Fjallkonan #11 | 20 March 1901
THAT EVENING DR. SEWARD WAS WEARIER THAN USUAL and took chloral before going to bed.339 He slept deeply and quietly until morning but still felt feeble and tired when he awoke. He had to pull himself together in order to perform his regular duties and took a nap in the afternoon, waking up again at nine o’clock, at which time he felt well enough to visit his patient across the street.
As he exited the asylum he saw a carriage drawn by grey horses arriving at Carfax, and upon entering the hall, he saw an elegant lady being welcomed there. She wore a white coat with exquisite feather ornamentation, and the doctor realized that this was the same lady whom Barrington had identified as the French Ambassador’s wife.
The doctor was then admitted to the Countess.
The lights were dimmed, only slightly illuminating the room. There were about 40-50 guests inside, and although there were both ladies and gentlemen present, there were far more men than women. Although the visitors were speaking in French, the doctor suspected that most of them were from different countries, as every now and then he would pick up a word from a language he did not recognize. He seemed to be the only Englishman there.
Prince Koromezzo greeted and welcomed the physician as soon as he came in. He took him to the Countess, who sat in a corner surrounded by a handful of ladies and gentlemen. She—like the other women—was dressed in glamorous attire; their necks and arms were bare but sparkling with gems. The doctor noticed in particular the necklace the Countess was wearing. It had a heart of shimmering diamonds, with a large ruby at the center.
She greeted the doctor with a slight nod of the head and in the same moment the young lady who’d arrived at Carfax a few minutes before him entered the room with two gentlemen. The Countess greeted her and introduced her to the doctor as Madame Saint Amand. Soon after, everyone rose to their feet as a tall, impressive-looking man entered the room. It was clear he was master of the house, as he was greeted with signs of great respect and everyone gave way to him.340
He spoke a few words with two of the men in the room and then walked up to the Countess. She’d been sitting as proud as a queen, but when the newly arrived gentleman drew nearer, her whole appearance changed and it was clear she was completely under his thumb. They had a brief conversation in some foreign tongue before he headed quickly towards the doctor, thanking him on behalf of the Countess. He said that he’d read Seward’s treatise on hallucinations and optical illusions, which had been printed in some medical journal—an article he believed to be of great significance as he personally performed experiments of this kind. He wanted to make a few such attempts tonight and hoped that the doctor, with his scientific acuity, would observe them.
Then he took the Countess by the hand and led her through a curtained entryway. One of the people in the room turned to the doctor. He was a short stocky man341 with a dark complexion and deeply set black eyes, and he began to talk to the doctor about the upcoming evening program.
“The Countess is one of a kind,” he said, “so it’s quite an event in the history of mankind when a master like Marquis Caroman Rubiano engages such a natural wonder to collaborate with him. Her gift of second sight is very strong—she can perceive the hidden world342 and see into the future.”343
Suddenly most of the lights in the hall went out, and Dr. Seward got the impression that some wondrous things were taking place that were beyond his understanding—as if he were attending some kind of religious ceremony down in a dark cavern. He then had the queer sensation of floating in the air until he lost all consciousness. Finally, he awoke as if from a dream—still sitting in the same chair with the Countess standing beside him, together with Marquis Caroman Rubiano, as he was called.
He suspected his hosts might have used him for hypnosis or some similar experiment.
The Marquis addressed him, explaining that he had fainted. “I hope you get well again soon. Unfortunately, due to your indisposition, you have not learned anything new this evening, but you are welcome another time.”344
The doctor then said his goodbyes and left. The hunchback345 accompanied him home, and when they parted he handed Seward his calling card, bearing the name of “Giuseppe Leonardi,” which—oddly enough—was the name of a world famous violinist and composer. As he arrived at the hospital the doctor heard a cry of distress from the garden at Carfax.
“What is that?” he asked the hunchback. “It’s a woman’s voice.”346
The hunchback paid no attention to his question and quickly said goodbye to the doctor.
A short while later the same man returned for a visit, and after talking to him insistently he finally got Seward’s permission to play his instrument for the patients and to allow the ladies from Carfax to accompany him.
(Here is where Dr. Seward’s notes end, appearing as though he hadn’t been able to finish them.)