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suggested. For my own part, I was particularly preoccupied with the `
`
trick of the model. That I remember discussing with the Medical Man, `
`
whom I met on Friday at the Linnaean. He said he had seen a similar `
`
thing at Tubingen, and laid considerable stress on the blowing out `
`
of the candle. But how the trick was done he could not explain. `
`
`
`
The next Thursday I went again to Richmond--I suppose I was one of `
`
the Time Traveller's most constant guests--and, arriving late, found `
`
four or five men already assembled in his drawing-room. The Medical `
`
Man was standing before the fire with a sheet of paper in one hand `
`
and his watch in the other. I looked round for the Time Traveller, `
`
and--'It's half-past seven now,' said the Medical Man. 'I suppose `
`
we'd better have dinner?' `
`
`
`
'Where's----?' said I, naming our host. `
`
`
`
'You've just come? It's rather odd. He's unavoidably detained. He `
`
asks me in this note to lead off with dinner at seven if he's not `
`
back. Says he'll explain when he comes.' `
`
`
`
'It seems a pity to let the dinner spoil,' said the Editor of a `
`
well-known daily paper; and thereupon the Doctor rang the bell. `
`
`
`
The Psychologist was the only person besides the Doctor and myself `
`
who had attended the previous dinner. The other men were Blank, the `
`
Editor aforementioned, a certain journalist, and another--a quiet, `
`
shy man with a beard--whom I didn't know, and who, as far as my `
`
observation went, never opened his mouth all the evening. There was `
`
some speculation at the dinner-table about the Time Traveller's `
`
absence, and I suggested time travelling, in a half-jocular spirit. `
`
The Editor wanted that explained to him, and the Psychologist `
`
volunteered a wooden account of the 'ingenious paradox and trick' we `
`
had witnessed that day week. He was in the midst of his exposition `
`
when the door from the corridor opened slowly and without noise. I `
`
was facing the door, and saw it first. 'Hallo!' I said. 'At last!' `
`
And the door opened wider, and the Time Traveller stood before us. `
`
I gave a cry of surprise. 'Good heavens! man, what's the matter?' `
`
cried the Medical Man, who saw him next. And the whole tableful `
`
turned towards the door. `
`
`
`
He was in an amazing plight. His coat was dusty and dirty, and `
`
smeared with green down the sleeves; his hair disordered, and as it `
`
seemed to me greyer--either with dust and dirt or because its colour `
`
had actually faded. His face was ghastly pale; his chin had a brown `
`
cut on it--a cut half healed; his expression was haggard and drawn, `
`
as by intense suffering. For a moment he hesitated in the doorway, `
`
as if he had been dazzled by the light. Then he came into the room. `
`
He walked with just such a limp as I have seen in footsore tramps. `
`
We stared at him in silence, expecting him to speak. `
`
`
`
He said not a word, but came painfully to the table, and made a `
`
motion towards the wine. The Editor filled a glass of champagne, and `
`
pushed it towards him. He drained it, and it seemed to do him good: `
`
for he looked round the table, and the ghost of his old smile `
`
flickered across his face. 'What on earth have you been up to, man?' `
`
said the Doctor. The Time Traveller did not seem to hear. 'Don't let `
`
me disturb you,' he said, with a certain faltering articulation. `
`
'I'm all right.' He stopped, held out his glass for more, and took `
`
it off at a draught. 'That's good,' he said. His eyes grew brighter, `
`
and a faint colour came into his cheeks. His glance flickered over `
`
our faces with a certain dull approval, and then went round the warm `
`
and comfortable room. Then he spoke again, still as it were feeling `
`
his way among his words. 'I'm going to wash and dress, and then I'll `
`
come down and explain things ... Save me some of that mutton. I'm `
`
starving for a bit of meat.' `
`
`
`
He looked across at the Editor, who was a rare visitor, and hoped he `
`
was all right. The Editor began a question. 'Tell you presently,' `
`
said the Time Traveller. 'I'm--funny! Be all right in a minute.' `
`
`
`
He put down his glass, and walked towards the staircase door. Again `
`
I remarked his lameness and the soft padding sound of his footfall, `
`
and standing up in my place, I saw his feet as he went out. He had `
`
nothing on them but a pair of tattered, blood-stained socks. Then the `
`
door closed upon him. I had half a mind to follow, till I remembered `
`
how he detested any fuss about himself. For a minute, perhaps, my `
`
mind was wool-gathering. Then, 'Remarkable Behaviour of an Eminent `
`
Scientist,' I heard the Editor say, thinking (after his wont) in `
`
headlines. And this brought my attention back to the bright `
`
dinner-table. `
`
`
`
'What's the game?' said the Journalist. 'Has he been doing the `
`
Amateur Cadger? I don't follow.' I met the eye of the Psychologist, `
`
and read my own interpretation in his face. I thought of the Time `
`
Traveller limping painfully upstairs. I don't think any one else had `
`
noticed his lameness. `
`
`
`
The first to recover completely from this surprise was the Medical `
`
Man, who rang the bell--the Time Traveller hated to have servants `
`
waiting at dinner--for a hot plate. At that the Editor turned to his `
`
knife and fork with a grunt, and the Silent Man followed suit. The `
`
dinner was resumed. Conversation was exclamatory for a little while, `
`
with gaps of wonderment; and then the Editor got fervent in his `
`
curiosity. 'Does our friend eke out his modest income with a `
`
crossing? or has he his Nebuchadnezzar phases?' he inquired. 'I feel `
`
assured it's this business of the Time Machine,' I said, and took up `
`
the Psychologist's account of our previous meeting. The new guests `
`
were frankly incredulous. The Editor raised objections. 'What _was_ `
`
this time travelling? A man couldn't cover himself with dust by `
`
rolling in a paradox, could he?' And then, as the idea came home to `
`
him, he resorted to caricature. Hadn't they any clothes-brushes in `
`
the Future? The Journalist too, would not believe at any price, and `
`
joined the Editor in the easy work of heaping ridicule on the whole `
`
thing. They were both the new kind of journalist--very joyous, `
`
irreverent young men. 'Our Special Correspondent in the Day `
`
after To-morrow reports,' the Journalist was saying--or rather `
`
shouting--when the Time Traveller came back. He was dressed in `
`
ordinary evening clothes, and nothing save his haggard look remained `
`
of the change that had startled me. `
`
`
`
'I say,' said the Editor hilariously, 'these chaps here say you have `
`
been travelling into the middle of next week! Tell us all about `
`
little Rosebery, will you? What will you take for the lot?' `
`
`
`
The Time Traveller came to the place reserved for him without a `
`
word. He smiled quietly, in his old way. 'Where's my mutton?' he `
`
said. 'What a treat it is to stick a fork into meat again!' `
`
`
`
'Story!' cried the Editor. `
`
`
`
'Story be damned!' said the Time Traveller. 'I want something to `
`
eat. I won't say a word until I get some peptone into my arteries. `
`
Thanks. And the salt.' `
`
`
`
'One word,' said I. 'Have you been time travelling?' `
`
`
`
'Yes,' said the Time Traveller, with his mouth full, nodding his `
`
head. `
`
`
`
'I'd give a shilling a line for a verbatim note,' said the Editor. `
`
The Time Traveller pushed his glass towards the Silent Man and rang `
`
it with his fingernail; at which the Silent Man, who had been `
`
staring at his face, started convulsively, and poured him wine. `
`
The rest of the dinner was uncomfortable. For my own part, sudden `
`
questions kept on rising to my lips, and I dare say it was the same `
`
with the others. The Journalist tried to relieve the tension by `
`
telling anecdotes of Hettie Potter. The Time Traveller devoted his `
`
attention to his dinner, and displayed the appetite of a tramp. `
`
The Medical Man smoked a cigarette, and watched the Time Traveller `
`
through his eyelashes. The Silent Man seemed even more clumsy than `
`
usual, and drank champagne with regularity and determination out of `
`
sheer nervousness. At last the Time Traveller pushed his plate away, `
`
and looked round us. 'I suppose I must apologize,' he said. 'I was `
`
simply starving. I've had a most amazing time.' He reached out his `
`
hand for a cigar, and cut the end. 'But come into the smoking-room. `
`
It's too long a story to tell over greasy plates.' And ringing the `
`
bell in passing, he led the way into the adjoining room. `
`
`
`
'You have told Blank, and Dash, and Chose about the machine?' he `
`
said to me, leaning back in his easy-chair and naming the three new `
`
guests. `
`
`
`
'But the thing's a mere paradox,' said the Editor. `
`
`
`
'I can't argue to-night. I don't mind telling you the story, but `
`
I can't argue. I will,' he went on, 'tell you the story of what `
`
has happened to me, if you like, but you must refrain from `
`
interruptions. I want to tell it. Badly. Most of it will sound like `
`
lying. So be it! It's true--every word of it, all the same. I was in `
`
my laboratory at four o'clock, and since then ... I've lived eight `
`
days ... such days as no human being ever lived before! I'm nearly `
`
worn out, but I shan't sleep till I've told this thing over to you. `
`
Then I shall go to bed. But no interruptions! Is it agreed?' `
`
`
`
'Agreed,' said the Editor, and the rest of us echoed 'Agreed.' And `
`
with that the Time Traveller began his story as I have set it forth. `
`
He sat back in his chair at first, and spoke like a weary man. `
`
Afterwards he got more animated. In writing it down I feel with only `
`
too much keenness the inadequacy of pen and ink--and, above all, my `
`
own inadequacy--to express its quality. You read, I will suppose, `
`
attentively enough; but you cannot see the speaker's white, `
`
sincere face in the bright circle of the little lamp, nor hear the `
`
intonation of his voice. You cannot know how his expression followed `
`
the turns of his story! Most of us hearers were in shadow, for the `
`
candles in the smoking-room had not been lighted, and only the face `
`
of the Journalist and the legs of the Silent Man from the knees `
`
downward were illuminated. At first we glanced now and again at each `
`
other. After a time we ceased to do that, and looked only at the `
`
Time Traveller's face. `
`
`
`
`
`
`
`
III `
`
`
`
`
`
'I told some of you last Thursday of the principles of the Time `
`
Machine, and showed you the actual thing itself, incomplete in the `
`
workshop. There it is now, a little travel-worn, truly; and one of `
`
the ivory bars is cracked, and a brass rail bent; but the rest of `
`
it's sound enough. I expected to finish it on Friday, but on Friday, `
`
when the putting together was nearly done, I found that one of the `
`
nickel bars was exactly one inch too short, and this I had to get `
`
remade; so that the thing was not complete until this morning. It `
`
was at ten o'clock to-day that the first of all Time Machines began `
`
its career. I gave it a last tap, tried all the screws again, put `
`
one more drop of oil on the quartz rod, and sat myself in the `
`
saddle. I suppose a suicide who holds a pistol to his skull feels `
`
much the same wonder at what will come next as I felt then. I took `
`
the starting lever in one hand and the stopping one in the other, `
`
pressed the first, and almost immediately the second. I seemed to `
`
reel; I felt a nightmare sensation of falling; and, looking round, `
`
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