Sir David Suchet

Message?

Don't know, but for God's sake, take care.

They would displace me.

What else could they do?

His pain of mind was most pitiable to see.

It was the mental torture of a conscientious man, oppressed beyond endurance by an unintelligible responsibility involving life.

When it first stood under the danger light, he went on putting his dark hair back from his head and drawing his hands outward across and across his temples in an extremity of feverish distress.

Why not tell me where that accident was to happen, if it must happen?

Why not tell me how it could be averted, if it could have been averted?

When on its second coming it hid its face, why not tell me instead, she's going to die?

Let them keep her at home.

If it came on those two occasions only to show me that its warnings were true, and so to prepare me for the third,

Why not warn me, plainly, now?

And I, Lord, help me, a mere poor signalman on this solitary station, why not go to somebody with credit to be believed and power to act?

When I saw him in this state,

I saw that for the poor man's sake as well as for the public safety, what I had to do for the time was to compose his mind.

Therefore, setting aside all question of reality or unreality between us, I represented to him that whoever thoroughly discharged his duty must do well.

and that at least it was his comfort that he understood his duty, though he did not understand these confounding appearances.

In this effort I succeeded far better than in the attempt to reason him out of his conviction.

He became calm.