CHAPTER IX 98
into the house ; I stayed behind a few minutes to plant in my garden a handful of roots I had dug up in the forest , and which I feared would wither if I left them till the morning . This done , I lingered yet a little longer : the flowers smelt so sweet as the dew fell ; it was such a pleasant evening , so serene , so warm ; the still glowing west promised so fairly another fine day on the morrow ; the moon rose with such majesty in the grave east . I was noting these things and enjoying them as a child might , when it entered my mind as it had never done before : -
" How sad to be lying now on a sick bed , and to be in danger of dying ! This world is pleasant -- it would be dreary to be called from it , and to have to go who knows where ?"
And then my mind made its first earnest effort to comprehend what had been infused into it concerning heaven and hell ; and for the first time it recoiled , baffled ; and for the first time glancing behind , on each side , and before it , it saw all round an unfathomed gulf : it felt the one point where it stood -- the present ; all the rest was formless cloud and vacant depth ; and it shuddered at the thought of tottering , and plunging amid that chaos . While pondering this new idea , I heard the front door open ; Mr . Bates came out , and with him was a nurse . After she had seen him mount his horse and depart , she was about to close the door , but I ran up to her .
" How is Helen Burns ?" " Very poorly ," was the answer . " Is it her Mr . Bates has been to see ?" " Yes ." " And what does he say about her ?" " He says she ' ll not be here long ."