Soon it was announced through Bedlam, that some of the Royal Family were coming—preparations were made to receive them, when, lo ! as the party entered the gallery, while the assassins were crying, ‘Now for it, we will play you off,’ brain-saying, they should actuate him while they tortured me. One of the patients came to tell me that it was not any of the Royal Family, but the Duke of Somerset and the Russian Ambassador who were coming down. ‘Aye, aye ! (said the assassins) we told you we would give you notice,’ and began to torture and fluid-lock me, viz. binding all the small nerves and fibres so numerous about the parts composing the root of the tongue, which prevents regularity of speech, and forces me to speak rather slower and to be guarded at every word to prevent stammering. When the party came to my cell, five or six of them, I began to explain to them the manner in which I was assailed, and describe to them the nature of it, enquiring
