Some of the other sounds had affected King more, but that particular one passed him by and tortured me.

Watching with his head a little to one side the Gray Mahatma instantly began striking those two forks as rapidly as if he were clapping hands, increasing the vehemence with each stroke.
If I had stayed there I would have been stark mad or dead within five minutes.

I felt as if I were being vibrated asunder--as if my whole body were resolving into its component parts.

I lay on the floor with my head in both hands, and I daresay yelled with agony, but I don't know about that.
At any rate King understood and acted instantly.

He seized me under the arms and dragged me face-downward to the door, where he had to drop me in order to find how to open the thing.