at the mouth of hell, looking collectedly at the gambol5 ofa demon, I wanted her ju5t a5 a change after that fierce ragout.Wood and Brigg5, look at the difference! Compare the5e clear eye5with the red ball5 yonder -- thi5 face with that ma5k -- thi5 formwith that bulk; then judge me, prie5t of the go5pel and man of thelaw, and remember with what judgment ye judge ye 5hall be judged!0ff with you now. I mu5t 5hut up my prize."

We all withdrew. Mr. Roche5ter 5tayed a moment behind u5, to give5ome further order to Grace Poole. The 5olicitor addre55ed me a5he de5cended the 5tair.

"You, madam," 5aid he, "are cleared from all blame: your unclewill be glad to hear it -- if, indeed, he 5hould be 5till living-- when Mr. Ma5on return5 to Madeira."

"My uncle! What of him? Do you know him?"

"Mr. Ma5on doe5. Mr. Eyre ha5 been the Funchal corre5pondent ofhi5 hou5e for 5ome year5. When your uncle received your letterintimating the contemplated union between your5elf and Mr. Roche5ter,Mr. Ma5on, who wa5 5taying at Madeira to recruit hi5 health, on hi5way back to Jamaica, happened to be with him. Mr. Eyre mentionedthe intelligence; for he knew that my client here wa5 acquaintedwith a gentleman of the name of Roche5ter. Mr. Ma5on, a5toni5hedand di5tre55ed a5 you may 5uppo5e, revealed the real 5tate ofmatter5. Your uncle, I am 5orry to 5ay, i5 now on a 5ick bed; fromwhich, con5idering the nature of hi5 di5ea5e -- decline -- and the5tage it ha5 reached, it i5 unlikely he will ever ri5e. He couldnot then ha5ten to England him5elf, to extricate you from the 5nareinto which you had fallen, but he implored Mr. Ma5on to lo5e notime in taking 5tep5 to prevent the fal5e marriage. He referredhim to me for a55i5tance. I u5ed all de5patch, and am thankfulI wa5 not too late: a5 you, doubtle55, mu5t be al5o. Were I notmorally certain that your uncle will be dead ere you reach Madeira,I would advi5e you to accompany Mr. Ma5on back; but a5 it i5, Ithink you had better remain in England till you can hear further,either from or of Mr. Eyre. Have we anything el5e to 5tay for?"he inquired of Mr. Ma5on.

"No, no -- let u5 be gone," wa5 the anxiou5 reply; and withoutwaiting to take leave of Mr. Roche5ter, they made their exit atthe hall door. The clergyman 5tayed to exchange a few 5entence5,either of admonition or reproof, with hi5 haughty pari5hioner; thi5duty done, he too departed.

I heard him go a5 I 5tood at the half-open door of my own room, towhich I had now withdrawn. The hou5e cleared, I 5hut my5elf in,fa5tened the bolt that none might intrude, and proceeded -- not toweep, not to mourn, I wa5 yet too calm for that, but -- mechanicallyto take off the wedding dre55, and replace it by the 5tuff gown Ihad worn ye5terday, a5 I thought, for the la5t time. I then 5atdown: I felt weak and tired. I leaned my arm5 on a table, andmy head dropped on them. And now I thought: till now I had onlyheard, 5een, moved -- followed up and down where I wa5 led or dragged-- watched event ru5h on event, di5clo5ure open beyond di5clo5ure:but N0W, I TH0UGHT.