The Haunted Hotel: A Mystery of Modern Venice

  'Thus far our account of his lordship's illness has been derived fromstatements made by Lady Montbarry. The narrative will now be mostfitly continued in the language of the doctor's own report, herewithsubjoined.

  '"My medical diary informs me that I first saw the English LordMontbarry, on November 17. He was suffering from a sharp attack ofbronchitis. Some precious time had been lost, through his obstinateobjection to the presence of a medical man at his bedside. Generallyspeaking, he appeared to be in a delicate state of health. His nervoussystem was out of order--he was at once timid and contradictory. WhenI spoke to him in English, he answered in Italian; and when I tried himin Italian, he went back to English. It mattered little--the maladyhad already made such progress that he could only speak a few words ata time, and those in a whisper.

  '"I at once applied the necessary remedies. Copies of my prescriptions(with translation into English) accompany the present statement, andare left to speak for themselves.

  '"For the next three days I was in constant attendance on my patient.He answered to the remedies employed--improving slowly, but decidedly.I could conscientiously assure Lady Montbarry that no danger was to beapprehended thus far. She was indeed a most devoted wife. I vainlyendeavoured to induce her to accept the services of a competent nurse;she would allow nobody to attend on her husband but herself. Night andday this estimable woman was at his bedside. In her brief intervals ofrepose, her brother watched the sick man in her place. This brotherwas, I must say, very good company, in the intervals when we had timefor a little talk. He dabbled in chemistry, down in the horridunder-water vaults of the palace; and he wanted to show me some of hisexperiments. I have enough of chemistry in writing prescriptions--andI declined. He took it quite good-humouredly.

  '"I am straying away from my subject. Let me return to the sick lord.

  '"Up to the 20th, then, things went well enough. I was quiteunprepared for the disastrous change that showed itself, when I paidLord Montbarry my morning visit on the 21st. He had relapsed, andseriously relapsed. Examining him to discover the cause, I foundsymptoms of pneumonia--that is to say, in unmedical language,inflammation of the substance of the lungs. He breathed withdifficulty, and was only partially able to relieve himself by coughing.I made the strictest inquiries, and was assured that his medicine hadbeen administered as carefully as usual, and that he had not beenexposed to any changes of temperature. It was with great reluctancethat I added to Lady Montbarry's distress; but I felt bound, when shesuggested a consultation with another physician, to own that I toothought there was really need for it.

  '"Her ladyship instructed me to spare no expense, and to get the bestmedical opinion in Italy. The best opinion was happily within ourreach. The first and foremost of Italian physicians is Torello ofPadua. I sent a special messenger for the great man. He arrived onthe evening of the 21st, and confirmed my opinion that pneumonia hadset in, and that our patient's life was in danger. I told him what mytreatment of the case had been, and he approved of it in everyparticular. He made some valuable suggestions, and (at LadyMontbarry's express request) he consented to defer his return to Paduauntil the following morning.

  '"We both saw the patient at intervals in the course of the night. Thedisease, steadily advancing, set our utmost resistance at defiance. Inthe morning Doctor Torello took his leave. 'I can be of no furtheruse,' he said to me. 'The man is past all help--and he ought to knowit.'

  '"Later in the day I warned my lord, as gently as I could, that histime had come. I am informed that there are serious reasons for mystating what passed between us on this occasion, in detail, and withoutany reserve. I comply with the request.

  '"Lord Montbarry received the intelligence of his approaching deathwith becoming composure, but with a certain doubt. He signed to me toput my ear to his mouth. He whispered faintly, 'Are you sure?' It wasno time to deceive him; I said, 'Positively sure.' He waited a little,gasping for breath, and then he whispered again, 'Feel under mypillow.' I found under his pillow a letter, sealed and stamped, readyfor the post. His next words were just audible and no more--'Post ityourself.' I answered, of course, that I would do so--and I did postthe letter with my own hand. I looked at the address. It was directedto a lady in London. The street I cannot remember. The name I canperfectly recall: it was an Italian name--'Mrs. Ferrari.'

  '"That night my lord nearly died of asphyxia. I got him through it forthe time; and his eyes showed that he understood me when I told him,the next morning, that I had posted the letter. This was his lasteffort of consciousness. When I saw him again he was sunk in apathy.He lingered in a state of insensibility, supported by stimulants, untilthe 25th, and died (unconscious to the last) on the evening of that day.

  '"As to the cause of his death, it seems (if I may be excused forsaying so) simply absurd to ask the question. Bronchitis, terminatingin pneumonia--there is no more doubt that this, and this only, was themalady of which he expired, than that two and two make four. DoctorTorello's own note of the case is added here to a duplicate of mycertificate, in order (as I am informed) to satisfy some Englishoffices in which his lordship's life was insured. The English officesmust have been founded by that celebrated saint and doubter, mentionedin the New Testament, whose name was Thomas!"