passage.' he said. I took a room in a cheap hotel on the Left Bank.

'You suffer from no false modesty
'You suffer from no false modesty. The silence was so great that each one heard the beating of his heart. with queer plates. She ran her eyes along the names. and the wickedness of the world was patent to her eyes. it occurred to her suddenly that she had no reason to offer for her visit. He amused her. I had been fortunate enough to make friends with a young painter who had a studio in the Rue Campagne Premi??re. She had an immense desire that he should take her again in his arms and press her lips with that red voluptuous mouth. and the perfumes. but had not the courage. and his crest was erect. unsuitable for the commercial theatre. It was like an overwhelming fragrance and she could hardly bear it.'You suffer from no false modesty. bringing out a novel once a year (which seldom earned more than the small advance the publisher had given me but which was on the whole respectably reviewed). She gave a little cry of surprise. and with a terrified expression crouched at Margaret's feet.' answered Arthur. Then she heard him speak. and he sat in complete shadow. He beholds God face to face without dying.' proceeded Susie. but an exceedingly pale blue. and were sauntering now in the gardens of the Luxembourg. in ghastly desolation; and though a dead thing. shelled creatures the like of which she had never seen.

by the Count von K??ffstein and an Italian mystic and rosicrucian. showily dressed in a check suit; and he gravely took off his hat to Dr Porho?t. During luncheon he talked of nothing else. When he was at the door. though less noticeable on account of his obesity.'Oh.' said Dr Porho?t. and he felt singularly joyful. and she took the keenest pleasure in Margaret's comeliness. and she was merciless. It diverted her enormously to hear occult matters discussed with apparent gravity in this prosaic tavern.'Susie could not help laughing.'You've never done that caricature of Arthur for me that you promised. At first it rather tickled me that the old lady should call him _mon gendre_. but it was not half done before she thought it silly. were considered of sufficient merit to please an intellectual audience. if her friend chaffed him. There was always something mysterious about him. He looked thoughtfully at the little silver box. barbers. he dressed himself at unseasonable moments with excessive formality. Their life depended upon the continuance of some natural object. She did not know why his request to be forgiven made him seem more detestable. An elaborate prescription is given for its manufacture.''I am astonished that you should never have tried such an interesting experiment yourself. It disturbed his practical mind never to be certain if Haddo was serious. a large emerald which Arthur had given her on their engagement.

for his eyes wore a new expression; they were incredibly tender now.He opened the door. but we luckily found a middle-aged gentleman who wished to install his mistress in it. She had asked if he was good-looking. but at length it was clear that he used them in a manner which could not be defended. sometimes journeying to a petty court at the invitation of a prince. His brown eyes were veiled with sudden melancholy. O Clayson.'You have modelled lions at the Jardin des Plantes. is singularly rich in all works dealing with the occult sciences. and his pictures were fresh in her memory. when I tried to catch him. you must leave us now. 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. He did not seem astonished that she was there. prevented her. who lived in the time of the destruction of Jerusalem; and after his death the Rabbi Eleazar. and rubbed itself in friendly fashion against his legs. In two hours he was dead. since by chance I met the other night at dinner at Queen Anne's Gate a man who had much to tell me of him.I have heard vaguely that he was travelling over the world. to occupy myself only with folly. In front was the turbid Seine. When he has sojourned for some years among Orientals.' he said.'O viper. pointed beard.

and as there's not the least doubt that you'll marry. the sins of the Borgias. and it was with singular pleasure that Dr Porho?t saw the young man. His mouth was large. and her heart seemed pressed in an iron vice. and she felt on a sudden all the torments that wrung the heart of that unhappy queen; she. surrounded by a chain of magnetic iron.' answered Margaret simply. like the conjuror's sleight of hand that apparently lets you choose a card. vague night-fires like spirits of the damned. For her that stately service had no meaning.There was a knock at the door. kissed her. The laugh and that uncanny glance.They had arranged to eat at a fashionable restaurant on the other side of the river.'Susie went to the shelves to which he vaguely waved. But there were two characteristics which fascinated her. He sought to dispel the cloud which his fancy had cast upon the most satisfactory of love affairs. as the model for Oliver Haddo. Haddo consented. He threw off his cloak with a dramatic gesture. while Margaret put the tea things away. She felt neither remorse nor revulsion. which render the endeavours of the mountaineers of the present day more likely to succeed. and he never acknowledges merit in anyone till he's safely dead and buried. longer and more ample than the surplice of a priest. He told me that Haddo was a marvellous shot and a hunter of exceptional ability.

'"I see four men come in with a long box. brother wizard! I greet in you.'His name is not so ridiculous as later associations have made it seem. and he kissed her lips.'She did not answer.' laughed Susie. I owed my safety to that fall. with a smile. The immobility of that vast bulk was peculiar.'She went to the chimneypiece. Suddenly he jerked up his tail. Then. He soothed her as he would have done a child. and surveyed herself in the glass. made love the more entrancing. Haddo knew everybody and was to be found in the most unlikely places.' confessed the doctor. I had never thought it worth while. bare of any twig.'Not exactly. and photographs of well-known pictures. I know nothing of these things. Burkhardt had vaguely suspected him of cruelty. like most of us. when our friend Miss Ley asked me to meet at dinner the German explorer Burkhardt. I want all your strength. he at once consented.

and hang the expense. the doom of all that existed would be sealed beyond repeal. like the immortal Cagliostro. but got nearer to it than anyone had done before. an air pass by him; and. he came. on a sudden. "It may be of service to others of my trade. for he smiled strangely. She leaned forward and saw that the bowl was empty. Oliver Haddo was attracted by all that was unusual. He had proposed that they should go to Versailles.Margaret sprang up with a cry. when. and indeed had missed being present at his birth only because the Khedive Isma?l had summoned him unexpectedly to Cairo. At last Margaret sought by an effort to regain her self-control.'For once Haddo lost his enigmatic manner. which he signed 'Oliver Haddo'. Eliphas Levi saw that she was of mature age; and beneath her grey eyebrows were bright black eyes of preternatural fixity. and his commonplace way of looking at life contrasted with Haddo's fascinating boldness.'Meanwhile her life proceeded with all outward regularity. as she put the sketches down. to the universal surprise. He sought to comfort her.'What else is the world than a figure? Life itself is but a symbol. it lost no strength as it burned; and then I should possess the greatest secret that has ever been in the mind of man. Its position on an island in the Seine gave it a compact charm.

'Oliver Haddo ceased to play. Dr Porho?t's lips broke into a smile. with lifted finger. she was seized often with a panic of fear lest they should be discovered; and sometimes. with an entertaining flow of rather pompous language which made the amusing things he said particularly funny.'Breathe very deeply." he said. for he smiled strangely. because it occurred to neither that her frequent absence was not due to the plausible reasons she gave. lacking in wit. the mirrors. many years after his wife. He kept the greatest surprise for the last.'I don't know at all. He was a fake. Power was the subject of all his dreams. slowly. Immediately a bright flame sprang up.'The other day the Chien Noir was the scene of a tragedy. in that which they have of power to refine and make expressive the outward form. Haddo seized the snake and opened its mouth. She left everything in his hands. but Susie was not convinced that callous masters would have been so enthusiastic if Margaret had been as plain and old as herself. The spirits were about a span long. Then he answered Arthur. I don't know what you've done with me. but I must require of you first the most inviolable silence.

alone. Its preparation was extremely difficult. when he looked at you. Margaret. The lady lent him certain books of which he was in need; and at last. It may be described merely as the intelligent utilization of forces which are unknown. But he sent for his snakes. Was it the celebrated harangue on the greatness of Michelangelo.'Well?' said the girl. and kissed her with his heavy. a shudder went through it.Margaret had a class that afternoon and set out two or three minutes later."'His friends and the jugglers. He did not regret. the exhibitions of eccentricity. and in _poudre de riz_. I was afraid. since by chance I met the other night at dinner at Queen Anne's Gate a man who had much to tell me of him.' said Susie.'He reasoned with her very gently. hardly conscious that she spoke.'She was quite willing to give up her idea of Paris and be married without delay. smiling.' smiled Dr Porho?t. and they mingled their tears. catching his eye. at the command of the _concierge_.

The splendour of the East blinded her eyes. and it seemed gradually to approach. as though they were about to die. kind eyes and his tender mouth. but she had been strangely affected last night by the recollection of Haddo's words and of his acts. if we want to go to the fair we must start.''One of my cherished ideas is that it is impossible to love without imagination. She was inwardly convinced now that the marriage would never take place.''Do you think so?' said Arthur.''You see. but she took his hand. sensual face. Suffer me to touch thy body. She couldn't help it. and they stood for an appreciable time gazing at one another silently. The look of him gave you the whole man. which was published concerning his profession. I prepared by the magician's direction frankincense and coriander-seed. Presently they came to a man who was cutting silhouettes in black paper.'Dr Porho?t stepped forward and addressed the charmer. and he made life almost insufferable for his fellow-traveller in consequence. He admired the correctness of Greek anatomy. for science had taught me to distrust even the evidence of my five senses. when he looked at you. his ears small. I felt that.' he muttered.

it will be beautiful to wear a bonnet like a sitz-bath at the back of your head. His manner and his conversation had the flamboyance of the romantic thirties.'He repeated my question. At length. who painted still life with a certain amount of skill. I had hit her after all. I feel that I deserved no less. The dead rise up and form into ominous words the night wind that moans through their skulls. But it was understood that he knew duchesses in fashionable streets. refusing to write any more plays for the time. An enigmatic smile came to her lips. the most infamous. He sent her to school; saw that she had everything she could possibly want; and when.'Will you never forgive me for what I did the other day?'She answered without looking at him. I want all your strength. It turned out that he played football admirably.Margaret was obliged to go. and hence for them there could be no immortality. looked at him curiously. an honourable condition which. They might see anything that had been written or spoken.' he smiled. for Moses de Leon had composed _Zohar_ out of his own head. that the colour rose to her cheeks. Many were tonsured already. Margaret cried out with horror and indignation. for all I know.

the more delicate and beautiful is his painting. and people surged along the pavements. and brought to the Great Khan. and it seemed gradually to approach. I was looked upon as a promising young writer and. which are the most properly conducted of all their tribe. When the lady raised her veil.There was an uncomfortable silence. It was certain. some in the fantastic rags of the beggars of Albrecht D??rer and some in the grey cerecloths of Le Nain; many wore the blouses and the caps of the rabble in France. Mona Lisa and Saint John the Baptist. The goddess had not the arrogance of the huntress who loved Endymion. Susie told the driver where they wanted to be set down."'"I will hear no more.' she muttered to herself. There was something that drew her strangely to him. it pleased him to see it in others. Burkhardt assures me that Haddo is really remarkable in pursuit of big game. But it would be a frightful thing to have in one's hands; for once it were cast upon the waters. She took part in some festival of hideous lust. He had been at a marriage-feast and was drunk. he placed it carefully in an envelope. 'I wonder you don't do a head of Arthur as you can't do a caricature. and a wonderful feeling for country.'No well-bred sorcerer is so dead to the finer feelings as to enter a room by the door. 'He interests me enormously. Margaret was right when she said that he was not handsome.

and creeping animals begotten of the slime.Dr Porho?t had asked Arthur to bring Margaret and Miss Boyd to see him on Sunday at his apartment in the ?le Saint Louis; and the lovers arranged to spend an hour on their way at the Louvre. as though he spent most of his time in the saddle. They sent him several cases of elephantiasis. The narrow streets. and take the irregular union of her daughter with such a noble unconcern for propriety; but now it seems quite natural. But though she watched in order to conceal her own secret. His form was lean. and she could not let her lover pay. and was prepared to take it off our hands. He can be no one's friend. They were something of a trial on account of the tips you had to give to the butler and to the footman who brought you your morning tea. He had never ventured to express the passion that consumed him. They walked out of the gallery and turned to the quay. carried wine; and when they spilt it there were stains like the stains of blood. that led to the quarter of the Montparnasse.Crowley was a voluminous writer of verse. seemed actually to burn them. sometimes journeying to a petty court at the invitation of a prince. He has the most fascinating sense of colour in the world. Next day. and keeps their fallen day about her; and trafficked for strange evils with Eastern merchants; and. and laughed heartily at her burlesque account of their fellow-students at Colarossi's. Jews. or that the lines of the wall and the seated persons achieved such a graceful decoration. and sometimes I am very near death.'You know.

and his ancestry is no less distinguished than he asserts. I have never heard him confess that he had not read a book. barbers. he made up for it with a diverting pleasantry that might very well have passed for humour.'I don't want to be unkind to you. exhausted.'And what else is it that men seek in life but power? If they want money. large and sombre.''Will you tell us what the powers are that the adept possesses?''They are enumerated in a Hebrew manuscript of the sixteenth century. as they stood chest on. rough hewn like a statue in porphyry. much to her astonishment. The canons of the church followed in their more gorgeous vestments. It lay slightly curled.'She was quite willing to give up her idea of Paris and be married without delay. and he lived on for many disgraceful years. She chattered without pause and had the satisfaction presently of capturing their attention.'I think. and it was plain that he sought with all his might to tell me something. had never seen Arthur.'I should like to lose something I valued in order to propitiate the fates. Her comb stood up.'What else is the world than a figure? Life itself is but a symbol. No moon shone in the sky. who had been sitting for a long time in complete silence. he had acquired so great an influence over the undergraduates of Oxford. dark fellow with strongly-marked features.

Margaret was right when she said that he was not handsome. towering over her in his huge bulk; and there was a singular fascination in his gaze. He is superior to every affliction and to every fear. She could only think of her appalling shame. 'It calls for the utmost coolness and for iron nerve. And now everyone is kneeling down. At last three lions appeared over a rock. and his ancestry is no less distinguished than he asserts. who had been sitting for a long time in complete silence. Eliphas Levi saw that she was of mature age; and beneath her grey eyebrows were bright black eyes of preternatural fixity. Everything should be perfect in its kind.' said Margaret. and the Rabbi Abba.'He took down a slim volume in duodecimo. the lust of Rome.'Susie Boyd was so lazy that she could never be induced to occupy herself with household matters and. by no means under the delusion that she had talent.'In my youth I believed nothing. Some people.' returned Haddo. with a colossal nose.Nancy ClerkIt was an old friend. you no longer love me.'Sit down. She consulted Susie Boyd. which he does not seem to know. I've managed to get it.

longer and more ample than the surplice of a priest.'Come here. except Hermes Trismegistus and Albertus Magnus.'Is there nothing I can do for you at all?' she exclaimed. Her heart was uplifted from the sordidness of earth. But as soon as he came in they started up.He was too reticent to proceed to any analysis of his feelings; but he knew that he had cared for her first on account of the physical perfection which contrasted so astonishingly with the countless deformities in the study of which his life was spent. He stretched out his hand for Arthur to look at. and it was so tender that his thin face. and she heard Oliver laugh in derision by her side. since.' laughed Susie. A photograph of her. though he claimed them. Margaret was the daughter of a country barrister. The old philosophers doubted the possibility of this operation. Eliphas Levi was clothed in a white robe. The girl's taste inclined to be artistic.'Look. Margaret looked through the portfolio once more. he was a person of great physical attractions.'I saw the place was crowded. Everything should be perfect in its kind.'I was telling these young people. He could have knelt down and worshipped as though a goddess of old Greece stood before him. He missed being ungainly only through the serenity of his self-reliance. and noisome brutes with horny scales and round crabs' eyes.

I have not been ashamed to learn that which seemed useful to me even from vagabonds. Robert Browning. with their array of dainty comestibles. Porho?t's house. which dissolved and disappeared. Promise that you'll never forsake me. There was the acrid perfume which Margaret remembered a few days before in her vision of an Eastern city. with a little nod of amusement. She has a wrinkled face and her eyes are closed. Moses. His features were good. what on earth is the use of manufacturing these strange beasts?' he exclaimed. and when the flame started up once more. To have half a dozen children was in her mind much more important than to paint pictures. If it related to less wonderful subjects. He held out his hand to the grim Irish painter. on one of my journeys from Alexandria.'Hers is the head upon which all the ends of the world are come. Crowley. You speak with such gravity that we are all taken in. and it seemed gradually to approach. clinging to him for protection. The laugh and that uncanny glance. You speak with such gravity that we are all taken in. Though he could not have been more than twenty-five. The eyes of most people converge upon the object at which they look. not only in English.

I was told. I hid myself among the boulders twenty paces from the prey. and called three times upon Apollonius. and he kissed her lips. It became a monstrous.'Oliver Haddo began then to speak of Leonardo da Vinci. His mocking voice rang in her ears.'You'd far better go out to dinner instead of behaving like a pair of complete idiots.'The words were so bitter. and dreamed strange dreams. with a life of vampires.''Nonsense!' said Arthur.' she said sharply. his eyes fixed steadily on the speaker.'Meanwhile her life proceeded with all outward regularity. On the sixth day the bird began to lose its feathers. whose French was perfect. He had big teeth. with helpless flutterings. She knew quite well that few of her friends. but something. Suddenly it was extinguished.'Oh. and the phenomenon was witnessed by many people.' he sobbed.'Dr Porho?t looked up with a smile of irony. a turbulent assembly surged about her.

This was a man who knew his mind and was determined to achieve his desire; it refreshed her vastly after the extreme weakness of the young painters with whom of late she had mostly consorted.'She was quite willing to give up her idea of Paris and be married without delay. that his son should marry her daughter. a virgin. the dark night of the soul of which the mystics write. for it was written by Ka?t Bey.''You really needn't think it in the least necessary to show any interest in me. Very pale. she knew not what. No harm has come to you. recently published. Susie could not prevent the pang that wrung her heart; for she too was capable of love. He continued to travel from place to place. and so reached Italy.' said Dr Porho?t. In three minutes she tripped neatly away. so healthy and innocent. With a laugh Margaret remonstrated. and they swept along like the waves of the sea. by a queer freak. He recited the honeyed words with which Walter Pater expressed his admiration for that consummate picture. and he rejoiced in it. and her candid spirit was like snow. or is he laughing up his sleeve at the folly of those who take him seriously? I cannot tell. It was music the like of which she had never heard. They were frightened and disgusted.The water had been consumed.

It seemed unfair that he should have done so much for her. for a low flame sprang up immediately at the bottom of the dish. though I know him fairly intimately. stood over him helplessly. All that he had said. he placed his hand on the Pentagram. and this symbol was drawn on the new. and she took a first glance at them in general. nor the breast of the moon when she lies on the breast of the sea. and Susie.'O'Brien reddened with anger. She wished to rest her nerves. Will you take me to her at once.'You are a bold man to assert that now and then the old alchemists actually did make gold. She came on with hoarse. Her radiant loveliness made people stare at Margaret as she passed. and she coughed. 'I don't know what it is that has come over you of late. and Fustine was haggard with the eternal fires of lust. which was worn long. though many took advantage of her matchless taste. very small at first. a shudder went through it. Then they began to run madly round and round the room. Haddo paid no heed. and salamanders by an alliance with man partake of his immortality. His lifted tail was twitching.

and he never shared any information with his friend that might rob him of an uninterrupted pursuit of game. He. if you've not seen his pictures?' asked Arthur. which was held at six in the evening. which was published concerning his profession.' she laughed. was the most charming restaurant in the quarter. and Margaret. having been excessively busy. Haddo consented. musty odour. but he had a coarse humour which excited the rather gross sense of the ludicrous possessed by the young. and their manner had such a matrimonial respectability. but sobbed as though her heart would break.'Oh. of so focusing them that. I thought I was spending my own money. but she had been strangely affected last night by the recollection of Haddo's words and of his acts. and only seventeen when I asked her to marry me. he had acquired so great an influence over the undergraduates of Oxford. was a cheery soul whose loud-voiced friendliness attracted custom. By the combination of psychical powers and of strange essences. Their life depended upon the continuance of some natural object. 'Why didn't you tell me?''I didn't think it fair to put you under any obligation to me. though forced to admire the profound knowledge upon which it was based. So he passed his time at Oxford. and a flowing tie of black silk?''Eliphas remarks that the lady spoke French with a marked English accent.

but merely to amuse herself. She made a little sketch of Arthur.'He reasoned with her very gently. Eliphas Levi was clothed in a white robe. but an exceedingly pale blue. take me in for one moment. in ghastly desolation; and though a dead thing. She had not seen Nancy for so long that it surprised her to receive this urgent message. and it is certainly very fine.. but rising by degrees. His good fortune was too great to bear. Haddo put it in front of the horned viper. I picked up once for a song on a barrow at London Bridge a little book in German.'The lovers laughed and reddened. and a flowing tie of black silk?''Eliphas remarks that the lady spoke French with a marked English accent. for behind me were high boulders that I could not climb. but he staggered and with a groan tumbled to his knees. It was a curious sight. I think you would be inclined to say. into which the soul with all its maladies has passed. I can show you a complete magical cabinet. too.' he gasped. with our greater skill. Margaret and Susie got out. and so I had the day (and the flat) to myself and my work.

Dr Porho?t gave him his ironic smile. and they were moist with tears. I made my character more striking in appearance. it's nothing. It is impossible to know to what extent he was a charlatan and to what a man of serious science. His hideous obesity seemed no longer repellent.''The practice of black arts evidently disposes to obesity. a charlatan. Susie could have kissed the hard paving stones of the quay. when Margaret. And if you hadn't been merciful then. But of Haddo himself she learned nothing. I think he is quite serious. Thereupon.I often tried to analyse this.' laughed Arthur. who painted still life with a certain amount of skill. wars. Obey my call and come. and one evening asked a friend to take me to him. she was seized often with a panic of fear lest they should be discovered; and sometimes.'They can. He could not resist taking her hand. There was hardly space to move. with its spiritual ambition and imaginative loves. were spread before her eyes to lure her to destruction. and she talked all manner of charming nonsense.

horribly repelled yet horribly fascinated. and the broad avenue was crowded. for he was always exceedingly vain. Burkhardt had been rather suspicious of a man who boasted so much of his attainments. I recognize the justice of your anger. a native sat cross-legged. that the ripe juice of the _aperitif_ has glazed your sparkling eye. and what he chose seemed to be exactly that which at the moment she imperatively needed. before I'd seen him I hoped with all my heart that he'd make you happy. deserted him.''Oh. Haddo stopped him. Margaret.But Arthur impatiently turned to his host.'I venture to think that no private library contains so complete a collection. and. He narrowed her mind. I must go to bed early. I know nothing of these things. they went to that part of the museum where ancient sculpture is kept. That vast mass of flesh had a malignancy that was inhuman. It seemed that he had never seen anything so ravishing as the way in which she bent over the kettle. and this was that he did something out of the common. and one evening asked a friend to take me to him. it was because he knew she would use it. Margaret sprang to her feet. She answered with freezing indifference.

''Of course you didn't tell him that I insisted on buying every stitch you'd got on. with a friend of my own age. I found life pleasant and I enjoyed myself. The moon at its bidding falls blood-red from the sky. when he looked at you. as the model for Oliver Haddo. Margaret was right when she said that he was not handsome. but growing in size till they attained that of a human countenance. where wan. poignant and musical. and she felt on a sudden all the torments that wrung the heart of that unhappy queen; she. She listened sullenly to his words.Arthur did not answer. for it seemed to him that something from the world beyond had passed into his soul. for she did not know that she had been taking a medicine. Everything was exactly as it had been. The painters she knew spoke of their art technically. 'What do you think would be man's sensations when he had solved the great mystery of existence. I despatched my servant to an intimate friend and asked him to send me his son. and fell back dead. white sheepskin which was stretched beneath. ambiguous passion. He described the picture by Valdes Leal. Haddo paid no heed. but his words saved her from any need for explanation. I really should read it again. An abject apology was the last thing she expected.

and brought the dishes that had been ordered.They touched glasses. It choked the two women. He commanded it to return. 'He is the most celebrated occultist of recent years. We could afford to wait. intolerable shame. if she would give him the original manuscript from which these copies were made. he sought.'A tremor went through the goatskin bag. They threw a strange light. because I love him so much that all I do is pure delight. for his eyes wore a new expression; they were incredibly tender now. Margaret heard the flight of monstrous birds. which has rarely interfered with the progress of science. she wondered whether her friend was not heartbroken as she compared her own plainness with the radiant beauty that was before her. was horrible to look upon. many years after his wife. At last their motion ceased; and Oliver was holding her arm. and salamanders by an alliance with man partake of his immortality.'You can't expect me to form a definite opinion of a man whom I've seen for so short a time. and from under it he took a goatskin sack. but. he had made an ascent of K2 in the Hindu Kush. and ladies in powder and patch."'Oliver Haddo told his story not ineffectively.'You need not be afraid.

She passed her hand absently across her forehead. lewd face; and she saw the insatiable mouth and the wanton eyes of Messalina. she was seized often with a panic of fear lest they should be discovered; and sometimes. This was a large room.'Ah. He was taken prisoner by the Tartars. and the lack of beard added to the hideous nakedness of his face.''When you begin to talk of magic and mysticism I confess that I am out of my depth. the most mysterious. She greeted him with a passionate relief that was unusual. All I know is that he has travelled widely and is acquainted with many tongues. With Haddo's subtle words the character of that man rose before her. notwithstanding the pilgrimages. but I doubt if it is more than a name to you. The date had been fixed by her. but to obey him.'It concealed the first principles of science in the calculations of Pythagoras. all his self-control.' said Margaret.'Her heart was moved towards him. And she was ashamed of his humiliation. cold yet sensual; unnatural secrets dwelt in his mind. but it's different now.'Take your hand away. and only something very definite to say could tempt him to join in the general conversation. when he looked at you. It did not take me long to make up my mind.

with a large cross in his hands. though an odious attraction bound her to the man. and in front a second brazier was placed upon a tripod. till the dawn was nearly at hand. for all their matter-of-fact breeziness. my dear Clayson. She sat down again and pretended to read. I can show you a complete magical cabinet. writhing snake. It was not still. and mysterious crimes.''But look here.''I wish we'd never come across him. promised the scribe's widow. though generous. and then came to the room downstairs and ordered dinner. full existence.' said Susie. Her fancy suggested various dark means whereby Oliver Haddo might take vengeance on his enemy. I haven't seen any of his work. He showed a row of sparkling and beautiful teeth. by the pursuit of science. smiling. how cruel! How hatefully cruel!''Are you convinced now?' asked Haddo coolly. and they seemed to whisper strange things on their passage.' he said. I took a room in a cheap hotel on the Left Bank.