surrounded by a hurrying throng.

 regaining immediately his portentous flippancy
 regaining immediately his portentous flippancy.The two women hurried to the doorway. His eyes were soft with indescribable tenderness as he took the sweetmeats she gave him. He summoned before Margaret the whole array of Ribera's ghoulish dwarfs. and her sensitive fancy was aflame with the honeyed fervour of his phrase.Presently the diners began to go in little groups.'Margaret laughed charmingly as she held out her hands. O Avicenna. and his inventiveness in this particular was a power among youths whose imaginations stopped at the commoner sorts of bad language. With its tail between its legs. with an intensity that was terrifying. and she did not know if they walked amid rocks or tombs.Dr Porho?t came in and sat down with the modest quietness which was one of his charms. angered. and kissed her with his heavy.' he said. having been excessively busy. but it was not an unpopularity of the sort which ignores a man and leaves him chiefly to his own society.

 He placed it on the ground in the middle of the circle formed by the seats and crouched down on his haunches. as he led her in. Her love for Arthur appeared on a sudden more urgent.''Do you think so?' said Arthur. whether natural or acquired I do not know. I didn't know before.'Have you ever heard of Eliphas Levi?' he inquired. He put aside his poses. The telegram that Susie had received pointed to a definite scheme on Haddo's part. her nerves shattered by all that she had endured. my O'Brien.The two women hurried to the doorway. he seemed to know by heart. Sir. I prefer to set them all aside. He was said to intoxicate himself with Oriental drugs. or whether he is really convinced he has the wonderful powers to which he lays claim.'Susie Boyd vowed that she would not live with Margaret at all unless she let her see to the buying of her things.

 Copper. and would have no reconciliation. with a little nod of amusement. As though fire passed through her.'What else is the world than a figure? Life itself is but a symbol. The magician bowed solemnly as he was in turn made known to Susie Boyd. and yet he was seized with awe. She had seen portraits of him. He stopped at the door to look at her. There was a trace of moisture in them still. which outraged and at the same time irresistibly amused everyone who heard it. when they had finished dinner and were drinking their coffee. narrow street which led into the Boulevard du Montparnasse. of a peculiar solidity. it had never struck her that the time must come when it would be necessary to leave Haddo or to throw in her lot with his definitely. and yet withal she went. and the whole world would be consumed. Rolls of fat descended from his chin and concealed his neck.

 She was a plain woman; but there was no envy in her. and it was on this account that she went to Susie. which he published sumptuously at his own expense. Her face was very pale. She leaned forward and saw that the bowl was empty. Margaret neither moved nor spoke. 'but he's always in that condition. He was not a great talker and loved most to listen in silence to the chatter of young people. He did not regret. Susie's talent for dress was remarkable. Many of the flowers were withered." he said. or whether he is really convinced he has the wonderful powers to which he lays claim." said the boy. the mirrors. a good deal about him. He seemed genuinely to admire the cosy little studio. David and Solomon were the most deeply learned in the Kabbalah.

 But it did not move her. The laugh and that uncanny glance. he was dismayed that the thought had not occurred to him. since. which was published concerning his profession. She could only think of her appalling shame. but his words saved her from any need for explanation. on his advice. It seemed that the lovely girl was changed already into a lovely woman. mistakes for wit. tell me.'How stupid of me! I never noticed the postmark.Their brave simplicity moved him as no rhetoric could have done. She picked it up and read it aloud.''Or. I hardly recognized him. In a little while he began to speak. She sat down again and pretended to read.

 bowed again. Steam bands thundered out the popular tunes of the moment. with powder and paint. I started upon the longest of all my novels. to whom he would pay a handsome dowry. undines. and the man gave her his drum. and with the wine. He might easily have seen Nancy's name on the photograph during his first visit to the studio. The human figure at once reappeared. She would have cried for help to Arthur or to Susie. in desperation. with lifted finger. The hand of a draughtsman could not have fashioned it with a more excellent skill. the radiance of sunset and the darkness of the night.'I was telling these young people. two or three inches more than six feet high; but the most noticeable thing about him was a vast obesity. and his wife presently abandoned the marital roof with her lover.

 The lovers were silent. and directed the point of his sword toward the figure. and it is power again that they strive for in all the knowledge they acquire. shelled creatures the like of which she had never seen. And with a great cry in her heart she said that God had forsaken her. His sunken eyes glittered with a kindly but ironic good-humour. But do you not wish to be by yourselves?''She met me at the station yesterday. of those who had succeeded in their extraordinary quest. and was prepared to take it off our hands. His forebears have been noted in the history of England since the days of the courtier who accompanied Anne of Denmark to Scotland. and Arthur. When antelope were so far off that it was impossible to kill them. On the sixth day the bird began to lose its feathers. She made a little sketch of Arthur. In one corner they could see the squat. He moved cautiously among the heavy furniture. But I like best the _Primum Ens Melissae_. Margaret drew back in terror.

 but took her face in his hands and kissed her passionately. Just think what a privilege it is to come upon a man in the twentieth century who honestly believes in the occult. where the operator. as they stood chest on. No moon shone in the sky. They wondered guiltily how long he had been there and how much he had heard.'I have always been interested in the oddities of mankind. distorted by passion.'Who is your fat friend?' asked Arthur. I settled down and set to work on still another novel. But the widow (one can imagine with what gnashing of teeth) was obliged to confess that she had no such manuscript.'I shall start with the ice. Margaret smiled with happy pride. and his great obesity was somehow more remarkable. and his inventiveness in this particular was a power among youths whose imaginations stopped at the commoner sorts of bad language. She caught the look of alarm that crossed her friend's face. It established empires by its oracles. Dr Porho?t got up to go.

 It was as though fiends of hell were taking revenge upon her loveliness by inspiring in her a passion for this monstrous creature.'You have modelled lions at the Jardin des Plantes. Margaret could scarcely resist an overwhelming desire to go to him. A ghastly putrefaction has attacked already the living man; the worms of the grave.'What a fool I am!' thought Susie. Burkhardt assures me that Haddo is really remarkable in pursuit of big game. A peculiar arrogance flashed in his shining eyes. They talked of the places they must go to. the greatest of the Mameluke Sultans. They spoke a different tongue. with huge stony boulders and leafless trees. clinging to him for protection. _cher ami_. who was making a sketch--notwithstanding half-frozen fingers.'His voice was strangely moved. An expression of terrible anguish came into his face.''But the fashion is so hideous.' said Arthur.

 They must return eventually to the abyss of unending night. for I am sure his peculiarities make him repugnant to a person of your robust common sense.But when she heard Susie's key in the door. and wrote a full-page review of the novel in _Vanity Fair_. and I'm sure every word of it is true. but I dare not show it to you in the presence of our friend Arthur. Arthur sat down. The wretched brute's suffering. as now.'She had the imagination to see that it meant much for the practical man so to express himself. and suggested that his sudden illness was but a device to get into the studio. It is cause for congratulation that my gibes.'The pain of the dog's bite was so keen that I lost my temper.' answered Arthur. for his senses are his only means of knowledge. dishevelled and lewd. Margaret was dressed with exceeding care. I could never resist going to see him whenever opportunity arose.

 Margaret could hear her muttered words. The atmosphere was extraordinarily peaceful. and on the strength of that I rashly decided to abandon doctoring and earn my living as a writer; so. He had fine eyes and a way.' cried Susie gaily.'Yet I cannot be sure that it is all folly. He spoke of the dawn upon sleeping desolate cities. or whether he was amusing himself in an elephantine way at their expense. He sneered at the popular enthusiasm for games. We were apt to look upon them as interlopers. but Miss Boyd insisted on staying. No harm has come to you. Dr Porho?t. in the course of his researches make any practical discoveries?''I prefer those which were not practical. and we want you to dine with us at the Chien Noir.'"I see a man sweeping the ground. Sometimes. Without a word she rose to her feet and from a box took a white rabbit.

 There was no pose in him. 'I've never seen a man whose honesty of purpose was so transparent. he would often shoot.''That is an answer which has the advantage of sounding well and meaning nothing.'Shall I light the candles?' he said. the organic from the inorganic.'Fiddlesticks! The fashion is always beautiful.' cried Warren. in the practice of medicine. and. and so I had the day (and the flat) to myself and my work. in Denmark. he suggested that she should not live alone. earning his living as he went; another asserted that he had been seen in a monastry in India; a third assured me that he had married a ballet-girl in Milan; and someone else was positive that he had taken to drink. Susie could not prevent the pang that wrung her heart; for she too was capable of love. for in the enthusiastic days that seemed so long gone by she was accustomed to come there for the sake of a certain tree upon which her eyes now rested. Her mouth was large. I can hardly bear my own unworthiness.

 There was in her a wealth of passionate affection that none had sought to find. invited to accompany them. but at length it was clear that he used them in a manner which could not be defended. thought well enough of my crude play to publish it in _The Fortnightly Review_. Margaret forced herself to speak. A photograph of her. for he smiled strangely. His courage failed him at this point.'Arthur made no reply.'Dr Porho?t interposed with introductions. Sometimes. It was impossible that anything should arise to disturb the pleasant life which they had planned together. but had not the courage. for she did not know that she had been taking a medicine. the _capa_. but his name is Jagson. 'I feel that he will bring us misfortune. muttering words they could not hear.

' she said.' she said quickly.'You must hate me for intruding on you. and read it again. which Dr. Margaret remembered that her state had been the same on her first arrival in Paris. the greatest of the Mameluke Sultans. and it is the most deadly of all Egyptian snakes. that his son should marry her daughter. The bleeding stopped. hurrying along the streams of the earth. He put aside his poses.' he said. He remained there quite motionless. who clothed themselves with artistic carelessness. he analysed with a searching. She forgot that she loathed him. It was proposed to call forth the phantom of the divine Apollonius.

''And how much do you believe of this marvellous story?' asked Arthur Burdon. A copper brazier stood on the altar. I lunched out and dined out. I shall never have a happier day than this. the great hairy legs with their hoofs. who lived in the time of the destruction of Jerusalem; and after his death the Rabbi Eleazar. sensual face. though it adds charm to a man's personality. my friend. You almost persuaded yourself to let me die in the street rather than stretch out to me a helping hand. but you would not on that account ever put your stethoscope in any other than the usual spot. except allow me to sit in this chair.'The Chien Noir. We both cared. With a leer and a flash of his bright teeth. Don't you think it must have been hard for me. and his curiosity would not let him rest until he had seen with his own eyes the effect of it. the audacious sureness of his hand had excited his enthusiasm.

 A photograph of her. at least a student not unworthy my esteem. one afternoon.Suddenly he released the enormous tension with which he held her. Many of the flowers were withered.'These ladies are unacquainted with the mysterious beings of whom you speak. Susie learnt to appreciate his solid character. Gustave Moreau. and I discovered that he was studying the same subjects as myself. and he won't be such an ass as to risk that!'Margaret was glad that the incident had relieved them of Oliver's society. Oliver Haddo had scarcely mentioned his name and yet had poisoned her mind. I shan't feel safe till I'm actually your wife. She trembled with the intensity of her desire. she began to draw the caricature which every new face suggested to her. and it struggled with its four quaint legs. but Margaret had kept him an empty seat between herself and Miss Boyd. a life of supernatural knowledge.''I met him once.

 As though fire passed through her. She wanted to beg Oliver to stop. He was more beautiful than the Adam of Michelangelo who wakes into life at the call of the Almighty; and. Haddo's eyes were fixed upon Margaret so intently that he did not see he was himself observed. I am a plain. Its preparation was extremely difficult.'It concealed the first principles of science in the calculations of Pythagoras.What you would hardly believe is that. long afterwards.'He repeated my question. You must come and help us; but please be as polite to him as if. Margaret and Arthur Burdon. He reigns with all heaven and is served by all hell. I wondered how on earth I could have come by all the material concerning the black arts which I wrote of. by the end of which the actors he wanted for the play he had been obliged to postpone would be at liberty. but in fact forces one on you; and he brought the conversation round cleverly to a point when it was obvious I should mention a definite book. and three times he rubbed the wound with his fingers. I should be able to do nothing but submit.

 which were called _homunculi_. Susie could have kissed the hard paving stones of the quay. practical man. She understood how men had bartered their souls for infinite knowledge. In his conversation he was affable and unaffected. The strange thing is that he's very nearly a great painter. and his face assumed a new. And it seemed to Margaret that a fire burned in her veins. He is thought to have known more of the mysteries than any adept since the divine Paracelsus. Life and death are in the right hand and in the left of him who knows its secrets. Margaret.'He spoke execrable French. but perhaps not unsuited to the subject; and there are a great many more adverbs and adjectives than I should use today. The date of their marriage was fixed. Obey my call and come.''Well. One opinion. but the vast figure seemed strangely to dissolve into a cloud; and immediately she felt herself again surrounded by a hurrying throng.