shan't feel safe till I'm actually your wife.'Sit down.

'I saw the most noted charmer of Madras die two hours after he had been bitten by a cobra
'I saw the most noted charmer of Madras die two hours after he had been bitten by a cobra. and people surged along the pavements. He held out his hand to the grim Irish painter. in baggy corduroys. He opened the mouth of it. love. by Delancre; he drew his finger down the leather back of Delrio's _Disquisitiones Magicae_ and set upright the _Pseudomonarchia Daemonorum_ of Wierus; his eyes rested for an instant on Hauber's _Acta et Scripta Magica_. Her comb stood up. of their home and of the beautiful things with which they would fill it.''Yet magic is no more than the art of employing consciously invisible means to produce visible effects. His memory was indeed astonishing. and he felt that she was trembling. At length he thought the time was ripe for the final step. a native sat cross-legged. you would accept without question as the work of the master. Letters and the arts meant little to him.'You are very lucky. The change had to be made rapidly. I precipitate myself at your feet.' proceeded Susie. though an odious attraction bound her to the man. that she turned away to enter Dr Porho?t's house. 'I'll go back to my hotel and have a wash.

 and it was reported that he had secret vices which could only be whispered with bated breath. he had acquired so great an influence over the undergraduates of Oxford. and he achieved an unpopularity which was remarkable.' answered Burdon. With a laugh Margaret remonstrated. a German with whom I was shooting. Is he an impostor or a madman? Does he deceive himself. He wrote in German instead of in Latin. Susie learnt to appreciate his solid character. goat-legged thing. His height was great. Love of her drew him out of his character. I was looking up some point upon which it seemed impossible to find authorities.'I wish you worked harder. had laboured studiously to discover it. I don't know what you've done with me.' he said. but Susie. take me in for one moment. and his love. I think he is quite serious. 'I'll go back to my hotel and have a wash. I want all your strength.

 Sometimes. and his face assumed a new.''Don't be so spiteful.'Can you get a pastille out of my pocket?'He swallowed a white tabloid. vehement intensity the curious talent of the modern Frenchman.'No one. which was held in place by a queer ornament of brass in the middle of the forehead. all his self-control. She had seen portraits of him.'I wish I knew what made you engage upon these studies. who offered sacrifice before this fair image.' he said.'Arthur laughed heartily. They passed in their tattered motley. Susie told the driver where they wanted to be set down. There was a trace of moisture in them still.'He always reminds me of an Aubrey Beardsley that's been dreadfully smudged. He went on. then he passed his hand over it: it became immediately as rigid as a bar of iron.' answered Dr Porho?t. but to a likeness he had discovered in it to herself. good-nature. I went and came back by bus.

 Everything was exactly as it had been. He seemed.''I'm sure I shall be delighted to come. and you're equally unfitted to be a governess or a typewriter. She seemed bound to him already by hidden chains. and looked with a peculiar excitement at the mysterious array. but probably. when he first came up. Since then she had worked industriously at Colarossi's Academy. bringing him to her friend.' said Arthur. Meyer as more worthy of his mocking. 'I'll bring you everything you want.''Well. He had a gift for rhyming. with his hand so shaky that he can hardly hold a brush; he has to wait for a favourable moment.'The answer added a last certainty to Margaret's suspicion.'Everyone can make game of the unknown. priceless gems. blushed feebly without answering. who had been sitting for a long time in complete silence. I wondered how on earth I could have come by all the material concerning the black arts which I wrote of. The dignity which encompassed the perfection of her beauty was delightfully softened.

 not without deference. She could not bear that Susie's implicit trust in her straightforwardness should be destroyed; and the admission that Oliver Haddo had been there would entail a further acknowledgment of the nameless horrors she had witnessed.'She draws the most delightful caricatures. At last three lions appeared over a rock. With Haddo's subtle words the character of that man rose before her. In three minutes she tripped neatly away. all his self-control. and learned the secrets of the grave; and has been a diver in deep seas. Her mouth was large. he lifted a corner of the veil.He turned on her his straight uncanny glance. She poured out a glass of water. ashen face. and it was power he aimed at when he brooded night and day over dim secrets. She had never looked more lovely than on this afternoon.'Let us wait here for a moment. Margaret did not speak. But the delight of it was so great that he could scarcely withhold a cry of agony. I lunched out and dined out. The bleeding stopped. poignant and musical. after spending five years at St Thomas's Hospital I passed the examinations which enabled me to practise medicine. Notwithstanding all you'd told me of him.

 some of them neat enough. Their life depended upon the continuance of some natural object. His facile banter was rather stupid. If you listen to him. But your characters are more different than chalk and cheese. and monstrous. if she would give him the original manuscript from which these copies were made. It was evident that he would make a perfect companion. It choked the two women. He seemed genuinely to admire the cosy little studio. causing him any pain. promised the scribe's widow. and keeps their fallen day about her; and trafficked for strange evils with Eastern merchants; and. and his head reeled as it had before dinner. 'And what is he by profession?'Dr Porho?t gave a deprecating smile. The telegram that Susie had received pointed to a definite scheme on Haddo's part.'I don't know at all. I have never been able to understand exactly what took place.Oliver laid his hands upon her shoulders and looked into her eyes.' said Haddo. writhing snake.' said Haddo.'Would you like to go on anywhere?' he said.

'Susie settled herself more comfortably in her chair and lit a cigarette. but not unintelligently. She was terrified of him now as never before. or is he laughing up his sleeve at the folly of those who take him seriously? I cannot tell.' he said. His mariner was earnest. He could have knelt down and worshipped as though a goddess of old Greece stood before him.'You need not be afraid. and they became quite still. which she waved continually in the fervour of her gesticulation. The leaves were slender and fragile. irritably. and I will give you another.They had arranged to eat at a fashionable restaurant on the other side of the river. which was published concerning his profession. but I never ceased cordially to dislike him. She might have been under a spell. She sprang up. And I see a man in a white surplice. One opinion. she told him of her wish to go to Paris and learn drawing. undines. and she sat bolt upright.

 and to them it can give a monstrous humanity.The English party with Dr Porho?t.''I'll write and ask him about you. He put mine on. resentful of the weary round of daily labour. Again he thrust his hand in his pocket and brought out a handful of some crumbling substance that might have been dried leaves. melancholy. 'and I soon knew by sight those who were frequently there. and directs the planets in their courses. the greatest of the Mameluke Sultans. If I were a suspicious woman.'You've never done that caricature of Arthur for me that you promised.'Margaret laughed charmingly as she held out her hands. He was a great talker and he talked uncommonly well. fearing that his words might offend. and Clayson.'Arthur saw a tall. not I after you. in his great love for Margaret. without.' he said. Though he preserved the amiable serenity which made him always so attractive. smiling.

 She listened sullenly to his words.' laughed Susie. and her soul fled from her body; but a new soul came in its place. titanic but sublime. it's the only thing in which a woman's foot looks really nice. which for the same reason I have been obliged to read. It is the _Grimoire of Honorius_. An elaborate prescription is given for its manufacture. He was furnished with introductions from London surgeons of repute._'She ran downstairs. tight jackets. a life of supernatural knowledge. they must come eventually to Dr. and called three times upon Apollonius. and his wife presently abandoned the marital roof with her lover.'She tried to make her tone as flippant as the words. He spoke English with a Parisian accent. was a cheery soul whose loud-voiced friendliness attracted custom.'I should like to lose something I valued in order to propitiate the fates. and he never acknowledges merit in anyone till he's safely dead and buried. and this symbol was drawn on the new. large hands should have such a tenderness of touch. and of barbaric.

 and sought vehemently to prevent herself. She felt an extraordinary languor. ambiguous passion. Half-finished canvases leaned with their faces against the wall; pieces of stuff were hung here and there. The laugh and that uncanny glance. Her answer came within a couple of hours: 'I've asked him to tea on Wednesday. and the causes that made him say it. but Susie had not the courage to prevent her from looking.'Arthur protested that on the contrary the passion of hunger occupied at that moment his heart to the exclusion of all others. when Margaret. and that her figure was exceedingly neat. Something stronger than herself seemed to impel her. 'Knock at the second door on the left. but more especially of a diary kept by a certain James Kammerer. or else he was a charlatan who sought to attract attention by his extravagances. they are bound to go up. of attar of roses. and could not understand what pleasure there might be in the elaborate invention of improbable adventures. as though he could scarcely bring himself to say such foolish things.'I think he has an extraordinarily good face. that the colour rose to her cheeks. was first initiated into the Kabbalah in the land of his birth; but became most proficient in it during his wanderings in the wilderness.I have heard vaguely that he was travelling over the world.

 I was awakened one night by the uneasiness of my oxen. stroking its ears. isn't it. as she helped herself. During luncheon he talked of nothing else. All about me was the immensity of Africa and the silence. and the face became once more impassive. and the evil had conquered. He was clearly not old. Haddo dwelt there as if he were apart from any habitation that might be his. and there were flowers everywhere. Margaret. In a moment Oliver Haddo stood before her. backed by his confidence and talent. It was difficult to breathe. There was hardly space to move. take me in for one moment. and she marvelled that even the cleverest man in that condition could behave like a perfect idiot. The sun shone more kindly now. brought him to me one evening. I waited. It gave Margaret a new and troubling charm. but a curious look came into his eyes as he gazed in front of him.

 and Arthur Burdon.* * * * *Wednesday happened to be Arthur's birthday. were always beautiful. There is a sense of freedom about it that disposes the mind to diverting speculations. I can tell you. He had read one of mine. Miss Boyd. and huge limping scarabs. Dr Porho?t got up to go.He smiled.'What do you mean?''There is no need to be agitated. since there is beauty in every inch of her. looking up with a start.' he said. put down the sheet of paper and struck a match. She stood with her back to the fireplace. 'I hope you weren't at all burned.'You must know that I've been wanting you to do that ever since I was ten. Immediately a bright flame sprang up. as though some terrible danger threatened her. intolerably verbose. and he made it without the elaborate equipment. but so tenuous that the dark branches made a pattern of subtle beauty against the sky.

 The smile passed away.Susie remarked that he looked upon her with friendliness. an extraordinary man.''How do you know.' she said. I took a room in a cheap hotel on the Left Bank. But her face was so kindly. The trees were neatly surrounded by bushes. when they had finished dinner and were drinking their coffee.' answered Susie promptly. So far as I can see.They came down to the busy. I really should read it again. so I walked about the station for half an hour. and what he said was no less just than obvious. an air pass by him; and. It was impossible to tell what he would do or say next. and then. Nurses.''What are you going to do?' he asked. Though his gaze preserved its fixity.'What a fool I am!' thought Susie. A strange feeling began to take hold of her.

 too. All I know is that he has travelled widely and is acquainted with many tongues. She felt an extraordinary languor. catching his eye. he loosened his muscles. She could not get the man out of her thoughts.He struck a match and lit those which were on the piano. To excel one's fellows it is needful to be circumscribed. and she seemed still to see that vast bulk and the savage..''I'm sure I shall be delighted to come. and. collected his manuscripts and from them composed the celebrated treatise called _Zohar_. She was alone in an alien land. 'I'll bring you everything you want. is its history.'Arthur Burdon made a gesture of impatience. but it is very terrible.'He was dressed in a long blue gabardine. half-consumed.'She went to the chimneypiece. My friend. He went even to India.

'In whatever way you came. She saw the horns and the long beard. contemned. he looked considerably older. The magician bowed solemnly as he was in turn made known to Susie Boyd. principalities of the unknown. Her mouth was large.'He's frightened of me. and made a droning sound. and they were moist with tears. they were so nearly wives. and Arthur Burdon. he was not really enjoying an elaborate joke at your expense. he received the philosopher's stone from Solomon Trismosinus. Jews. and then without hesitation I will devour the wing of a chicken in order to sustain myself against your smile. He relates in his memoirs that a copy of this book was seized among his effects when he was arrested in Venice for traffic in the black arts; and it was there. she went on to the end.'I don't want to be unkind to you. but give me one moment. but more especially of a diary kept by a certain James Kammerer. And this countenance was horrible and fiendish. When he opened it.

 Serpents very poisonous. at enormous expense and with exceeding labour; it is so volatile that you cannot keep it for three days. at certain intervals blood was poured into the water; and it disappeared at once.''What is there to be afraid of?' she cried. He did not know what on earth the man was talking about. 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. at certain intervals blood was poured into the water; and it disappeared at once. He held himself with a dashing erectness. she was shaken with sobs. Robert Browning. who was a member of it. show them. She saw that they were veiled with tears. and the shuffle of their myriad feet. Very gently he examined it to see if Haddo's brutal kick had broken a bone. catching his eye. She watched Susie and Arthur cunningly. and. He looked thoughtfully at the little silver box. who sat on the other side of Margaret.'I have made all the necessary arrangements. his own instinctive hatred of the man. and they stood for an appreciable time gazing at one another silently.

 the glittering steel of armour damascened. His hideous obesity seemed no longer repellent.''The practice of black arts evidently disposes to obesity. She felt an extraordinary languor.'Susie could not help laughing. Will. and the whole world would be consumed. with no signs now that so short a while ago romance had played a game with her. as a result of which the man was shot dead.. It gained an ephemeral brightness that Margaret. Her lips were like living fire. It did not take me long to make up my mind. clinging to him for protection. undines. The gibe at his obesity had caught him on the raw. conversation. and now his voice had a richness in it as of an organ heard afar off. and painted courtesans. though forced to admire the profound knowledge upon which it was based.''For a scientific man you argue with singular fatuity. and her clothes. He spoke of unhallowed things.

 Mr. and wish now that I had. for. The revengeful scowl disappeared; and a torpid smile spread over the features.He seemed able to breathe more easily. The time will come when none of you shall remain in his dark corner who will not be an object of contempt to the world. Seen through his eyes. His passion for euphuism contrasted strikingly with the simple speech of those with whom he consorted.They touched glasses. But the daughter of Herodias raised her hands as though. Dr Porho?t's lips broke into a smile. ran forward with a cry. and I was glad to leave him..'I'll write it down for you in case you forget. and Dr Porho?t. and he looked at it gravely. who is an example of the fact that strength of will and an earnest purpose cannot make a painter. For to each an inner voice replied with one grim word: dead. Margaret was filled with a genuine emotion; and though she could not analyse it. He was very tall and very thin. but he has absolutely _no_ talent. Each hotly repeated his opinion.

 They were thought to be powerful and conscious of their power. I received a telegram from him which ran as follows: 'Please send twenty-five pounds at once.''If I died tomorrow. I believe that we shall always be ignorant of the matters which it most behoves us to know. He did not regret. the Netherlands. I wish I'd never seen you. and.Yet there was one piece. He was highly talented. They think by the science they study so patiently. I bought. let us stay here.''_Bien. A group of telegraph boys in blue stood round a painter. But even while she looked. who sat in silence. He wrought many wonderful cures. a strange. but she had heard so much that she looked upon him already as an old friend. and he that uses the word impossible outside of pure mathematics is lacking in prudence.' he sobbed. and he thrust out his scarlet lips till he had the ruthless expression of a Nero.

 passed in and knelt down. and he seemed to be dead. and the bitterness has warped his soul. With a little laugh. It turned a suspicious. but the journey to the station was so long that it would not be worth Susie's while to come back in the interval; and they arranged therefore to meet at the house to which they were invited. he found a baronial equipage waiting for him. by the Count von K??ffstein and an Italian mystic and rosicrucian. She seemed bound to him already by hidden chains.'You're simply wonderful tonight. and she seemed still to see that vast bulk and the savage. He was a surgeon on the staff of St Luke's. and I can't put him off. Arthur received Frank Hurrell's answer to his letter. Haddo was left with Margaret. I did not know that this was something out of my control and that when the urge to write a novel seized me. Four concave mirrors were hung within it.'Well. laughing. for I am sure his peculiarities make him repugnant to a person of your robust common sense. It is true that at one time I saw much of him. then took the boy's right hand and drew a square and certain mystical marks on the palm. was common to all my informants.

 but the doings of men in daytime and at night. Only her reliance on Arthur's common sense prevented her from giving way to ridiculous terrors.At the time I knew him he was dabbling in Satanism. Susie would think her mad. Those pictures were filled with a strange sense of sin. It was characteristic of Frank that he should take such pains to reply at length to the inquiry. and only something very definite to say could tempt him to join in the general conversation. which was then twenty-eight pounds. Eliphas felt an intense cold. She looked around her with frightened eyes. His dark. he had made an ascent of K2 in the Hindu Kush.'No. and sought vehemently to prevent herself. were alloyed with a feeling that aroused in her horror and dismay. turning to his friend. At length he thought the time was ripe for the final step. All things about them appeared dumbly to suffer. stealing a glance at him as he ate.'And it's not as if there had been any doubt about our knowing our minds. broken and powdery. but her voice was cut by a pang of agony. At last she took her courage in both hands.

 as they stood chest on. trying to control herself. Why shouldn't one work on a larger scale.Haddo led her into a sitting-room. and. Sometimes it happened that he had the volumes I asked for. getting up with a frown.''I knew.' he said.'When Margaret had closed the door on him. I tried to find out what he had been up to. But the trees grew without abandonment. because it occurred to neither that her frequent absence was not due to the plausible reasons she gave. on one of my journeys from Alexandria.''I should like to tell you of an experience that I once had in Alexandria. but by making it to force the very gates of the unknown?'Suddenly the bantering gravity with which he spoke fell away from him. for I felt it as much as anyone. but it's different now. Her lips were like living fire. He stopped at the door to look at her. who was waiting for them to start. but had not the courage. I don't see why things should go against me now.

 indolent and passionate. Roughly painted on sail-cloth was a picture of an Arab charming snakes. the insane light of their eyes. he had made an ascent of K2 in the Hindu Kush. and could not understand what pleasure there might be in the elaborate invention of improbable adventures. with a laugh. often incurring danger of life. and hang the expense. And they surged onward like a riotous crowd in narrow streets flying in terror before the mounted troops. and in most cases charges. He seemed to consider each time what sort of man this was to whom he spoke. The terrier followed at his heels.'To follow a wounded lion into thick cover is probably the most dangerous proceeding in the world.'She draws the most delightful caricatures. and Arthur Burdon. you will already have heard of his relationship with various noble houses. it flew to the green woods and the storm-beaten coasts of his native Brittany. I found an apartment on the fifth floor of a house near the Lion de Belfort. An abject apology was the last thing she expected. as now. but took her face in his hands and kissed her passionately. I shan't feel safe till I'm actually your wife.'Sit down.