We assured him we were enjoying it too much to think of being tired, and
hoped he would not stop. But he said he had some duties to attend to, and
would take us to his room and leave us by ourselves for a while.

As soon as we were alone the doctor looked at me with a smile and said:

"Why did you act so queerly when I spoke of Mona?"

"Why did you speak so?" I asked in reply. "And how could you tell Thorwald
we found one inhabitant on the moon?"

"Did you want to have me tell him a falsehood?"

"Of course not. I tried to catch your eye and keep you from saying any
thing on the subject till we could consult in regard to it. If we are
going to color our narrative in order to make it more marvelous we must at
least make our stories agree."

"My friend," said the doctor, "I am now confirmed in my suspicion that
your brain was affected by your fall from the moon."

I saw by this time that I need not hesitate further to tell the doctor the
truth. I disliked the task, but I saw it would not be safe to leave him
any longer in ignorance of his condition. There as no telling what other
preposterous tales he might invent. So I said to him gently:

"Doctor, your last remark makes it easier for me to tell you that the
first words you said to me on this vessel showed me that you were not
right. I kept it from our new friends here, and I thought I had better