Malady-monster, who was letting the doctor fly to the tether of its
longest filament for an hour, plying suckers on him the while. He had
the look, to general perception, of a man but half-escaped: and as when
the notes of things taken by the vision in front are being set down upon
tablets in the head behind. Victor observed his look at Nataly. The
look was like a door aswing, revealing in concealing. She was not or did
not appear struck by it; perhaps, if observant, she took it for a busy
professional gentleman's holiday reckoning of the hours before the return
train to his harness, and his arrangements for catching it. She was, as
she could be on a day of trial, her enchanting majestic self again--
defying suspicions. She was his true mate for breasting a world honoured
in uplifting her.

Her singing of a duet with Nesta, called forth Dr. Themison's very warm
applause. He named the greatest of contraltos. Colney did better
service than Fenellan at the luncheon-table: he diverted Nataly and
captured Dr. Themison's ear with the narrative of his momentous
expedition of European Emissaries, to plead the cause of their several
languages at the Court of Japan: a Satiric Serial tale, that hit
incidentally the follies of the countries of Europe, and intentionally,
one had to think, those of Old England. Nesta set him going. Just when
he was about to begin, she made her father laugh by crying out in a
rapture, 'Oh! Delphica!' For she was naughtily aware of Dudley
Sowerby's distaste for the story and disgust with the damsel Delphica.

Nesta gave Dr. Themison the preliminary sketch of the grand object of the
expedition: indeed one of the eminent ones of the world; matter for an
Epic; though it is to be feared, that our part in it will not encourage a
Cis-Atlantic bard. To America the honours from beginning to end belong.