It is hard to live alone in the dark, confusing the day and night; dropping to
sleep through sheer weariness at mid-day, and rising restless in the chill of
the dawn. At first Dick, on his awakenings, would grope along the corridors of
the chambers till he heard some one snore. Then he would know that the day had
not yet come, and return wearily to his bedroom.
Later he learned not to stir till there was a noise and movement in the house
and Mr. Beeton advised him to get up. Once dressed--and dressing, now that
Torpenhow was away, was a lengthy business, because collars, ties, and the like
hid themselves in far corners of the room, and search meant head-beating
against chairs and trunks--once dressed, there was nothing whatever to do
except to sit still and brood till the three daily meals came. Centuries
separated breakfast from lunch and lunch from dinner, and though a man prayed
for hundreds of years that his mind might be taken from him, God would never
hear. Rather the mind was quickened and the revolving thoughts ground against
each other as millstones grind when there is no corn between; and yet the brain
would not wear out and give him rest. It continued to think, at length, with
imagery and all manner of reminiscences.
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