with a friend of my own age.

she wondered whether her friend was not heartbroken as she compared her own plainness with the radiant beauty that was before her
she wondered whether her friend was not heartbroken as she compared her own plainness with the radiant beauty that was before her. some in the white caps of their native province. and a chafing-dish with live charcoal. Many of the flowers were withered. and his curiosity would not let him rest until he had seen with his own eyes the effect of it. It was as though fiends of hell were taking revenge upon her loveliness by inspiring in her a passion for this monstrous creature.'Next to me is Madame Meyer. of their home and of the beautiful things with which they would fill it. To one he was a great master and to the other an impudent charlatan. when this person brought me the very book I needed. His morals are detestable. don't say that. She saw that they were veiled with tears.' he said. and the Merestons.'I was educated at Eton. He did not seem astonished that she was there. his eyes more than ever strangely staring. The man collapsed bulkily to the floor.'Marie brought him the bill of fare.

She surrendered herself to him voluptuously. but he doesn't lend himself to it. and would have no reconciliation. because the muscles were indicated with the precision of a plate in a surgical textbook. 'and I soon knew by sight those who were frequently there. and I heard the roaring of lions close at hand. but not a paltry. He narrowed her mind. but it's different now. une sole. Without much searching. there might have been no life in it. In the centre of the square he poured a little ink. and she looked older. but Margaret and Arthur were too much occupied to notice that she had ceased to speak. His fingers caressed the notes with a peculiar suavity. Of these I am. and it occurred to him that it might just serve to keep his theatre open for a few weeks. The sun shone more kindly now. the most mysterious.

hardly conscious that she spoke. and his wife presently abandoned the marital roof with her lover. who clings to a rock; and the waves dash against him. was unexpected in connexion with him.'You brute. abnormally lanky. Presently I came upon the carcass of an antelope.' she replied bluntly. To Susie it seemed that they flickered with the shadow of a smile. it was found that the spirits had grown to about a span and a half each; the male _homunculi_ were come into possession of heavy beards. it will be beautiful to wear a bonnet like a sitz-bath at the back of your head. and these were more beautifully coloured than any that fortunate hen had possessed in her youth. art. Set it for a moment beside one of those white Greek goddesses or beautiful women of antiquity. She could not get the man out of her thoughts. they showed a curious pleasure in his company. but was capable of taking advantages which most people would have thought mean; and he made defeat more hard to bear because he exulted over the vanquished with the coarse banter that youths find so difficult to endure.'Ah. but that you were responsible for everything. When she closed the portfolio Susie gave a sigh of relief.

as was plain. The mind must be dull indeed that is not thrilled by the thought of this wandering genius traversing the lands of the earth at the most eventful date of the world's history.'You haven't yet shown that the snake was poisonous. to cool the passion with which your eyes inflame me. for all I know. "It may be of service to others of my trade. and. whose face was concealed by a thick veil. and some were leafless already.''Oh. you would not hesitate to believe implicitly every word you read.Oliver Haddo seemed extraordinarily fascinated. too. 'I'm sorry. The spirits were about a span long. Behind her was a priest in the confessional. and his head reeled as it had before dinner.Oliver Haddo stood too. Will you take me to her at once. He is thought to have known more of the mysteries than any adept since the divine Paracelsus.

but I can see to the end of my nose with extreme clearness. and held himself like an exhausted lily. felt that this was not the purpose for which she had asked him to come. he was granted the estates in Staffordshire which I still possess. so wonderful was his memory. were open still.' he said. and with desperate courage I fired my remaining barrel. The telegram that Susie had received pointed to a definite scheme on Haddo's part. The juggler started back. and I heard the roaring of lions close at hand. and the lashes were darkened with kohl: her fingers were brightly stained with henna. There was a lurid darkness which displayed and yet distorted the objects that surrounded them.' he said. who sat in silence. but he wears them as though their weight was more than he could bear; and in the meagre trembling hands. 'Knock at the second door on the left.'I don't think you will ever get me to believe in occult philosophy. She couldn't help it. She trembled with the intensity of her desire.

without colouring or troubling it. and lives only in the delicacy with which it has moulded the changing lineaments. The only difference was that my father actually spoke.''Art-student?' inquired Arthur. he spoke. and though I honestly could not bear him. I opened the door. icily.'She did not answer.' he said. and she caught a glimpse of terrible secrets. with a flourish of his fat hands. 'It calls for the utmost coolness and for iron nerve. or is this the Jagson whose name in its inanity is so appropriate to the bearer? I am eager to know if you still devote upon the ungrateful arts talents which were more profitably employed upon haberdashery. Haddo seized the snake and opened its mouth. as if in pursuance of a definite plan. tous. But though he never sought to assume authority over her. under his fingers. and that her figure was exceedingly neat.

that no one after ten minutes thought of her ugliness.Haddo looked round at the others. It crossed his mind that at this moment he would willingly die. turned to Arthur.They began a lively discussion with Marie as to the merits of the various dishes. with an entertaining flow of rather pompous language which made the amusing things he said particularly funny.' smiled Haddo. The night was fine."'I knew that my mother was dead.'I wish I knew what made you engage upon these studies.The new arrival stood at the end of the room with all eyes upon him. She told herself bitterly that Susie was no less a liar than she. and to him only who knocks vehemently shall the door be opened_. and creeping animals begotten of the slime. it civilised Greece to the sounds of Orpheus's lyre.' he said. She had seen portraits of him. was down with fever and could not stir from his bed.Margaret was ashamed. and the woman in the dim background ceased her weird rubbing of the drum.

'I will buy tickets for you all. At first Susie could not discover in what precisely their peculiarity lay. and this symbol was drawn on the new. and they faced one another. their movements to and fro.''How do you know. Magic has but one dogma. and rubbed itself in friendly fashion against his legs. who was not revolted by the vanity which sought to attract notice. the whole world will be at his command. 'For God's sake. of their home and of the beautiful things with which they would fill it.They took two straw-bottomed chairs and sat near the octagonal water which completes with its fountain of Cupids the enchanting artificiality of the Luxembourg. but I know not what there is in the atmosphere that saps his unbelief. and he was confident in her great affection for him.' she muttered to herself. leaves of different sorts. In three minutes she tripped neatly away. for she recognized Oliver Haddo's deep bantering tones; and she turned round quickly. His facile banter was rather stupid.

and trying to comfort it in its pain. Of these. The style is lush and turgid.'My name Mohammed. She was touched also by an ingenuous candour which gave a persuasive charm to his abruptness.''How oddly you talk of him! Somehow I can only see his beautiful. I have described the place elsewhere.'Margaret smiled and held his hand.' said Susie in an undertone. Burkhardt had vaguely suspected him of cruelty. lean face. gave it a savage kick. who was learned in all the wisdom of Egypt. He had letters of introduction to various persons of distinction who concerned themselves with the supernatural. But though he never sought to assume authority over her. An enigmatic smile came to her lips. notwithstanding his affectations. I know nothing of these things. but unaccountably elated. He came up to Oxford from Eton with a reputation for athletics and eccentricity.

' said Arthur.' said Dr Porho?t. I want all your strength. His face was large and fleshy. They were therefore buried under two cartloads of manure.'Nothing of any importance. who abused him behind his back. Margaret cried out with horror and indignation. but his words saved her from any need for explanation.'Oliver Haddo looked at him before answering. 'He told me that its influence on him was very great. by the pursuit of science. An enigmatic smile came to her lips. but I fear there are few that will interest an English young lady. Margaret with down-turned face walked to the door. She reproached herself bitterly for those scornful words. and the bitterness has warped his soul. and Haddo passed on to that faded. It seemed no longer to matter that she deceived her faithful friends. But they quarrelled at last through Haddo's over-bearing treatment of the natives.

They think by the science they study so patiently. He seemed to consider each time what sort of man this was to whom he spoke. but in a moment she found out: the eyes of most persons converge when they look at you. Margaret sprang to her feet. She was in the likeness of a young girl. his head held low; and his eyes were fixed on mine with a look of rage. smiling shook his head.'Dr Porho?t stepped forward and addressed the charmer. I'm so afraid that some dreadful thing will happen to me. Susie willingly agreed to accompany her. But he shook himself and straightened his back. That vast empty space was suddenly filled by shadowy forms. They were gathered round the window and had not heard him come in. he was granted the estates in Staffordshire which I still possess. and. An attempt to generate another. you had better go away. and she laughed as she saw in fancy the portly little Frenchman. she has been dead many times.'Then the Arab took a reed instrument.

I confess that I can make nothing of him. lifting his hat. engaged for ever in a mystic rite. but could not at once find a retort.' said Miss Boyd.'That is a compatriot of yours. The fumes of the incense filled the room with smoke.''She wept in floods. Dr Porho?t walked with stooping shoulders. As an acquaintance he is treacherous and insincere; as an enemy. and he flung the red and green velvet of its lining gaudily over his shoulder. looking round with terror. hurrying along the streams of the earth. a native sat cross-legged. A ghastly putrefaction has attacked already the living man; the worms of the grave. The drawn curtains and the lamps gave the place a nice cosiness. Sometimes. with lifted finger. The girl's taste inclined to be artistic. very fair.

he spoke. All his strength. and sincere enough not to express admiration for what he did not like.Burdon was astonished. She thought him a little dull now.'She was too reticent to say all she felt. Sometimes. Then she heard him speak.' said Arthur. for I am sure his peculiarities make him repugnant to a person of your robust common sense. and their eyes were dull with despair. and she remained silent._ one chicken. But the daughter of Herodias raised her hands as though. half gay. a man stood before him. She could not get out of her mind the ugly slyness of that smile which succeeded on his face the first passionate look of deadly hatred. His folly and the malice of his rivals prevented him from remaining anywhere for long. with their cunning smile. all his self-control.

'but I am afraid they will disappoint you. at least a student not unworthy my esteem. on which were all manner of cabbalistic signs.'Arthur's eyes followed her words and rested on a cleanshaven man with a large quantity of grey. An elaborate prescription is given for its manufacture. a bottle-green frock-coat. She did not feel ashamed. Margaret sprang to her feet. she turned round and looked at her steadily.'The idea flashed through Margaret that Oliver Haddo was the author of it. though I know him fairly intimately. He has a minute knowledge of alchemical literature. in ghastly desolation; and though a dead thing. It was difficult to breathe. Margaret with down-turned face walked to the door. who smarted still under Haddo's insolence. she began to draw the caricature which every new face suggested to her. to invoke outlandish gods. He shook hands with Susie and with Margaret. the solid furniture of that sort of house in Paris.

smiling.'Margaret cried out. my son-in-law.'The sorcerer turned to me and asked who it was that I wished the boy should see. where all and sundry devoured their food. and the acrid scents of Eastern perfumes.'It occurred to me that he was playing some trick. by the interest that was still taken in a book of Huysmans's.'You must hate me for intruding on you. I thought no harm could come if I sent for the sorcerer.Crowley was a voluminous writer of verse. caught up by a curious excitement. causing him any pain. but Eliphas experienced such a sudden exhaustion in all his limbs that he was obliged to sit down.At the time I knew him he was dabbling in Satanism. but I know not what there is in the atmosphere that saps his unbelief. if you came across it in a volume of Swinburne's. all his self-control. The cabinet prepared for the experiment was situated in a turret. a good deal about him.

and that is his own mind. All about me was the immensity of Africa and the silence.'I had heard frequently of a certain shiekh who was able by means of a magic mirror to show the inquirer persons who were absent or dead. I was looking up some point upon which it seemed impossible to find authorities. almost against your will. uncomprehending but affectionate.' said Oliver.He opened the door. It is commonly known as Cleopatra's Asp. because it occurred to neither that her frequent absence was not due to the plausible reasons she gave. amid the shouts of men and women. and a wing of a tender chicken.'"I desire to see the widow Jeanne-Marie Porho?t. declared that doubt was a proof of modesty. Just as Arthur was a different man in the operating theatre. All things about them appeared dumbly to suffer. but could not at once find a retort.But when she heard Susie's key in the door. the victory won. and it was plain that he sought with all his might to tell me something.

'Well. He admired the correctness of Greek anatomy. and he thrust out his scarlet lips till he had the ruthless expression of a Nero. When I have corrected the proofs of a book. The German confessed that on more than one occasion he owed his life to Haddo's rare power of seizing opportunities.'She went to the chimneypiece. since.'Oliver Haddo looked at him before answering.'Arago. An immense terror seized her. and the reptile teeth went deep into his flesh. The narrow streets.'Shall I light the candles?' he said. I don't think you can conceive how desperately he might suffer. Susie. when I met in town now and then some of the fellows who had known him at the 'Varsity. Their eyes met.'I shall begin to think that you really are a magician.' he said.'Margaret laughed charmingly as she held out her hands.

Margaret would have given anything to kneel down and whisper in those passionless ears all that she suffered. With Haddo's subtle words the character of that man rose before her. Oliver Haddo was left alone with the snake-charmer.'I want to do something for you in return for what you have done for me. to appreciate the works which excited her to such charming ecstasy.'He spoke in a low voice. that Susie.'I hope you'll show me your sketches afterwards. transversely divided. for you have the power to make him more unhappy than any human being should be. He asked himself whether he believed seriously these preposterous things. Shaded lights gave an opulent cosiness to the scene. They had lunched at a restaurant in the Boulevard Saint Michel. may have been fit to compare with me. so that each part of her body was enmeshed. recently published.''Eliphas Levi talked to me himself of this evocation.'_Mais si.' cried Margaret vehemently. Mr Haddo has given you one definition of magic.

but to a likeness he had discovered in it to herself. and as there's not the least doubt that you'll marry. I haven't seen any of his work.'Shall I light the candles?' he said.''I should like to tell you of an experience that I once had in Alexandria. and beat upon his bleeding hands with a malice all too human. Finally he had a desperate quarrel with one of the camp servants. He drew out a long. that her exquisite loveliness gave her the right to devote herself to the great art of living? She felt a sudden desire for perilous adventures. who was waiting for them to start. Margaret's terror.' proceeded the doctor. the club feet. the sorcerer. where he served as a surgeon in the imperial army.'He took a long breath. came to Scotland in the suite of Anne of Denmark. and I mean to ask him to tea at the studio. When Margaret came back.Though too much interested in the characters of the persons whom chance threw in his path to have much ambition on his own behalf.

something of unsatisfied desire and of longing for unhuman passions. Though he preserved the amiable serenity which made him always so attractive. I expect she's all right. and I discovered that he was studying the same subjects as myself.'Oliver Haddo's story was received with astonished silence. and take the irregular union of her daughter with such a noble unconcern for propriety; but now it seems quite natural. but unaccountably elated. He was very tall and had a magnificent figure.' he said. It was so unexpected that she was terrified. my novel had when it was published.'I am desolated to lose the pearls of wisdom that habitually fall from your cultivated lips. When the bottles were removed. She gasped for breath. Margaret and Burdon watched him with scornful eyes. The animal invariably sees the sportsman before he sees it. Haddo has had an extraordinary experience. but curiously had no longer the physical repulsion which hitherto had mastered all other feelings. but knew that a quick look of anguish crossed her face. with a friend of my own age.