At the dinner, which was very bad, I sat at a table so remote that I could hear but little of the interminable speeches, which was perhaps fortunate for me. In these circumstances I drifted into conversation with my neighbour, a queer, wizened, black-bearded man who somehow or other had found out that I was acquainted with the wilder parts of Africa. He proved to be a wealthy scientist whose passion it was to study the properties of herbs, especially of such as grow in the interior of South America where he had been travelling for some years.
Presently he mentioned a root named Yagé, known to the Indians which, when pounded up into a paste and taken in the form of pills, had the effect of enabling the patient to see events that were passing at a distance. Indeed he alleged that a vision thus produced had caused him to return home, since in it he saw that some relative of his, I think a twin-sister, was dangerously ill. In fact, however, he might as well have stayed away, as he only arrived in London on the day after her funeral.
As I saw that he was really interested in the subject and observed that he was a very temperate man who did not seem to be romancing, I told him something of my experiences with Taduki, to which he listened with a kind of rapt but suppressed excitement. When I affected disbelief in the whole business, he differed from me almost rudely, asking why I rejected phenomena simply because I was too dense to understand them. I answered perhaps because such phenomena were inconvenient and upset one’s ideas. To this he replied that all progress involved the upsetting of existent ideas. Moreover he implored me, if the chance should ever come my way, to pursue experiments with Taduki fumes and let him know the results.
Here our conversation came to an end for suddenly a band that was braying near by, struck up “God save the Queen,” and we hastily exchanged cards and parted. I only mention it because, had it not occurred, I think it probable that I should never have been in a position to write this history.
The remarks of my acquaintance remained in my mind and influenced it so much that when the occasion came, I did as a kind of duty what, however much I was pressed, I am almost sure I should never have done for any other reason, just because I thought that I ought to take an opportunity of trying to discover what was the truth of the matter. As it chanced it was quick in coming.
Here I should explain that I attended the dinner of which I have spoken not very long after a very lengthy absence from England, whither I had come to live when King Solomon’s Mines had made me rich. Therefore it happened that between the conclusion of my Kendah adventure some years before and this time I saw nothing and heard little of Lord and Lady Ragnall. Once a rumour did reach me, however, I think through Sir Henry Curtis or Captain Good, that the former had died as a result of an accident. What the accident was my informant did not know and as I was just starting on a far journey at the time, I had no opportunity of making inquiries. My talk with the botanical scientist determined me to do so; indeed a few days later I discovered from a book of reference that Lord Ragnall was dead, leaving no heir; also that his wife survived him.
I was working myself up to write to her when one morning the postman brought me here at the Grange a letter which had “Ragnall Castle” printed on the flap of the envelope. I did not know the writing which was very clear and firm, for as it chanced, to the best of my recollection, I had never seen that of Lady Ragnall. Here is a copy of the letter it contained:
“My dear Mr. Quatermain, — Very strangely I have just seen at a
meeting of the Horticultural Society, a gentleman who declares
that a few days ago he sat next to you at some public dinner.
Indeed I do not think there can be any doubt for he showed me your
card which he had in his purse with a Yorkshire address upon it.
“A dispute had arisen as to whether a certain variety of Crinum
lily was first found in Africa, or Southern America. This
gentleman, an authority upon South American flora, made a speech
saying that he had never met with it there, but that an
acquaintance of his, Mr. Quatermain, to whom he had spoken on the
subject, said that he had seen something of the sort in the
interior of Africa.” (This was quite true for I remembered the
incident.) “At the tea which followed the meeting I spoke to this
gentleman whose name I never caught, and to my astonishment learnt
that he must have been referring to you whom I believed to be
dead, for so we were told a long time ago. This seemed certain,
for in addition to the evidence of the name, he described your
personal appearance and told me that you had come to live in
England.
“My dear friend, I can assure you it is long since I heard anything
which rejoiced me so much. Oh! as I write all the past comes back,
flowing in upon me like a pent-up flood of water, but I trust that
of this I shall soon have an opportunity of talking to you. So let
it be for a while.
“Alas! my friend, since we parted on the shores of the Red Sea,
tragedy has pursued me. As you will know, for both my husband and
I wrote to you, although you did not answer the letters” (I never
received them), “we reached England safely and took up our old
life again, though to tell you the truth, after my African
experiences things could never be quite the same to me, or for the
matter of that to George either. To a great extent he changed his
pursuits and certain political ambitions which he once cherished,
seemed no longer to appeal to him. He became a student of past
history and especially of Egyptology, which under all the
circumstances you may think strange, as I did. However it suited
me well enough, since I also have tastes that way. So we worked
together and I can now read hieroglyphics as well as most people.
One year he said that he would like to go to Egypt again, if I
were not afraid. I answered that it had not been a very lucky
place for us, but that personally I was not in the least afraid
and longed to return there. For as you know, I have, or think I
have, ties with Egypt and indeed with all Africa. Well, we went
and had a very happy time, although I was always expecting to see
old Harût come round the corner.
“After this it became a custom with us who, since George
practically gave up shooting and attending the House of Lords, had
nothing to keep us in England, to winter in Egypt. We did this for
five years in succession, living in a bungalow which we built at a
place in the desert, not far from the banks of the Nile, about
half way between Luxor which was the ancient Thebes, and Assouan.
George took a great fancy to this spot when first he saw it, and