The Land of Mist by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle

The Institut Métapsychique was an imposing stone building in the Avenue / Wagram with a door like a baronial castle. Here it was that the three / friends presented themselves late in the evening. A footman showed them / into a reception-room where they were presently welcomed by Dr. Maupuis / in person. The famous authority on psychic science was a short broad man / with a large head, a clean-shaven face, and an expression in which / worldly wisdom and kindly altruism were blended. His conversation was in / French with Mailey and Roxton, who both spoke the language well, but he / had to fall back upon broken English with Malone, who could only utter / still more broken French in reply. He expressed his pleasure at their / visit, as only a graceful Frenchman can, said a few words as to the / wonderful qualities of Panbek, the Galician medium, and finally led the / way downstairs to the room in which the experiments were to be / conducted. His air of vivid intelligence and penetrating sagacity had / already shown the strangers how preposterous were those theories which / tried to explain away his wonderful results by the supposition that he / was a man who was the easy victim of impostors.

Descending a winding stair they found themselves in a large chamber / which looked at first glance like a chemical laboratory, for shelves / full of bottles, retorts, test-tubes, scales and other apparatus lined / the walls. It was more elegantly furnished, however, than a mere / workshop, and a large massive oak table occupied the centre of the room / with a fringe of comfortable chairs. At one end of the room was a large / portrait of Professor Crookes, which was flanked by a second of / Lombroso, while between them was a remarkable picture of one of Eusapia / Palladino's séances. Round the table there was gathered a group of men / who were talking in low tones, too much absorbed in their own / conversation to take much notice of the newcomers.