back you up I will. All the same, I must return to my first statement,
which is, that no matter how you strive, and hope and fear, your effort
will come too _late_."

CHAPTER XXXI

SEEING IS BELIEVING

The recent enlightenment had given Sophy a painful shock; thoughts
troublesome and insistent buzzed about her all day long and kept her
awake at night. At first she had wept and abandoned herself to misery;
then she summoned her strength and will and made plans, hoping that she
would have the courage to carry them out. She resolved to invade her
aunt's bedroom and discover the true state of affairs. During the last
two or three days Mrs. Krauss had withdrawn into seclusion, being
threatened with one of her so-called "attacks." On these occasions no
one but Lily was permitted to cross the threshold of her apartment.

Late on the following evening, when the house was quiet and the
servants had departed to their _godowns_, or the bazaar, and the
"missy" was supposed to have retired, Sophy slipped on a dressing-gown
and soft slippers and made her way into the anteroom, usually occupied
in the day-time by her aunt, now dimly illuminated by one electric
light. Before the door of the next apartment hung a heavy curtain
which, when drawn aside, revealed a thick darkness, a peculiar odour,
and the sound of rapid breathing. Sophy groped with her hand along the
wall, found the switch, and the room and its contents were instantly
revealed. A richly-carved bedstead, a masterpiece of Burmese work,
stood in the middle of the floor; at either side were small tables, one
heaped with an untidy pile of books and magazines; on the other were
bottles, glasses and little boxes. In turning the switch Sophy had lit
the bulb which hung directly over Mrs. Krauss's couch, and there, by
its pitiless glare, she lay fully exposed, sunken in a sleep resembling
a swoon, her splendid black hair lying loose upon the pillows. She
looked woefully old and shrunken, her arms, displayed by an
open-sleeved silk nightgown, were thin and strangely discoloured.

As Sophy stood surveying the scene the bathroom door opened softly and
Lily stepped over the threshold. "Oh, my missy! Whatever are you
doing here?" she exclaimed, throwing up her hands.

"I am searching for the hypodermic syringe by which you reduce my
aunt," pointing to the bed, "to this horrible condition. Come with me,
Lily," leading the way to the outer room. "I have someth