CHAPTER 27 READ BY ELIZABETH CLETT M.B. Dennis Sayers It is a lovely country, full of beauties of all imaginable kinds, and the people are brave and strong and simple, and seem full of nice qualities. They are very, very superstitious. In the first house where we stopped, when the woman who served us saw the scar on my forehead, she crossed herself and put out two fingers towards me, to keep off the evil eye. I believe they went to the trouble of putting an extra amount of garlic into our food, and I can't abide garlic. Ever since then I have taken care not to take off my hat or veil, and so have escaped their suspicions. We are travelling fast, and as we have no driver with us to carry tails, we go ahead of scandal. But I dare say that fear of the evil eye will follow hard behind us all the way. The professor seems tireless. All day he would not take any rest, though he made me sleep for a long spell. At sunset time he hypnotized me, and he says I aren't said as usual—darkness, lapping water, and creaking wood. So our enemy is still on the river. I am afraid to think of Jonathan, but somehow I have now no fear for him, or for myself. I write this whilst we wait in a farmhouse for the horses to be ready. Dr. Van Helsing is sleeping. Poor dear, he looks very tired and old and grey, but his mouth is set as firmly as a conqueror's. Even in his sleep he is intense with resolution. When we have well started I must make him rest whilst I drive. I shall tell him that we have days before us, and he must not break down when most of all his strength will be needed. All is ready. We are off shortly. Second November, morning. I was successful, and we took turns driving all night. Now the day is on us, bright though cold. There is a strange heaviness in the air. I say heaviness for want of a better word. I mean that it oppresses us both. It is very cold, and only our warm furs keep us comfortable. At dawn Van Helsing hypnotized me. He says I aren't said—darkness, creaking wood, and roaring water. So the river is changing as they ascend. I do hope that my darling will not run any chance of danger more than need be, but we are in God's hands. Second November, night. All day long driving. The country gets wilder as we go, and the great spurs of the Carpathians, which at Varesti seemed so far from us and so low on the horizon, now seemed to gather round us and tower in front. We both seem in good spirits. I think we make an effort each to cheer the other, in the doing so we cheer ourselves. Dr. Van Helsing says that by morning we shall reach the Borgo Pass. The house is a very few here now, and the professor says that the last horse we got will have to go on with us, as we may not be able to change. He got two in addition to the two we changed, so that now we have a rude fore in hand. The dear horses are patient and good, and they give us no trouble. We are not worried without the travellers, and so even I can drive. We shall get to the pass and daylight. We do not want to arrive before, so we take it easy, and have each long rest in turn. What will tomorrow bring to us? We go to seek the place where my poor darling suffered so much. God grant that we may be guided aright, and that he will deign to watch over my husband and those dear to us both, and who are in such deadly peril. Alas for me, I am not worthy in his sight. Alas, I am unclean to his eyes, and shall be until he may deign to let me stand forth in his sight as one of those who have not incurred his wrath. Memorandum by Abram Van Helsing 4 November This, to my old and true friend, John Seward, MD of Perfleet, London. In case I may not see him, it may explain. It is morning, and I write by a fire which all the night I have kept alive. My demeanor aiding me. It is cold, cold. So cold that the grey heavy sky is full of snow, which when it falls will settle for all winter as the ground is hardening to receive it. It seemed to have affected my demeanor. She has been so heavy of head all day that she was not like herself. She sleeps, and sleeps, and sleeps.  She even have lost her appetite. She make no entry into her little diary. She who writes so faithful at every pause. Something whispered to me that all is not well. However, tonight she is more vivid. Her long sleep all day may have refreshed and restore her. For now she is all sweet and bright as ever. At sunset I try to hypnotize her, but at last with no effect. The power has grown less and less with each day, and tonight it failed me all together. Well, God's will be done, whatever it may be, and whether so ever it may lead. Now to the historical. Whereas methamena, right not in her stenography, I must, in my cumbersome fashion, that so each day of us may not go unrecorded. We got to the burgo path, just after sunrise yesterday morning. When I saw the signs of the dawn, I got ready for the hypnotism. We stopped our carriage, and I got down so that there might be no disturbance. I made a couch with furs, and methamena lying down yield herself as usual, but more slow and more short time than ever to the hypnotic sleep. As before came the answer, darkness and the swirling of water. When she woke, bright and radiant, and we go on our way, and soon reach the pass. At this time and place, she become all on fire with zeal. Some new guiding power in her manifested, for she point to a road and say, this is the way. How you know it, I ask. Of course I know it, she answer, and with a pause add, have not my Jonathan travelled it, and rode of his travel? At first I think somewhat strange, but soon I see that there be only one such by-road. It is used but little, and very different from the coach road from the Bokovena to Bistritz, which is more wide and hard and more of use. So we came down this road. When we meet other ways, not always will we sure that they were roads at all, for they be neglect, and light snow have fallen, the horses know, and they only. I give rain to them, and they go on so patient. By and by we find all things which Jonathan have note in that wonderful diary of him. Then we go on for long, long hours and hours. At the first, I tell Madame Mina to sleep. She try and she succeed. She sleep all the time till at the last, I feel myself too suspicious grow, and attempt to wake her. She sleep on, and I may not wake her though I try. I do not wish to try too hard, lest I harm her, for I know that she have suffered much, and sleep at times be all in all to her. I think I drowse myself, for all of a sudden I feel guilt, as though I have done something. I find myself bolt up, with the reins in my hands, and the good horses go along jog jog, just as ever. I look down and find Madame Mina still asleep. It is now not far off sunset time, and over the snow the light of the sun flow in big yellow flood, so that we throw great long shadow on where the mountain rise so steep. For we are going up and up, and all is all so wild and rocky, as though it were the end of the world. Then I rouse Madame Mina. This time she wake with not much trouble, and then I try to put her to hypnotic sleep. But she sleep not, being as though I were not. Still, I try and try, till all at once I find her and myself in dark. So I look around and find that the sun have gone down. Madame Mina laugh, and I turn and look at her. She is now quite awake, and looks so well as I never saw her since that night at Carfax when she first entered the Count's house. I am amazed and not at ease then, but she is so bright and tender, and thoughtful for me that I forget all fear. I light a fire, for here brought supply of wood with us, and she prepare food, while I undo the horses and set them tethered in shelter to feed. Then when I return to the fire, she have my supper ready. I go to help her, but she smile and tell me she have eat already, that she was so hungry that she would not wait. I like it not, I have grave doubts, but I fear to affright her, so I am silent of it. She help me, and I eat alone, and then we wrap in fur and lie beside the fire, and I tell her to sleep while I watch. But presently I forget all of watching, and when I suddenly remember that I watch, I find her lying quiet, but awake, and looking at me with so bright eyes. Once, twice more the same occur, and I get much sleep till before morning. When I wake, I try to hypnotize her, but alas, though she shut her eyes obedient, she may not sleep. The sun rise up, and up, and up, and then sleep come to her too late, but so heavy that she will not wake. I have to lift her up, and place her sleeping in the carriage, when I have harnessed the horses and made all ready. Madam still sleep, and she look in her sleep more healthy and more redder than before, and I like it not. I am afraid, afraid, afraid. I am afraid of all things, even to think, but I must go on my way. The stake we play for is life and death, or more than these, and we must not flinch. 5 November morning. Let me be accurate in everything, for though you and I have seen some strange things together, you may at first think that I, Ben Helsing, am mad, that the many horrors and the so long strain on nerves has at last turned my brain. All yesterday we traveled, always getting closer to the mountains, and moving into a more and more wild and desert land. There are great frowning precipices and much falling water, and nature seemed to have held some time her carnival. Madam Mina still sleep and sleep, and though I did have hunger and appeased it, I could not awaken her, even for food. I began to fear that the fatal spell of the place was upon her, tainted as she is, with that vampire baptism. Well, I said to myself, if it be that she sleep all the day, it shall also be that I do not sleep at night. As we travel on the rough road, for a road of an ancient and imperfect kind there was, I held down my head and slept. Again, I waked with a sense of guilt and of time past, and found Madam Mina still sleeping. The sun low down, but all was indeed changed. The frowning mountains seemed further away, and we were near the top of a steep rising hill, on summit of which was such a castle as Jonathan Tell of in his diary. At once I exult and fear, for now, for good or ill, the end was near. I woke Madam Mina and tried again to hypnotize her, but alas, unavailing till too late. Then ere the great dark came upon us, for even after downed sun, the heavens reflected the gone sun on the snow, and all was for a time a great twilight. I took out the horses and fed them in what shelter I could. Then I make a fire. The deer, I make Madam Mina, now awake and more charming than ever, sit comfortable amid her rugs. I got ready food, but she would not eat, simply saying that she had not hunger. I did not press her, knowing her unavailingness. But I myself eat, for I must needs now be strong for all. Then with the fear on me of what might be, I drew a ring so big for her comfort, around where Madam Mina sat, and over the ring I passed some of the wafer, and I broke it fine so that all was well guarded. She sat still all the time, so still as one dead, and she grew whiter and even whiter, till the snow was not more pale, and no words she said. But when I drew near, she clung to me, and I could know that the poor soul shook her from head to feet with a tremor that was pain to feel. I said to her presently, when she had grown more quiet, will you not come over to the fire? For I wished to make test of what she could. She rose obedient, but when she had made a step she stopped, and stood as one stricken. Why not go on, I ask.  Then looking at me with open eyes, as of one waked from sleep, she said simply, I cannot, and remained silent. I rejoiced, for I knew that what she could not, none of those that we dreaded, could. Though there might be danger to her body, her soul was safe. Presently the horses began to scream, and tore at her tethers, till I came to them and quieted them. When they did feel my hands on them, they weaned low as in joy, and licked at my hands, and were quiet for a time. Many times though, through the night, did I come to them, till it arrived to the cold hour when all nature is at its lowest, and every time my coming was with quiet of them, and in the cold hour the fire began to die, and I was about stepping forth to replenish it, for now the snow came in flying sweeps, and with it a chill mist. Even in the dark there was a light of some kind, as there ever is over snow, and it seemed as though the snow flurries and the reese of mist took shape as of women with trailing garments. All was in dead, grim silence, only that the horses we need encountered, as if in terror of the worst. I began to fear horrible fears, but then came to me the sense of safety in that ring where I stood. I began too to think that my imaginings were of the night and the gloom and the unrest that I have gone through, and all the terrible anxiety. It was as though my memories of all Jonathan's horrid experience were befooling me. For the snowflakes and the mist began to wheel and circle round, till I could get as though a shadowy glimpse of those women that would have kissed him. And then the horses cowered lower and moaned in terror as men do in pain. Even the madness of fright was not to them, so that they could break away. I fear for my dear Madam Mina when these weird figures drew near and circled around. I looked at her, but she sat calm and smiled at me. When I would have stepped to the fire to replenish it, she caught me and held me back, and whispered, like a voice that one hears in a dream, so low it was. No, no, do not go without. Here you are safe.  Where at she laughed, a laugh low and unreal, and said, fear for me? Why fear for me? None safer in all the world from them than I am. And as I wonder at the meaning of her words, a puff of wind make the flame leap up, and I see the red scar on her forehead. Then alas, I knew. Did I not, I would soon have learned for the wheeling figures of mist and snow came closer, but keeping ever without the holy circle. Then they began to materialize till if God have not taken away my reason, for I saw it through my eyes. There were before me in actual flesh the same three women that Jonathan saw in the room, when they would have kissed his throat. I knew the swaying round forms, the bright hard eyes, the white teeth, the ruddy color, the voluptuous lips. They smiled ever at poor Mademina, and as their laugh came through the silence of the night, they twined their arms and pointed to her, and said in those so sweet tingling tones that Jonathan said were of the intolerable sweetness of the water glasses, come sister, come to us, come. In fear I turned to my poor Mademina, and my heart with gladness leapt like flame, for all the terror in her sweet eyes, the repulsion, the horror told a story to my heart that was all of hope. God be thanked, she was not yet of them. I seized some of the firewood which was by me, and holding out some of the wafer, advanced on them towards the fire. They drew back before me, and left their low horrid laugh. I fed the fire, and feared them not, for I knew that we were safe within the ring, which she could not leave no more than they could enter. The horses had ceased to moan and lay still on the ground. The snow fell on them softly, and they grew whiter. I knew that there was for the poor beast no more of terror. And so we remained till the rate of the dawn began to fall through the snow gloom. I was desolate and afraid, and full of war and terror, but when that beautiful sun began to climb the horizon, life was to me again. At the first coming of the dawn the horrid figures melted in the whirling mist and snow. The reese of transparent gloom moved away towards the castle, and were lost. Instinctively, with the dawn coming, I turned to Madame Mina, intending to hypnotise her, but she lay in a deep and sudden sleep, from which I could not wake her. I tried to hypnotise her, but she made no response, none at all, and the day broke. I fear yet to stir. I have made my fire and have seen the horses. They are all dead. Today I have much to do here, and I keep waiting till the sun is up high, for there may be places where I must go, where that sunlight, though snow and mist obscure it, will be to me a safety. I will strengthen me with breakfast, and then I will do my terrible work. Madame Mina still sleeps, and God be thanked. She is calm in her sleep. Jonathan Harker's Journal 4 November, evening. The accident to the launch has been a terrible thing for us. Only for it we should have overtaken the boat long ago, and by now my dear Mina would have been free. I fear to think of her, off on the worlds near that horrid place. We have got horses and we follow on the track. I note this whilst Godelming is getting ready. We have our arms. The Sigani must look out if they mean to fight. Oh, if only Morris and Seward were with us. We must only hope. If I write no more, goodbye Mina. God bless and keep you. Dr. Seward's Diary 5 November With the dawn we saw the body of Sigani before us, dashing away from the river with their litre-wagon. They surrounded it in a cluster, and hurried along as though beset. The snow is falling lightly, and there is a strange excitement in the air. It may be our own feelings, but the depression is strange. Far off I hear the howling of wolves. The snow brings them down from the mountains, and there are dangers to all of us and from all sides. The horses are nearly ready, and we are soon off. We ride to death of someone. God alone knows who, or where, or what, or when, or how it may be. Dr. Van Helsing's Memorandum 5 November Afternoon I am at least sane. Thank God for that mercy at all events, though the proving has been dreadful. When I left Madame Mina sleeping within the Holy Circle, I took my way to the castle. The blacksmith hammer which I took in the carriage from Biafati was useful. Though the doors were all open, I broke them off the rusty hinges, lest some ill intent or ill chance should close them, so that, being entered, I might not get out. Jonathan's bitter experience served me here. By memory of his diary I found my way to the old chapel, for I knew that here my work lay. The air was oppressive. It seemed as if there was some sulfurous fume, which at times made me dizzy. Either there was a roaring in my ears, or I heard far off the howl of wolves, then I bethought me of my dear Madame Mina, and I was in terrible plight. The dilemma had me between his horns. Her I had not dare to take into this place, but left safe from the vampire in that Holy Circle, and yet even there would be the wolf. I resolved me that my work lay here, and that as to the wolves we must submit, if it were God's will. At any rate it was only death and freedom beyond, so I did choose for her. Had it been but for myself, the choice had been easy. The more of the wolf were better to rest in than the grave of the vampire. So I make my choice, and go on with my work. I knew that there were at least three graves to find, graves that are in habit. So I search and search, and I find one of them.  Ah, I doubt not that in old time, when such things were, many a man who set forth to do such a task as mine, found at the last his heart fear him, and then his nerve. So he delay and delay and delay, till the mere beauty and the fascination of the wanton undead have hypnotized him, and he remain on and on till sunset come, and the vampire sleep be over. Then the beautiful eyes of the fair woman open, and look love, and the voluptuous mouth present to a kiss, and the man is weak, and there remain one more victim in the vampire fold, one more to swell the grim and grisly ranks of the undead. There is some fascination surely, when I am moved by the mere presence of such an one. Even lying as she lay in a tomb fettered with age and heavy with dust of centuries, though there be that hoarded odor, such as the layers of the count have had. Yes, I was moved, I been healthy, with all my purpose and with my motive for hate. I was moved to a yearning for delay, which seemed to paralyze my faculties, and to clog my very soul. It may have been that the need of natural sleep and the strange oppression of the air were beginning to overcome me. Certain it was that I was lapsing into sleep, the open-eyed sleep of one who yields to a sweet fascination. When there came through the snow-stealed air a long, low whale, so full of war and pity, that it woke me like the sound of a clarion, for it was the voice of my dear Madam Mina that I heard. Then I braced myself again to my horrid task, and found by wrenching away tomb-tops one other of the sisters, the other dark one. I did not pause to look on her as I had on her sister, lest once more I should begin to be enthralled. But I go on searching until presently I find, in a high great tomb, as if made to one much beloved, that other fair sister, which, like Jonathan, I had seen to gather herself out of the atoms of the mist. She was so fair to look on, so radiantly beautiful, so exquisitely voluptuous, that the very instinct of man in me, which calls some of my sex to love and to protect one of hers, made my head whirl with no emotion, but God be thanked that sole whale of my dear Madam Mina had not died out of my ears, and before the spell could be wrought further upon me, I had nirved myself to my wild work. By this time I had searched all the tombs in the chapel, so far as I could tell, and as there had been only three of these undead phantoms around us in the night, I took it that there were no more of active undead existent. There was one great tomb more lordly than the rest, huge it was, and nobly proportioned. On it was but one word. Dracula. This then was the undead home of the king vampire, to whom so many more would do. Its emptiness spoke eloquent to make certain what I knew. Before I began to restore these women to their dead selves through my awful work, I laid in Dracula's tomb some of the wafer, and so banished him from it undead forever. Then began my terrible task and I dreaded it. Had it been but one, it had been easy comparative, but three to begin twice more after I had been through a deed of horror, for it was terrible with the sweet Miss Lucy. What would it not be with the strange ones who had survived through centuries, and who had been strengthened by the passing of the years? Who would, if they could, have fought for their foul lives? Oh, my friend John, but it was but your work. Had I not been nerved by my thoughts of other dead and of the living over whom hung such a pall of fear, I could not have gone on. I trembled and trembled even yet, though till all was over, God be thanked, my nerve did stand. Had I not seen the repose in the first place, and the gladness that stole over it, just ere the final disillusion came, as realisation that the soul had been won, I could not have gone further with my butchery. I could not have endured the horrid screeching as the steak drove home, the plunging of writhing form, the lips of bloody foam, I should have fled in tear and left my work undone, but it is over, and the poor souls I can pity them now and weep, as I think of them placid each in their full sleep of death for a short moment air fading. Four, friend John, hardly had my knife severed the head of each before the whole body began to melt away and crumble into its native dust, as though the death that should have come centuries ago had at last asserted himself and say it once and loud, I am here. Before I left the castle I saw fixed its entrances that nevermore can the Count enter there undead. When I stepped into the circle where Madam Mina slept she woke from her sleep and seeing me cried out in pain that I had endured too much. Come, she said, come away from this awful place, let us go to meet my husband who is, I know, coming towards us. She was looking thin and pale and weak, but her eyes were pure and glowed with fervour. I was glad to see her paleness and her illness for my mind was full of the fresh choral of that ruddy vampire sleep. And so with trust and hope and yet full of fear we go eastward to meet our friends and him whom Madam Mina tell me that she know are coming to meet us. Mina Harker's Journal. 6th November. It was late in the afternoon when the professor and I took our way towards the east whence I knew Jonathan was coming. We did not go fast, though the way was steeply downhill, for we had to take heavy rugs and wraps with us. We dared not face the possibility of being left without warmth in the cold and the snow. We had to take some of our provisions too, for we were in a perfect desolation and so far as we could see through the snowfall there was not even the sign of habitation. When we had gone about a mile I was tired with the heavy walking and sat down to rest. Then we looked back and saw where the clear line of Dracula's castle cut to the sky. For we were so deep under the hill where on it was set that the angle of perspective of the Carpathian mountains was far below it. We saw it in all its grandeur, perched a thousand feet on the summit of a sheer precipice and with seemingly a great gap between it and the steep of the adjacent mountain on any side. There was something wild and uncanny about the place. We could hear the distant howling of wolves. They were far off, but the sound, even though coming muffled through the deadening snowfall, was full of terror. I knew from the way Dr. Van Helsing was searching about that he was trying to seek some strategic point where we would be less exposed in case of attack. The rough roadway still led downwards. We could trace it through the drifted snow. In a little while the professor signalled to me, so I got up and joined him. He had found a wonderful spot, a sort of natural hollow in a rock with an entrance like a doorway between two boulders. He took me by the hand and drew me in. See! he said. Here you will be in shelter, and if the wolves do come I can meet them one by one. He brought in our furs and got out some provisions and forced them upon me. But I could not eat. To even try to do so was repulsive to me, and much as I would have liked to please him I could not bring myself to the attempt. He looked very sad, but did not reproach me. Taking his field-glasses from the case he stood on the top of the rock and began to search the horizon. Suddenly he called out, Look! Madame Mina, look! Look! I sprang up and stood beside him on the rock. The glass isn't pointed. The snow was now falling more heavily and swelled about fiercely, for a high wind was beginning to blow. However, there were times when there were pauses between the snow flurries, and I could see a long way round. From the height where we were it was possible to see a great distance, and far off beyond the white waste of snow I could see the river lying like a black ribbon in kinks and curls as it wound its way. Straight in front of us and not far off, in fact so near that I wondered what noticed before, came a group of mounted men hurrying along. In the midst of them was a cart, a long, lighter wagon which swept from side to side, like a dog's tail wagging with each stern inequality of the road. Outlined against the snow as they were, I could see from the men's clothes that they were peasants or gypsies of some kind. On the cart was a great square chest. My heart leapt as I saw it, for I could feel that the end was coming. The evening was now drawing close, and well I knew that the snow was drawing close, and well I knew that it sunset the thing which was till then imprisoned there would take new freedom, and could in any of the many forms allude pursuit. In fear I turned to the professor. To my consternation, however, he was not there. An instant later I saw him below me. Round the rock he had drawn a circle such as we had found shelter in last night. When he had completed it he stood beside me again saying, at least here you shall be safe from him. He took the glasses from me, and at the next lull of the snow swept the whole space below us. See, he said, they come quickly, they are flogging the horses, and galloping as hard as they can. He paused, and went on in a hollow voice. They are racing for the sunset. We may be too late. God's will be done. Down came another blinding rush of driving snow, and the whole landscape was blotted out. It soon passed, however, and once more his glasses were fixed on the plane. Then came a sudden cry. Look, look, look! See, two horsemen follow fast coming up from the south. They must be Quincy and John. Take the glass, look before the snow blotted all out. I took it and looked. The two men might be Dr. Seward and Mr. Morris. I knew at all events that neither of them was Jonathan. At the same time I knew that Jonathan was not far off. Looking around I saw on the north side of the coming party two other men, with a breakneck speed. One of them I knew was Jonathan, and the other I took, of course, to be Lord Godelming. They, too, were pursuing the party with the cart. When I told the professor, he shouted in glee like a schoolboy, and after looking intently till a snowfall made sight impossible, he laid his winches to rifle ready for use against the boulder at the opening of our shelter. They are all converging, he said, when the time comes we shall have gypsies on all sides. I got out my revolver ready to hand, and, speaking, the howling of wolves came louder and closer. When the snow storm abated a moment we looked again, it was strange to see the snow falling in such heavy flakes close to us, and beyond, the sun shining more and more brightly as it sank down towards the far mountaintops. Sweeping the glass all around us, I could see here and there dots moving singly, and in twos and threes in larger numbers the wolves were gathering for their prey. Every instant seemed in age whilst we waited. The wind came now in fierce bursts, and the snow was driven with fury as it swept upon us encircling eddies. At times we could not see an arm's length before us, but at others, as the hollow-sounding wind swept by us, it seemed to clear the airspace around us so that we could see afar off. We had, of late, been so accustomed to watch for sunrise and sunset, that we knew with their accuracy when it would be, and we knew that before long the sun would set. It was hard to believe that by our watches it was less than an hour that we waited in that rocky shelter before the various bodies began to converge close upon us. The wind came now with fiercer and more bitter sweeps, and more steadily from the north. It seemingly had driven the snow clouds from us, for with only occasional bursts the snow fell. We could distinguish clearly the individuals of each party, the pursued, and the pursuers. Strangely enough, those pursued did not seem to realize, or at least to care, that they were pursued. They seemed, however, to hasten with redoubled speed as the sun dropped lower and lower on the mountaintops. Closer and closer they drew, the professor and I crouched down behind our rock, and held our weapons ready. I could see that he was determined that they should not pass. One and all were quite unaware of our presence. All at once two voices shouted out to HALT! One was my Jonathan's, raised in a high key of passion. A strong, resolute tone of quiet command. The gypsies may not have known the language, but there was no mistaking the tone in whatever tongue the words were spoken. Instinctively they reigned in, and at the instant Lord Goddelming and Jonathan dashed up at one side and Dr. Seward and Mr. Morris on the other. The leader of the gypsies, a splendid-looking fellow who sat his horse like a centaur, waved them back, and in a fierce voice gave to his companion some word to proceed. They lashed the horses which sprang forward. But the four men raised their Winchester rifles, and in an unmistakable way commanded them to stop. At the same moment Dr. Van Helsing and I rose behind the rock and pointed our weapons at them. Seeing that they were surrounded, the men tightened their reins and drew up. The leader turned to them and gave a word at which every man of the gypsy party drew a weapon he carried, knife or pistol, and held himself in readiness to attack. Issue was joined in an instant. The leader, with a quick movement of his reign, threw his horse out in front and pointed first to the sun, now close down on the hill-tops, and then to the castle, said something which I did not understand. For answer, all four men of our party threw themselves from their horses and dashed towards the cart. I should have felt terrible fear at seeing Jonathan in such danger, but that the ardoury battle must have been upon me as well as upon the rest of them. I felt no fear, but only a wild seeing the quick movement of our parties, the leader of the gypsies gave a command. His men instantly formed round the cart in a sort of undisciplined endeavour, each one shouldering and pushing the other in his eagerness to carry out the order. In the midst of this, I could see that Jonathan on one side of the ring of men and Quincy on the other were forcing away to the cart. It was evident that they were bent on finishing their task before the sun should set. Nothing seemed to stop or even to hinder them, neither the levelled weapons nor the flashing knives of the gypsies in front nor the howling of the wolves behind appeared to even attract their attention. Jonathan's impetuosity and the manifest singleness of his purpose seemed to overall those in front of him. Instinctively they cowered aside and let him pass. In an instant he had jumped upon the cart and with a strength which seemed incredible raised the great box and flung it over the wheel to the ground. In the meantime, Mr. Morris had had to use force to pass through his side of the ring of men. I had seen him pressing desperately forward and had seen the knives of the gypsies flash as he won away through them and they cut at him. He had parried with his great bowie knife and at first I thought that he too had come through in safety. But as he sprang beside Jonathan who had by now jumped from the cart I could see that with his left hand he was clutching at his side and that the blood was spurting through his fingers. He did not delay notwithstanding this for as Jonathan with desperate energy attacked one end of the chest attempting to prize off the lid with his great cookery knife he tapped the other frantically with his bowie. Under the efforts of both men the lid began to yield the nails drew with a screeching sound and the top of the box was thrown back. By this time the gypsies seeing themselves covered by the winchisters and at the mercy of Lord Godelming and Dr. Seward had given in and made no further resistance. The sun was almost down on the mountain tops and the shadows of the whole group fell upon the snow. I saw the count lying within the box upon the earth some of which the rude falling from the cart had scattered over him. He was deathly pale just like a waxen image and the red eyes glared with the horrible vindictive look which I knew so well. As I looked the eyes saw the sinking sun and the look of hate in them turned to triumph. But on the instant came the sweep and flash of Jonathan's great knife I shrieked as I saw its shear through the throat whilst at the same moment Mr. Morris's bowy knife plunged into the heart. It was like a miracle but before our very eyes and almost in the drawing of a breath the whole body crumbled into dust and passed from our sight. I shall be a glad as long as I live that even in that moment of final dissolution there was in the face a look of peace such as I never could have imagined might have rested there. The castle of Dracula now stood out against the red sky and every stone of its broken battlements was articulated against the light of the setting sun. The gypsies, taking us as in some way the cause of the extraordinary disappearance of the dead man, turned without a word and rode away as if for their lives. Those who were unmounted jumped upon the lighter wagon and shouted to the horsemen not to desert them. The wolves, which had withdrawn to a safe distance, followed in their wake leaving us alone. Mr. Morris, who had sunk to the ground, leaned on his elbow, holding his hand pressed to his side. The blood still gushed through his fingers. I flew to him, for the Holy Circle did not now keep me back. So did the two doctors. Jonathan knelt behind him and the wounded man laid back his head on his shoulder.  He must have seen the anguish of my heart in his face, for he smiled at me and said, I am only too happy to have been a service. Oh, God! he cried suddenly, struggling to a sitting posture and pointing to me. It was worth for this to die. Look, look! The sun was now right down upon the mountaintop and the red gleams fell upon my face so that it was bathed in rosy light. With one impulse the men sank on their knees and a deep and earnest amen broke from all as their eyes followed the pointing of his finger. The dying man spoke. Now, God, be thanked that all has not been in vain. See! the snow is not more stainless in her forehead. The curse has passed away. And to our bitter grief with a smile and in silence he died a gallant gentleman. Note Seven years ago we all went through the flames and the happiness of some of us since then is, we think well worth the pain we endured. It is an added joy to Mina and to me that our boy's birthday is the same day as that on which Quincy Morris died. His mother holds, I know, the secret belief that some of our brave friend's spirit has passed into him. His bundle of names links all our little band of men together. But we call him Quincy. In the summer of this year we made a journey to Transylvania and went over the old ground which was and is to us so full of vivid and terrible memories. It was almost impossible to believe that the things which we had seen with our own eyes and heard with our own ears were living truths. Each trace of all that had been was blotted out. The castle stood as before reared high above a waste of desolation. When we got home we were talking of the old time, which we could all look back on without despair for Godelming and Seward are both happily married. I took the papers from the safe where they had been ever since our return so long ago. We were struck with the fact that in all the massive material of which the record was composed there is hardly one authentic document. Nothing but a massive type writing except the later notebooks of Mina and Seward and myself and Van Helsing's Memorandum. We could hardly ask anyone even did we wish to to accept these as proofs of so while the story. Van Helsing summed it all up as he said with our boy on his knee. We want no proofs. We ask none to believe us.  Already he knows her sweetness and loving care. Later on he will understand how some men so loved her that they did dare much for her sake. Jonathan Harker I'm Stoker.


I'm gonna go back to the standard and really in a world where nobody has standards anymore, I hear everybody talk a lot about goals.  What's your standards? See, because what you're getting in life now is in direct to your standard. I can grab organizations right now that literally are making less money than last year, but yet they still haven't trained their team. Their team still can't overcome common objections. Simple stuff. I need to think about it. I gotta get back with you. I gotta talk to my wife. Same stuff happens every day. I'm gonna ask everybody a question. Somebody walked in here right now and just slapped you across the face. Okay, do what the hell? If they came back around again and did this, would you guys be ready? Well, why aren't sales people ready when somebody hits them with an objection twice? No standards. Where do they get that from? The leaders. Make sure you set the standard for yourself. Okay, set the standard for your freaking self, okay?   It makes you think, man, what is my edge? What is my next level? I don't know where you came from, but at 18 years old, I never had more than $20 in my hand. Someone gave me an opportunity, okay? It's disrespectful. When someone gives you an opportunity for you not to give it all you got and get better every day. It's disfreaking respectful to you, to your clients, to your leaders, due to the whole organization. A lot of people are like, hey, my sales team isn't as good as they should be. Well, let me ask you a question. Number one, let's go through some leadership stuff. Since we're talking about amateurs and pros, do people wanna be led by a leader that reaches for more? Yes or no? Yes, they do. Is the leadership team, the people that are in charge of the team, are they reaching for more? Are you? Secondly, leaders have one thing in common. They have followers. Leaders don't have a rank. They don't have a title. They don't have seniority. They are leaders. Those are managers. Managers have rank, seniority and titles. They use manipulation to get people to do what they need to do. If you don't do this, I won't pay you. Leaders lead by inspiration. Remember I said, why? Why do we do what we do? Right? You guys know, you telling people every day why we do what we do will be the most important way to never let your team outgrow you. Never let your team outgrow you. Never let your family outgrow you. Never let your kids outgrow you. Never let your customers outgrow you.  What does that mean? You gotta re-prove yourself every day. Re-prove is something this world don't do. Now standards, how do I know if your standards are real or if they're fake? Everybody, I want you to write this down. So under your standards, I want you to put show and I want you to put real. See a lot of people, they're fake leaders.  They know the language. They talk but they're really not a leader. I know lots of people like this. You guys gotta make sure that you understand that show is what this world's all about and everybody's looking for real. And when they find real, that's when they'll give everything that they have. You wanna be a good leader? Is it important for you to understand your team yes or no? You know why a lot of you, your team don't respect you or they don't care or you don't even respect your leader because they don't understand you. They don't listen to you. They don't pay attention to you. They're still away at the highway and that's why businesses get dead. I listen to my team every day. They're on the front line. I'm on the front line with them but they know better than anybody. Now why let them be negative?  Why set the tone for how it's gonna go? Yeah, but they also hear everything. They understand, I gotta understand where they're at. Most people they have the ego that doesn't allow this to happen, okay? Imagine if you're winning today and say, hey team, tell me what I need to know. What are some things I can do better?  When you show them how I want to know, I want to grow, I want to get better. I'm here to learn.  Now that's what I want you to do today is I want you to be different.


Hello and welcome to NewsClick. I am Paranjoy Guha Thakurtha and with me here in the studio, I have Pratik Sinha, founder, editor of old news. He's 36 years old. He founded and heads this fact-checking portal based in Ahmedabad. He has a background as a software engineer. He studied electronics engineering in Bangalore, worked in the United States and Vietnam and of course in India. In the first part of our conversation, we looked at how after Pulwama, there had been a proliferation of fake, false, disinformation, misinformation. That was being used to step up the chingoism hyper-nationalism. We looked at how the Bharti Janta Party and its troll army and its WhatsApp battalion, what they are likely to do as the elections began. In this, the second part of our conversation, first we take a step back. What are the different kinds of misinformation and disinformation? Normally, we believe that you can be genuinely misinformed.  I am misinformed. But I can also say that having known that you are 36 years old, I can try and spread disinformation that is you are 32 years old. It's a very, very trivial example. I'd like you to distinguish between the different kinds of fake and false information. So, see misinformation has various objectives. So, we have to look at this in two ways. Number one, we have to establish that it is organized. And while, you know, so all news, I think, sets itself apart from some of the other fact-checking websites because what we have often done is like we have gone down, so let's say there's a website which is putting out misinformation or slash disinformation, we have gone down and found who's actually running the website and found whether they have any links with any party or not. That means you physically visit? Not physically visit. This is all internet foreign things. So, you know, figure out- You go to the URL, the universal resource locator. I'll give you an example of one of our latest stories. There's a Facebook page called the India Eye. And now this Facebook page also is there on Namo app. So, Namo app has a section called My Network which is like a social media network and in which certain accounts are followed automatically which includes Mr. Modi's account himself, Ramishankar Prasad, all these ministers and one of the accounts is the India Eye. Now, we did a two-part story. The first part where we showed how the India Eye puts misinformation on a regular basis on a literally on a daily basis and what we showed was that the India Eye website, if you look at the IP address for example, it belongs to a company called Silver Touch Technologies in Ahmedabad. If you look at who bought that website, it is a person called Himanshu Jain who is a full-time director of Silver Touch Technologies in Ahmedabad. And what is Silver Touch Technologies? Silver Touch Technologies is the company which made the Naim the Modi app, which made the Rashtrapati Bhavan app and it has got plethora of government projects into the tune of crores. Now, when we spoke to the CEO of this company, when we were doing the story, he said we have got nothing to do with the India Eye, but all the links were pointed to the contrary. So, we have done multiple of these stories to show that when misinformation is put out, it is put out in an organized manner. Also, if you look at the way misinformation progresses, that is it is always linked to current affairs. So, for example, the day when... Today's latest news. So, one of the first videos after the IAF strike happened was this video of a missile homing in on an establishment and blowing it apart claiming that this is the IAF strike, but it was a video game. It was a video game. So, a game is being sort of being part of this. But who are the people who are doing this? Now, the fact that it is always mirroring the current affairs means that there is a propaganda that is going on to create a narrative. So, in this case, there's multiple kinds of misinformation. Number one, the one that mirrors the current affairs where on an everyday basis, for example, if something is said about deminitization, then there will be misinformation or deminitization. The second kind is political parties achieve X and they want to show X plus Y. So, this plus Y comes in terms of fudged statistics that you will see multiple biographs, professional main biographs that are being bandied about on social media. This plus Y comes in form of fudged statistics. Number three... False fudged statistics. Yes. Fudged statistics is at any point in time when there's an individual who becomes a news point. So, I'll give you a quick example like Gurmehar Kaur.  Immediately, a video went viral claiming that it showed a young woman dancing in a SUV kind of a car and drinking and dancing and having fun with her friends. And in large parts of India, a woman doing that would be looked down upon, you know. Because of the conservatism. Because of the social conservatism. Yes. Especially in smaller towns, in rural areas. Exactly. It's only in the metros would people not think twice about it. Exactly. And this person was claimed to be Gurmehar Kaur. I see, I got you. So, number two. Number three, the third kind of misinformation that is often put out is, and this is the most insidious, pernicious kind, which is the communal misinformation. Where random crimes are ascribed to members of the minority community, especially Muslim community. I'll give you a couple of examples real quick. You know, recently on Dasheera, there was a train tragedy in Amritsar where people had gone to see the Ravana. Where they said Navjot Siddhu's wife was present. Yes, yes. That's the same one. So, right after that, you know, and I think 60 or people died, right after that, a message went viral on social media saying that you don't know, but the name of the driver is Imtiaz Ali. So, now the aim was to show that a person who follows of Muslim origin ran over Hindu devotees on a sacred Hindu festival. Okay. The clear purpose to incite passions, to divide people on religious lines. In any case, the person, the name, the name of the person is Arvind Kumar. But in any case, even it had been Imtiaz Ali, the railway doesn't work. It's not a one person thing. You know, there's so many things which work. But in this case, the name of the person was Arvind Kumar. And this happens again and again. But as we had discussed in our earlier conversation, today WhatsApp is not confined to the urban areas or the large metropolitan areas in the small towns. It is spread across rural areas. Women, young people, children are regularly, what? Again, to use Ravish Kumar's famous phrase, getting educated in WhatsApp, Vishwa Vidyalay. Today, we have a country of 135 crore people. According to the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India, there's 1 crore SIM cards or subscriber identity modules. There are various estimates. Some will say there are roughly 700 million mobile phones of which roughly half are supposed to be smart phones or thereabouts. I mean, we are guests. They're not estimators. The number of WhatsApp users at this point of time are in the range of 250 million. All right. These people have become the leaders of the government. Now, this is going to be the weapon of the Bharati Janta Party, the ruling party to influence public opinion. What kind of ordinary person? What kind of ordinary person who's used one? What should she or he be aware of? How to detect? How to find out what is true and what is false? What is genuine and what is propaganda? See, it is absolutely necessary for netizens to be self-aware in the sense that if you look at misinformation, they also try to prey on your emotional state. So, again, going back to this Pulwama, post Pulwama, the entire country was involved. Even an India-Pakistan match creates so much tension. Now, this is a cross-border thing happening. And that is the time when people are most gullible and are most likely to fall from misinformation. And they are vulnerable to propaganda. They are vulnerable to propaganda. And the messaging of misinformation is also often that generates, that sort of evokes a specific extreme emotion, which is that of hatred, fear, anger. So, people need to be set... And this is difficult. See, I can go into what alt-use does, you do reverse MSS, but the fact is that... Reverse image, photoshopping, technique. But the fact is that the section of population that you are talking about, number one, they have nine to seven jobs, nine to eight jobs. They probably get a couple of hours for doing whatever, WhatsApp, TV, etc. They are not going to open the laptops. First of all, most of them won't have a laptop at home, especially the socioeconomic section that we are talking about. And even if they did, they are not going to go to the laptop and do Facebook, do Google reverse image. Or find out different techniques too. Has this video been manipulated? Has this audio track been cut and pasted, etc. So, people are not going to have that time or the inclination to do that. So, at that point in time, then you need to be self-aware of what's happening around you. If there is any information which is trying to tickle an extreme emotion of yours, you always have to be circumspect. Because that is where... Have to be careful, have to be circumspect. And not immediately forward it to everybody you know. Exactly, because that is what they want. They want to tickle a specific emotion so that you go and press that forward button as an intuitive thing. And that is what you need to be circumspect. Anytime there is this kind of misinformation which is likely to create a social communal discord in the country, then stop yourself and get a more well-rounded perspective. You cannot do reverse image, etc. But at least go and Google a few things. See, you know, don't just read one website. Read multiple things. Look for information from multiple sources. Get a well-rounded perspective. Because the problem is also with mainstream media. We could have... I mean, let's look at it. Even some of the mainstream media organizations, the leading websites, the leading newspapers, the leading television channels, Hindi, English, different languages. Some of them have been made a fool of or they've fallen prey to misinformation, disinformation. Absolutely. And I can even say that there have been sections of the so-called mainstream media which are called the mainstream media. They have been complicit. I'll give you one example. Najib, for example. Even now, you know, I published a front page story that Najib showing a link between Najib and ISIS and then the next day they had, like, in page 7, they had a small thing saying that. Small denial. You're talking about the student of Jawaharlal Nehru University who we still don't know where he is, what he is. He's missing. Now, that clipping is still viral. It doesn't stop being viral. This guy has joined ISIS. Just two days ago, you know, we saw that it is viral again. And this is after about two years. And the same newspaper has taken down the picture of the assets of Amit Shah, the president of the Bharati Janta Party after it was published in a newspaper. And where is that information from? Official information given to the Election Commission of India, information in the public domain. And, you know, in that specific article, let's say they did not specify that he had gotten this from inheritance. All he had to do was update the article. That is the regular journalistic practice that let's say if they have gotten something wrong, then they update the article and give a disclaimer, right? But instead what they chose to do was take down the entire article. But going back to my point, the problem is that, you know, let's say if we were in a different country, I would have said go and look for this information on mainstream media and verify it against mainstream media. But in India, we can't even do that today with even the slightest amount of confidence. So then typically what I tell people is that get a well-rounded perspective that don't depend on just one source of information.  The decision when you choose to give a vote, the decisions, the various things that you use to determine, you know, at least in those things, you need to have a well-rounded perspective. I understand that Altnews has some important initiatives which are going to be unveiled in the coming weeks. Would you like to tell us a little bit about it? So one thing that is going to happen very soon is that, you know, we are coming up with a book and it will be out for pre-order very soon on Amazon. It's called India Missing Form, The True Story. And there, you know, instead of looking at single, single stories, we will give a whole well-rounded perspective of the whole misinformation ecosystem. Besides that, the question of how to find, how to find what is true, what is false, we are also working on an app, a mobile phone app where you can upload images and videos and for stories which have already been fact-checked by us, we'll give you an instant response. So as to make it easy for you on a day-to-day basis, on the go you can figure out, you can share things from WhatsApp and figure out whether you got something on WhatsApp is true or not. So that is also hopefully will be out in a month. Before the elections are. Begin in the middle of April. Okay Pratik, thank you so much for speaking with NewsClick. It's been a pleasure speaking with you. More strength to you and your team of six or eight people who are based in Ahmedabad. You guys are doing excellent work, seminal service I think in countering fake news, disinformation, misinformation. And the message that's coming through from Pratik Sena is straight, sharp, succinct and clear. Be careful. You have to be aware of what you read on WhatsApp, what you share on the social media. There are people who are being paid to emotionally excite you. There are people who are trying to influence you, your political views. Be aware, be careful.


of the United States. Ladies and gentlemen, my name is Jim Lacey. I'm Chairman of Young Americans for Freedom, and it's my pleasure to introduce to you tonight your Master of Ceremonies, the Director of the United States Information Agency, Mr. Charles Z. Wick. Thank you, Jim. Ladies and gentlemen, if you will kindly stand for the presentation of the colors by the Virginia Tech Color Guard and Band. Ladies and gentlemen, please join me in the Pledge of Allegiance. I pledge allegiance to the flag of the United States of America, the Republic for which it stands, one nation, under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice to all. If you will please remain standing, Lisa, believe it or not, Reagan Edwards, Lisa Reagan Edwards spelled the same way, E-W-A-R-D-S. The wife of Mickey Edwards will lead us in the singing of the Star-Spangled Banner. Oh say, can you see, Stripe Sun? Thank you, Lisa, that was magnificent. If you will kindly remain standing for the invocation by Monsignor Frank Hendrick. I've been asked to announce before the invocation that the Archbishop of Washington has dispensed the Catholics from their Lenten abstinence today. Let us pray. Lord God, we give honor and praise to you as we acknowledge your dominion over creation. Look gently upon us as we humbly acknowledge our frailty, forgive our offenses against each other and against nature. Father, we thank you for the manifold blessings that you have showered upon the American people among which is that we are a nation under God. We beseech you to continue to sing your graces upon our noble president as he courageously leads us in difficult times. Bless those who serve at every level. Bless now this food and all who will partake of it. And Lord, be our honored guest for it is in your name we pray. Amen. Thank you very much, thank you very much, Monsignor. We would like you to enjoy your dinner and for those of you who would feel more comfortable sitting down while eating, please feel free to do so.  He's of St. Mary's Catholic Church in Alexandria, Virginia. Mr. James Linnon IV, the vice chairman of the American Conservative Union. A great American, Mr. William Rusher, the publisher of National Review. Another great American, Mr. Congressman Mickey Edwards, chairman of the American Conservative Union. Do not introduce the president. My wife, Mary Jane Wick. And on my left is Mrs. Mickey Edwards who sang the star-spangled banner so well. Lisa Reagan Edwards, mother's from Ireland and his name was R-E-A-G-A-N, believe it or not. That's what they call a confluence of history. Mr. James Lacy, the chairman of the Young Americans for Freedom. Mr. Thomas Winter, editor of Human Events and the vice chairman of the American Conservative Union. Mr. Sam Pym, executive director of the Young Americans for Freedom. And Bob Dolan, vice chairman of Young Americans for Freedom. Now, what's next? Jim Lacy, the chairman of Young Americans for Freedom will now introduce his performance in support of an economically and military strong America, the president of the United States, Ronald Reagan. Thank you very much. Thank you. Thank you very much. Oh, thank you. You did that once already. Thank you. Thank you very much. Thank you. Please. Ladies and gentlemen, Mr. Chairman, Reverend Clergy, Mickey, I thank you very much for those very kind words and I thank all of you for certainly a most hearty and warm welcome. I'm grateful to the American Conservative Union, Young Americans for Freedom, National Review and Human Events for organizing this third annual memorial service for the Democratic platform of 1980. Someone asked me why I wanted to make a three in a row. Well, you know how the Irish love wakes. But I'm delighted to be back here with you at your 10th annual conference. My last two addresses, I've talked about our common perceptions and goals and I thought I might report to you here tonight on where we stand in achieving those goals, a sort of state of the Reagan report, if you will. Now, I'm the first to acknowledge that there's a good deal left unfinished on the Conservative agenda. Our cleanup crew will need more than two years to deal with the mess left by others for over half a century. But I'm not disheartened. In fact, my attitude about that unfinished agenda isn't very different from that expressed in an anecdote about one of my favorite presidents, Calvin Coolidge. Now, some of you may know that after Cal Coolidge was introduced to the sport of fishing by his secret service detail, it got to be quite a passion with him. If you can use that word about silent Cal. But anyway, he was once asked by reporters how many fish were in one of his favorite angling places, the River Bruley. And Coolidge said the waters were estimated to carry 45,000 trout. And then he said, I haven't caught them all yet, but I sure have intimidated them. Well, it's true we haven't brought about every change important to the conscience of a Conservative. But we Conservatives can take a great deal of honest pride in what we have achieved. In a few minutes, I want to talk about just how far we've come and what we need to do to win further victories. But right now, I think a word or two on strategy is in order. You may remember that in the past it was, I mentioned that it was not our task as Conservatives to just point out the mistakes made over all the decades of Liberal government, not just to form an able opposition but to govern, to lead a nation. And I noted this would make new demands upon our movement, upon all of us. For the first time in half a century, we've developed a whole new cadre of young Conservatives in government. We've shown that Conservatives can do more than criticize. We've shown that we can govern and move our legislation through the Congress. Now I know there's concern over attempts to roll back some of the gains that we've made. And it seems to me that here we ought to give some thought to strategy, to making sure that we stop and think before we act. For example, some of our critics have been saying recently that they want to take back the people's third year tax cut and abolish tax indexing. And some others, including members of my staff, wanted immediately to open up a verbal barrage against them. Well, I hope you know that sometimes it's better if a president doesn't say exactly what's on his mind. There's an old story about a farmer and a lawyer that illustrates my point. It seems that these two got into a pretty bad collision, a traffic accident. They both got out of their cars. The farmer took one look at the lawyer, walked back to his car, got a package and brought it back.  I think you ought to take a nip at this. Steady your nerves. Well, the lawyer did. The farmer said, you still look pretty a little bit pale. How about another? And the lawyer took another swallow and under the urging of the farmer, he took another and another and another. And then finally said he was feeling pretty good and asked the farmer if he didn't think that he ought to have a little nip too. And the farmer said, not me. I'm waiting for the state trooper. I wonder if we can't learn something from that farmer. If our liberal friends really want to head into the next election, under the banner of taking away from the American people their first real tax cut in nearly 20 years, if after peering into their heart of hearts, they feel they must tell the American people that over the next six years, they want to reduce the income of an average family by six or $3,000. And if they want to voice these deeply held convictions in an election year, well, fellow conservatives, who are we to stifle the voices of conscience? Now, in talking about our legislative agenda, I know that some of you have been disturbed by the notion of standby tax increases in the so-called out years. Well, I wasn't a wild about the idea myself, but the economy is getting better and I believe these improvements are only the beginning. And with some luck, and if the American people respond with the kind of energy and initiative they've always shown in the past, well, maybe it's time we started thinking about some standby tax cuts too. But you know, the great thing about that standby tax increase is that if it's passed, they can't put it into effect unless they have first agreed to all our spending cuts. But it does give them something to think about. But you know, with regard to the economy, I wonder if our political adversaries haven't once again proved that they're our best allies. They've spent the last 16 months or so placing all the responsibility for the state of the economy on our shoulders. And with some help from the media, it's been a pretty impressive campaign. It created quite an image. We're responsible for the economy. Well, I assume that we're responsible then for inflation, which after back-to-back years in double digits before we got here has now been reduced to 3.9% in 1982. And for the last three months of that year it ran at only 1.1%. In 1982, real wages increased for the first time in three years. Interest rates, as you've already been told, have dropped dramatically with the prime rate shrinking by nearly 50%. And in December, the index of leading indicators was a full 6.3% above last March's low point and has risen in eight of the last nine months. Last month, housing starts were up 95% and building permits 88% over last year at this time. New home sales are up by 54% since April and inventories of unsold homes are at the lowest levels in more than a decade. Auto production this quarter is scheduled to increase by 22% and General Motors alone is putting 21,400 of their workers back on the job. Last month's sharp decline in the unemployment rate was the most heartening sign of all. It would have taken a $5 billion jobs bill to reduce unemployment by the same amount and it didn't cost us anything. It's time to admit our guilt. Time we admitted that our liberal critics have been right all the time and they should go right on telling the American people that the state of the economy is precisely the fault of that wicked creature, Camp Roth, and its havoc-breaking truth, Reaganomics. Let's confess, let's admit that we've turned the corner on the economy and we're especially proud of one thing. When we hit heavy weather, we didn't panic. We didn't go for fast bromides and quick fixes. The huge tax increases or wage and price controls recommended by so many. And our stubbornness, if you want to call it that, will quite literally pay off for every American in the years ahead. So let me pledge to you tonight carefully we have set out on the road to recovery. We will not be deterred. We will not be turned back. I reject the policies of the past. The policies of tax and tax, spend and spend, elect and elect. The lesson of these failed policies is clear. I've said this before. You can't drink yourself sober or spend yourself rich and you can't prime the pump without pumping the prime. As somebody did, like the 21.5% in 1980. And a word is in order here on the most historic of all the legislative reforms we've achieved in the last two years. That of tax indexing. You can understand the terror that strikes in the heart of those whose principal constituency is big government. Bracket creep is government's hidden incentive to inflate the currency and bring on inflation. And indexing will end that. It will end those huge hidden subsidies for bigger and bigger government. In the future, if we get indexing planted firmly as a law of the land, the advocates of big government who want money, more money for their social spending, their social engineering schemes, will have to go to the people and say right out loud, we want more money from your weekly paycheck so we're raising your taxes. Do that instead of sneaking it out by way of inflation, which they have helped bring on. So all the professional Washingtonians from bureaucrats to lobbyists to the special interest groups are frightened, plain scared, and they're working overtime to take this one back. Well, I think I speak for all conservatives when I say tax indexing is non-negotiable. It's a fight we'll take to the people and we'll win. But I think you can see how even this debate shows things are changing for the better. It highlights the essential differences between two philosophies now contending for power in American political life. One is the philosophy of the past, a philosophy that has as its constituents an ill-assorted mix of elitists and special interest groups who see government as the principal vehicle of social change, who believe that the only thing we have to fear is the people who must be watched and regulated and superintended from Washington. On the other hand, the essence of philosophy is at the heart of the new political consensus that emerged in America at the beginning of this decade. One that I believe will dominate American politics for many decades. The economic disasters brought about by too much government were the catalysts for this consensus. During the 70s, the American people began to see misdirected, overgrown government as the source of our social problems, not the solution. This new consensus has a view of government that's essentially that of our founding fathers. That government is the servant, not the master. That it was meant to maintain order, to protect our nation's safety, but otherwise in the words of that noted political philosopher, schnozzle Jimmy Duranty, don't put no constructions onto people leading to heck alone. The overriding goal during the past two years has been to give the government back to the American people, to make it responsive again to their wishes and desires, to do more than bring about a healthy economy or a growing, gross national product, we've truly brought about a quiet revolution in American government. For too many years, bureaucratic self-interest and political maneuvering held sway over efficiency and honesty in government. Federal dollars were treated as the property of bureaucrats, not taxpayers. Those in the federal establishment who pointed to the misuse of those dollars were looked upon as mal-contents or troublemakers. Well, this administration has broken with what was a kind of a buddy system. There have been dramatic turnabouts in some of the more scandal-ridden and wasteful federal agencies and programs. Only a few years ago, the General Services Administration was racked by indictments and report after report of inefficiency and waste. Today at GSA, Jerry Carmen has not only put the whistleblowers back in charge, he's promoted them and given them new responsibilities. And just listen to this little set of figures. Today, General Services Administration work in progress time is down from 30 days to 7, even while the agency has sustained budget cuts of 20%, office space reductions of 20%, and the attrition of 7,000 employees. At the government printing office under Dan Sawyer, losses of millions of dollars have suddenly been ended as the workforce was cut through attrition and a hiring freeze, and overtime pay was cut by $6 million in one day or one year alone. The government publication program, which ran a cumulative loss of $20 million over a three-year period, registered a $4.9 million profit, and the GPO as a whole has experienced a profit of $4.1 million last year. It is said by some that this administration has turned a blind eye to waste and fraud at the Pentagon while overzealously concentrating on the social programs. What are the Pentagon under Cap Weinberger's leadership and our superb service secretaries Jack Marsh, John Layman and Vernor? We have identified more than a billion dollars in savings on waste and fraud, and over the next seven years, multi-year procurement and other acquisition initiatives will save us almost $30 billion. Now, these are only three examples of what we're attempting to do to make government more efficient. The list goes on. We have wielded our inspectors general as a strike force, accounting for nearly $17 billion in savings in 18 months. With Peter Grace's help, we've called on top management executives and experts from the private sector to suggest modern management techniques for every aspect of government operations. And with an exciting new project called Reform 88, we're going to streamline and reorganize the processes that control the money, information, personnel and property of the federal bureaucracy, the maze through which nearly $2 trillion passes each year, and which includes 350 different payroll systems and 1,750 personnel offices. There is more, much more, from cutting down wasteful travel practices to reducing paperwork, from aggressively pursuing the $40 billion in bad debts, owed the federal government, to reducing publication of more than 70 million copies of wasteful or unnecessary government publications. But you know, making government responsive again to the people involves more than eliminating waste and fraud and inefficiency. During the decades when government was intruding into areas where it's neither competent nor needed, it was also ignoring its legitimate and constitutional duties such as preserving the domestic peace and preserving or providing for the common defense. I'll talk about defense in a moment. I know you've already heard about that today, some of you. But on the matter of domestic order, a few things need to be said. First of all, it is abundantly clear that much of our crime problem was provoked by a social philosophy that saw man as primarily a creature of his material environment. The same liberal philosophy that saw an era of prosperity and virtue ushered in by changing man's environment through massive federal spending programs also viewed criminals as the unfortunate products of poor socioeconomic conditions or an underprivileged upbringing. Society, not the individual, they said, was at fault for criminal wrongdoing. We were to blame. Well, today a new political consensus utterly rejects this point of view. The American people demand that government exercise its legitimate and constitutional duty to punish career criminals, those who consciously choose to make their life by preying on the innocent. A philosophy that did so much to foster it. About a legal system that seemed to specialize in letting hardened criminals go free. And now we have the means and the power to do something. Let's get to work. Drug pusher after drug pusher. Mobster after mobster has escaped justice by taking advantage of our flawed bail and parole system. Criminals who have committed atrocious acts have cynically utilized the technicalities of the exclusionary rule, a miscarriage of justice unique to our legal system. Indeed, one National Institute of Justice study showed that if those arrested for drug felonies in Los Angeles County in 1981, 32% were back out in the streets because of perceived problems with the exclusionary rule. Now, the exclusionary rule, that isn't a law that was passed by Congress or a state legislature. It's what is called case law, the result of judicial decisions. If a law enforcement officer obtains evidence as the result of a violation of the laws regarding search and seizure, that evidence cannot be introduced in a trial even if it proves the guilt of the accused. Now, this is hardly punishment for the officer for his violation of legal procedures. And its only effect in many cases would be someone patently guilty of a crime. I don't know, maybe I've told you this before, but I have to give you a glaring example of what I've taken too much time to explain here. San Bernardino, California, several years ago. Two narcotics agents, based on the evidence that they had, obtained a legal warrant to search a home of man and woman suspected of peddling heroin. They searched the home. They didn't find anything. But as they were leaving, just on a hunch, they turned back to the baby in the crib and took down the diapers. And there was the stash of heroin. The evidence was thrown out of court and the couple went free because the baby hadn't given permission for the violation of its constitutional rights. Well, this administration has proposed vital reforms of our bail and parole systems and criminal forfeiture and sentencing statutes. These reforms were passed by the Senate 95-1 last year. Our anti-crime package never got out of committee in the House of Representatives. Do you see a target there? The American people want these reforms and they want them now. I'm asking tonight that you mobilize all the powerful resources of this political movement to get these measures passed by the Congress. On another front, all of you know how vitally important it is for us to reverse the decline in American education. To take responsibility for the education of our children out of the hands of the bureaucrats and put it back in the hands of parents and teachers. That's why the Congress must stop dithering. We need those tuition tax credits. We need a voucher system for the parents of disadvantaged children. We need education savings accounts, a sort of IRA for college. And finally, and don't think for a moment I've given up, we need to eliminate that unnecessary and politically engendered Department of Education. There are other steps we're taking to restore government to its rightful duties. To restore the political consensus upon which this nation was founded. Our founding fathers prohibited a federal establishment of religion. But there is no evidence that they intended to set up a wall of separation between the state and religious belief itself. The evidence of this is all around us. In the Declaration of Independence alone there are no fewer than four mentions of a supreme being. In God we trust is engraved on our coinage. The Supreme Court opens its proceedings with a religious invocation. And the Congress opens each day with prayer from its chaplains. The school children of the United States are entitled to the same privileges as Supreme Court justices and congressmen. Join me in persuading the Congress to exceed to the overwhelming desire of the American people for a constitutional amendment permitting prayer in our schools.  The tragedy of abortion on demand. This is a grave moral evil and one that requires the fullest discussion on the floors of the House and Senate. As we saw in the last century with the issue of slavery any attempt with the Congress to stifle or compromise away discussion of important moral issues only further inflames emotions on both sides and leads ultimately to even more social disruption and disunity. So tonight I would ask that the Congress discuss the issue of abortion openly and freely on the floors of the House and Senate let those who believe the practice of abortion to be a moral evil join us in taking this case to our fellow Americans and let us do so rationally, calmly and with an honest regard for our fellow Americans. Speaking for myself I believe that once the implications of abortion on demand are fully aired and understood by the American people they will resolutely seek its abolition. Now I know there are many who sincerely believe that limiting the right of abortion violates the freedom of choice of the individual. But if the unborn child is a living entity then there are two individuals each with the right to life, liberty and to pursue the practice. Unless and until someone can prove the unborn is not alive and all medical evidence indicates it is then we must concede the benefit of the doubt to the unborn infant. But whether it's whether it's cutting, spending and taxing shrinking the size of the deficit ending over-regulation, inefficiency fraud and waste in government cracking down on career criminals revitalizing American education pressing for prayer and abortion legislation I think you can see that the agenda we've put before America these past two years has been a conservative one. Oh and there are two other matters that I think you'd be interested in first as part of our federalism effort next week we will be sending to the Congress our proposal for four mega block grants that will return vital prerogatives to the states where they belong. And second the office of management and budget will press ahead with new regulations prohibiting the use of federal tax dollars for purposes of political advocacy. And these important domestic initiatives have been complemented by the conservative ideas we've brought to the pursuit of foreign policy. In the struggle now going on for the world we have not been afraid to characterize our adversaries for what they are. We have focused world attention on forced labor on the Soviet pipeline and Soviet repression in Poland and all the other nations that make up what is called the fourth world. Those living under totalitarian rule who long for freedom. We've publicized the evidence of chemical war fair and other atrocities in Cambodia which we're now supposed to call Campuchia and in Afghanistan. We've pointed out the totalitarian powers hold a radically different view of morality and human dignity than we do. We must develop a forward strategy for freedom one based on our hope that someday representative government will be enjoyed by all the people and all the nations of the earth. We've been striving to give the world the facts about the international arms race. Ever since our nearly total denomalization after World War II we in the west have been playing catch up. Yes there's been an international arms race as some of the declared democratic candidates for the presidency tell us but let them also tell us there's only been one side doing the racing. Those of you in the front line of the conservative movement can be of special assistance in furthering our strategy for freedom. Our fight against totalitarianism. First of all there is no more important foreign policy initiative in this administration and none that frightens our adversaries more than our attempts through our international radios to build constituencies for peace in nations dominated by totalitarian militaristic regimes. We've proposed to the congress modest but vitally important expenditures for the voice of America, Radio Free Europe, Radio Liberty and Radio Marti. These proposals stalled last year but with your help we can get them through the congress this year and believe me nothing could mean more to the Poles, Lithuanians, Cubans and all the millions of others living in that fourth world. Now it would be also unconscionable during any discussion of the need for candor in our foreign policy not to mention here the tragic event that last year shocked the world. The attack on His Holiness, Pope John Paul II an act of unspeakable evil and assault on man and God it was an international outrage and merits the fullest possible investigation. Tonight I want to take this opportunity to applaud the courage and resourcefulness of the government of Italy in bringing this matter to the attention of the world. And contrary to what some have suggested you can dependent on it there is no one on our side that is acting embarrassed or feeling embarrassed because they're going ahead with that investigation. We mean to help them. And now Cap you can breathe easy because here we come we must continue to revitalize and strengthen our armed forces. Cap Weinberger has been waging an heroic battle on this front. I'm asking you the conservative leaders here tonight to make support for our defense build up one of your top priorities. But besides progress in furthering all of these items on the conservative agenda something else is occurring something that someday we conservatives may be very proud happened under our leadership. Even with all our recent economic hardships I believe a feeling of optimism is now entering the American consciousness a belief that the days of division and discord are behind us and that an era of unity and national renewal is upon us. A vivid reminder of how our nation has learned and grown and transcended the tragedies of the past was given to us here in Washington only a few months ago. Last November on the mall between the Lincoln Memorial and the Washington Monument a new memorial was dedicated one of dark low-lying walls inscribed with the names of those who gave their lives in the Vietnam conflict. Soon there will be added a sculpture of three infantrymen representing different racial and ethnic backgrounds. During the dedication ceremonies the roles of the missing and dead were read for three days morning to night in a candlelight ceremony at the National Cathedral and those veterans of Vietnam who were never welcomed home with speeches and bands but who were undefeated in battle and were heroes as surely as any whoever fought in a noble cause staged their own parade on Constitution Avenue. As America watched them some in wheelchairs all of them proud there was a feeling that as a nation we were coming together coming together again and that we had at long last brought the boys home. A lot of healing went on said Jan Scruggs the wounded combat veteran who helped organize support for the memorial and then there was this newspaper account that appeared after the ceremonies I'd like to read it to you. Yesterday crowds returned to the memorial among them was Herbie Pettit a machinist and former Marine from New Orleans last night he said standing near the wall I went out to dinner with some ex-Marines there was also a group of college students in the restaurant we started talking to each other and before we left they stood up and cheered the whole week Pettit said his eyes read it was worth it just for that it has been worth it we Americans have learned again to listen to each other to trust each other we've learned that government owes the people an explanation and needs their support for its actions at home and abroad and we've learned and I pray this time for good that we must never again send our young men to fight and die in conflicts that our leaders are not prepared to win yet the most valuable lesson of all the preciousness of human freedom has been relearned not just by Americans but all the people of the world it is the stark lesson that Trong knew Tang one of the founders of the National Liberation Front a former Viet Cong minister and vice minister of the post war Vietnamese communist government spoke of recently when he explained why he fled Vietnam for freedom no previous regime in my country he wrote about the concentration camps and both people of Vietnam brought such numbers of people to such desperation not the military dictators not the colonialists not even the ancient Chinese warlords it is a lesson that my compatriots and I learned through witnessing and through suffering in our own lives the fate of our countrymen it is a lesson that must eventually move the conscience of the world this man who had fought on the other side learned the value of freedom only after helping to destroy it and seeing those who had had to give it up the task that has fallen to us as Americans is to move the conscience of the world to keep alive the hope and the dream of freedom for if we fail or falter there will be no place for the world's oppressed to flee to this is not a role we sought we preach no manifest destiny but like the Americans who brought a new nation into the world 200 years ago history has asked much of us in our time much we've already given much more we must be prepared to give this is not a task we shrink from it's a task we welcome for with the privilege of living in this kindly pleasant greening land called America this land of generous spirit and great ideals there is also a destiny and a duty a duty to preserve and hold in sacred trust mankind's age old aspirations of peace and freedom and a better life for generations to come God bless you all and thank you for what you're doing thank you Mr. President for your generous sharing of the goals and dedication to the commitment of those here tonight you know in your announcement dinner November 13th 1979 in New York you will refer to as a man of destiny we believe you to be a man of destiny and as destiny beckons you in 1984 we will be lining the boulevards of destiny beckoning you on in your march rest of the evening commemorating a very wonderful augury for the future thank you


It's a great honor, you know any time you get inducted into a Hall of Fame It's an honor, but you're going to the New York State Hall of Fame is the huge honor for me I mean it really that just goes through my Yankee days. So the reason I'm in this thing It's not played for the Yankees and played well. It had great teammates and coaches We had so much success. So they're all a part of this and also it must have been an honor for you to pay Tribute to Lou Vanilla. Yeah, I wish I had more time because there's so many things I could say about Lou So many great things I didn't get around to doing it But he was he meant a lot to me in my career and I can't wait to see him like a batch Tampa And what was it like for you when you were told you were being inducted into the New York State Base of a Hall of Fame? I was excited. You know, I was like seriously I just didn't know what the criteria was is it because I played in New York or how it works So when they told me I'm like absolutely because you see all these great athletes on the wall here They're a member of this Hall of Fame. So it's an honor. I played baseball because I loved it. I was passionate about it And then I didn't realize when I until I get drafted how great that's that the Yankee system was And I mean what I mean by that is they had professionals everywhere It treated us like professionals and and wanted to win and that's what I wanted to do So I thought this is a great fit and and so that was my career everywhere I went I was lucky enough fortunate enough to be on a team that always wanted to win and For me, that's how you play and You know, I kind of just leave it on the field whatever happens happens You hang your hat up at the end of the day and you know, you'd be satisfied with the outcome Believe it or not. And so, you know, and if you win that'd be better. But for me, this is a great thing It's you know, and the guys that I'm inducted with them. I mean, they're super players athletes and legends I mean, especially a guy like Lupinella was you know, he's done more for me than anybody in baseball He was great to me and I've been very fond of him and those of my family And is it really true that once you wear the Yankee uniform, do you feel like a Yankee forever? Well, I won the World Series in 1991 But everyone calls me the Yankee guy. So it's it was Boston here in Minnesota. It's oh, yeah It's the Yankee guy. So and actually I'm kind of proud of that


Hi everyone Joe for jazby's case rakes comm coming out to with 2018 tops update series baseball hangar box number seven and With seven bowman draft baseball Asia edition spots being given away 2020 Bowman draft in this particular box We've got some interesting chases here, too We'll do the break first and then at the end. We're gonna see who wins those spots big Thanks to everyone here, and there's all the teams right here. Let's roll it. Let's randomize each list Six and a two eight times for names and teams one two three four five six Seven and eight After eight we got Martin down to Tim. All right six and two eight times For the teams to do whatever you want Cheerios both are equally entertaining options five six Seven and eighth and final time after eight. All right, we've got Detroit all the way down to Texas Yeah, I'd like to go to a draft, too Right Adam wasn't Adam wasn't national that one looked really fun Adam. It looks like a really good time in the Nashville draft. I Think Vegas gets it because of the pandemic the draft wasn't here's the second half of this right there because of the pandemic I think the Vegas was supposed to have the draft, but they they didn't For obvious reasons pandemic reasons so I think the Raiders are getting the draft again next year Because this year is just in yeah, this year is in Cleveland. I think next year. It's back in Vegas. Yes Next year back in 2022 so I'll see everybody in Vegas in late April of 2022 Whoa, there was lightning at the national on that I'm saying But with all those bars there probably there's probably a lot of bands playing music there. It seems like a lot of fun This is a battle. Yeah Nick you've you've found another Jets fan in the wild. That's a big Jets fan And he's been breaking with us for since the almost the beginning of Jasper So he's a longtime Jasper supporter. So more good reasons For him to be one of your favorite people You might me might be in the same area might even be Maybe do some trades together or something like that Right So we got a couple cards here. We got a rookie debut on Soto and that's gonna go to Mark and the Aussie albies will go to Tim Tyler. Yeah, you could you can probably put like Nick you can probably put like a little post-it note of a different logo Over the over the over the hat. All right. Now. Let's go back to this list here and There's mark down a mark and everyone in between New dice new list and it's gonna be the top seven that gets the spots in that bowman draft break Good luck the top seven after Ten five and five ten the hard way one Two three four five six seven eight nine and 10th and final time after 10 My apologies to eight Sorry, Christopher very close eight down to 30. I appreciate you trying though sad times But there is one more opportunity if you want to take that chance again to ask these case breaks calm Congrats to the top seven Nick Andrew Christopher Martin Joe Monty and Brian There you have it and there you go. I'm Joe for jazby's case breaks calm. Thanks for breaking with us Thanks for watching and I'll see you next time for the next one. Bye. Bye