me and smiled; it was not the smile of an
infant. I could record many instances I have observed of the
precocity of children.

"At one time I made the acquaintance of three young men, two in
the customs, the other in a surveyor's office. At the first
glance you would have said they were ordinary nice young clerks,
but on becoming better acquainted you would notice certain
peculiarities, a looseness of mouth, a restless, nervous
inquietude of manner, an indescribable gleam of the eye. They
were very fond of performing and singing at amateur minstrel
shows and developed a certain comic vein they thought original,
though it reminded me of professional corner-men. However, I
enjoyed their singing and drinking habits and went to their
lodgings several nights to play cards, drink beer, and tell funny
stories. One night they asked me to stay all night and on going
to a room with two beds I was told to have one. Presently one of
the young men came in and commenced to undress. But before going
to his bed he made a remark which, though I had been drinking,
opened my eyes. I told him to shut up and go to bed, speaking
firmly and rather coldly, and he went reluctantly to his own bed.
But another night when they had shifted their lodgings and were
all sleeping in the same room I was drunk and went to bed with
the same fair-haired young man. On waking up in the night I found
my bedmate tampering with me. The old force came over me and I
abused him, but refused to commit the crime he wanted me to. His
penis was small and pointed. I rose early in the morning,
sobered, suffering, and covered with shame, and went hastily
away, refusing to stay for breakfast. I thought I caught an
amazed and evil smile on the faces of the other two. Meeting the
three the same evening in the street, I passed them blushing, and
my bedmate of the previous night blushed also....

"I now took cheap lodgings in North Adelaide. Here I had slight
recurrences of the strangeness and fear of going mad which I had
experienced once before. I led such a solitary life and fell into
such a queer state that I turned to religion and attended church
regularly. It was approaching the time for those young men and
women who wished to be confirmed to prepare themselves, and a
struggle now ensued between my pride and my wish to gai