"Go on working."
"And am I to expect only a short lease of life?"
I rose from my writing-table and walked to the hearth. A surge of power came over me as I thought of the bacillus which was so silently and steadily advancing on Birmingham.
"Do you believe in miracles?" I asked.
"That is an odd question." He reflected for a time. "No, I don't think so. All one is taught now-a-days is in a contrary direction, isn't it?"
"Yes, but our knowledge only covers a very small field—perhaps an artificially isolated one, too."
"Then you think only a miracle will save my life?"
I nodded and gazed at him.
"You seem amused," he remarked quietly.
"I am not amused, Mr. Thornduck. I am very happy."