mirror to show the inquirer persons who were absent or dead.

''I'm sure Mr Haddo was going to tell us something very interesting about him
''I'm sure Mr Haddo was going to tell us something very interesting about him. She listened sullenly to his words. hour after hour. and still they went quickly. the water turned a mysterious colour.' answered Margaret. 'He is the most celebrated occultist of recent years. blended with the suave music of the words so that Margaret felt she had never before known their divine significance. The eyes of most people converge upon the object at which they look. Then I thought she might have hit upon that time by chance and was not coming from England. We talked steadily from half past six till midnight. At last. I prepared by the magician's direction frankincense and coriander-seed. It was evident that he would make a perfect companion.'I don't know if you young things realise that it's growing late. The goddess's hand was raised to her right shoulder. and Cologne; all you that come from the countries along the Danube and the Rhine. and trying to comfort it in its pain.'The night had fallen; but it was not the comfortable night that soothes the troubled minds of mortal men; it was a night that agitated the soul mysteriously so that each nerve in the body tingled. He was notorious also for the extravagance of his costume. the mirrors.' He paused for a moment to light a cigar.

 the garden of spices of the Queen of Arabia. He's the only man in this room of whom you'll never hear a word of evil.' answered Burdon. His paunch was of imposing dimensions. The pose which had seemed amusing in a lad fresh from Eton now was intolerable. his own instinctive hatred of the man. then he passed his hand over it: it became immediately as rigid as a bar of iron. 'I feel that he will bring us misfortune.' laughed Susie. I know nothing of these things.''I'm sure I shall be delighted to come.'Arthur was prevented from answering by their arrival at the Lion de Belfort. curled over the head with an infinite grace. We can disbelieve these circumstantial details only by coming to the conclusion beforehand that it is impossible they should be true. of attar of roses. she forgot everything. Haddo stopped him. and a ragged black moustache. but scarcely sympathetic; so. The privileges of him who holds in his right hand the Keys of Solomon and in his left the Branch of the Blossoming Almond are twenty-one.Two days later. for the little place had a reputation for good cooking combined with cheapness; and the _patron_.

 by weakening the old belief in authority. angered. she could scarcely control her irritation. when he was arranging his journey in Asia. Miss Boyd. but could utter no sound. and hence for them there could be no immortality. It was a scene of indescribable horror. In such an atmosphere it is possible to be serious without pompousness and flippant without inanity. catching his eye. Those pictures were filled with a strange sense of sin. who was learned in all the wisdom of Egypt.''I shall be much pleased."'His friends and the jugglers. There were many older ones also in bindings of calf and pigskin. But they quarrelled at last through Haddo's over-bearing treatment of the natives. She was proud to think that she would hand over to Arthur Burdon a woman whose character she had helped to form.'Everything has gone pretty well with me so far.'And what else is it that men seek in life but power? If they want money. and the Merestons. resentful of the weary round of daily labour.' she muttered to herself.

 We sold the furniture for what it could fetch. Oliver Haddo left at Margaret's door vast masses of chrysanthemums. but Arthur had reserved a table in the middle of the room. because I was hoping--I might ask you to marry me some day. The tortured branches. and it was plain that he was much moved. She consulted Susie Boyd. The woman in the corner listlessly droned away on the drum. uttering at the same time certain Hebrew words. Though he knew so many people. But the older woman expressed herself with decision.''I'm dying to know what you did with all the lions you slaughtered. at the top of his voice. and. for behind me were high boulders that I could not climb. When antelope were so far off that it was impossible to kill them.' cried Margaret vehemently. To excel one's fellows it is needful to be circumscribed. and his voice was hoarse.' said Dr Porho?t quietly.'You are very lucky.'He scribbled the address on a sheet of paper that he found on the table.

'Oliver Haddo lifted his huge bulk from the low chair in which he had been sitting. they are bound to go up. Her fancy suggested various dark means whereby Oliver Haddo might take vengeance on his enemy. the snake darted forward.''May I ask how you could distinguish the sex?' asked Arthur. and Susie. when Margaret.FRANK HURRELLArthur. indistinctly. She knew that she did not want to go. All the beauty of life appears forgotten. don't say that. and with the pea-soup I will finish a not unsustaining meal. the water turned a mysterious colour. which he signed 'Oliver Haddo'. and had come ostensibly to study the methods of the French operators; but his real object was certainly to see Margaret Dauncey. His nose and mouth were large. but his clean-shaven face was full of interest to so passionate an observer of her kind. Promise that you'll never forsake me. Though I have not seen Haddo now for years. I did not avail myself of them.The new arrival stood at the end of the room with all eyes upon him.

 and Arthur looked at him with amazement. He had also an ingenious talent for profanity. not of the lips only but of the soul.'Marie. a life of supernatural knowledge. He had also an ingenious talent for profanity.He opened the door. Though he knew so many people.'I don't think you will ever get me to believe in occult philosophy.'Oliver Haddo looked at him before answering. Mona Lisa and Saint John the Baptist.Miss Boyd was thirty. He began the invocations again and placed himself in a circle. I can with difficulty imagine two men less capable of getting on together. and there is no book I have heard of. and is the principal text-book of all those who deal in the darkest ways of the science.'He gave a low weird laugh. As if he guessed her thought. going to the appointed spot. religious rites.Dr Porho?t spoke English fluently. ran forward with a cry.

 I think Jules G??rard. She had asked if he was good-looking. It is horrible to think of your contempt. for he had been to Eton and to Cambridge. I knew that it could mean but one thing. the seashore in the Saint Anne had the airless lethargy of some damasked chapel in a Spanish nunnery.'He spoke in a low voice.' he said. I would as soon do a caricature of him as write a parody on a poem I loved. and her clothes.'He handled the delicate pages as a lover of flowers would handle rose-leaves. Arthur sat down.'The charmer sat motionless. but in those days was extremely handsome. hastened to explain. scarcely two lengths in front of the furious beast. and we dined together. She looked down at Oliver.' she laughed. a charlatan. She did not think of the future. and it is certainly very fine.

'He did not reply. so that I can see after your clothes.' he answered. But let us talk of other things. and his crest was erect. she dropped. I should have no hesitation in saying so. _cher ami_. Then he began to play things she did not know. he looked exactly like a Franz Hals; but he was dressed like the caricature of a Frenchman in a comic paper. Her soul yearned for a beauty that the commonalty of men did not know. he analysed with a searching. such as are used to preserve fruit. but the bookcases that lined the walls. and the troublous sea of life whereon there is no refuge for the weary and the sick at heart. he made up for it with a diverting pleasantry that might very well have passed for humour. almond-shaped like those of an Oriental; the red lips were exquisitely modelled. but Margaret said he did not photograph well.'He reasoned with her very gently. It was impossible to tell what he would do or say next. He collected information from physicians. It seems too much to expect that I should enjoy such extraordinarily good luck.

 She made a little sketch of Arthur.'I am willing to marry you whenever you choose. There's no form of religion. an idea came to Susie. and interested everyone with whom he came in contact. And now everyone is kneeling down.'Susie went to the shelves to which he vaguely waved.'I've written to Frank Hurrell and asked him to tell me all he knows about him.'Look. which was published concerning his profession. which flamed with a dull unceasing roar. untidily. I was very anxious and very unhappy. look at that little bald man in the corner. low laugh and stretched out her hand on the table. and his words gave a new meaning to paintings that Margaret had passed thoughtlessly by. 'I couldn't make out what had become of you. who brightened on hearing the language of his own country. Margaret watched their faces. I can well imagine that he would be as merciless as he is unscrupulous. and fell heavily to the ground. and it struggled with its four quaint legs.

 He amused. Mona Lisa and Saint John the Baptist.'Your laughter reminds me of the crackling of thorns under a pot. with powder and paint. with a hateful smile on his face. felt that this was not the purpose for which she had asked him to come.'He got up and moved towards the door. half cruel.' said Haddo.Margaret laughed.'I don't know if you young things realise that it's growing late. partly from her conversation. if not a master. and I should have been ashamed to see it republished. carried wine; and when they spilt it there were stains like the stains of blood. she thought that Dr Porho?t might do something for her. with a scarlet lining; and Warren.'Oh. as Leda. He continued to travel from place to place. turned to Arthur.'Dr Porho?t shrugged his shoulders.

 though he could not resist. but had not the courage. sensual face. and in some detail in the novel to which these pages are meant to serve as a preface. I see no reason why he should not have been present at the battle of Pavia. She wondered what he would do. but I must require of you first the most inviolable silence. In a moment. It established empires by its oracles. He loved Margaret with all his heart. He commanded it to return. and in the white. and the eyes were brown. Her contempt for him. but he did not seem to me so brilliant as I remembered. but otherwise recovered. The goddess had not the arrogance of the huntress who loved Endymion. Then she heard him speak. It was a face that haunted you. there's no eccentricity or enormity. Power was the subject of all his dreams. They walked on and suddenly came to a canvas booth on which was an Eastern name.

 None had ever whispered in her ears the charming nonsense that she read in books. when I tried to catch him. and yet withal she went. She remembered on a sudden Arthur's great love and all that he had done for her sake. and when James I. and with Napoleonic instinct decided that I could only make room by insulting somebody. and she heard Oliver laugh in derision by her side. The date of their marriage was fixed.'He gave a low weird laugh. 'But it's too foolish. In two hours he was dead. and to this presently he insisted on going.'By the way.'It occurred to me that he was playing some trick.'The man has a horned viper. A capricious mind can never rule the sylphs. as if to tear them from their refuge. His name was Gerald Kelly. pliant. and I am sure that you will eventually be a baronet and the President of the Royal College of Surgeons; and you shall relieve royal persons of their. He could not resist taking her hand. A legend grew up around him.

 The horse seemed not to suffer from actual pain.'The idea flashed through Margaret that Oliver Haddo was the author of it. The doctor smiled and returned the salute. Though his gaze preserved its fixity. and could not understand what pleasure there might be in the elaborate invention of improbable adventures. It was dirty and thumbed. began to kick him with all his might.' she muttered to herself. dark fellow with strongly-marked features. and their fur stood right on end. who sat in silence. Her skin was colourless and much disfigured by freckles. and a thick vapour filled the room. 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. and a wonderful feeling for country. There was still that vague. Whenever he could snatch a free day he spent it on the golf-links of Sunningdale. and the eyes were brown. she could not look upon him with anger. which he published sumptuously at his own expense. he had acquired so great an influence over the undergraduates of Oxford.'Arthur had an idea that women were often afflicted with what he described by the old-fashioned name of vapours.

 is singularly rich in all works dealing with the occult sciences. for by then a great change had come into my life. Roughly painted on sail-cloth was a picture of an Arab charming snakes.' he said. Susie turned suddenly to Dr Porho?t. He seemed genuinely to admire the cosy little studio. but an exceedingly pale blue. she thought that Dr Porho?t might do something for her. At first Susie could not discover in what precisely their peculiarity lay. The dignity which encompassed the perfection of her beauty was delightfully softened. and the lashes were darkened with kohl: her fingers were brightly stained with henna. creeping stealthily through her limbs; and she was terrified. Was it the celebrated harangue on the greatness of Michelangelo.''I'm sure Mr Haddo was going to tell us something very interesting about him. an air pass by him; and. conscience-stricken. bowed again. 'I wonder you don't do a head of Arthur as you can't do a caricature. and the white cap was the _coiffe_ that my mother wore. the Hollingtons. and. I thought no harm could come if I sent for the sorcerer.

 for Moses de Leon had composed _Zohar_ out of his own head. and except for his rather scornful indolence he might easily have got his blue. he dressed himself at unseasonable moments with excessive formality. was down with fever and could not stir from his bed.'Then he pointed out the _Hexameron_ of Torquemada and the _Tableau de l'Inconstance des D??mons_.' said Haddo. I was afraid. principalities of the unknown.' answered Arthur. But when Moses de Leon was gathered to the bosom of his father Abraham. and a furious argument was proceeding on the merit of the later Impressionists.'Yet I cannot be sure that it is all folly. but of life. stood over him helplessly. I could never resist going to see him whenever opportunity arose. and then. but I know not what there is in the atmosphere that saps his unbelief. the Arab thrust his hand into the sack and rummaged as a man would rummage in a sack of corn. uttering at the same time certain Hebrew words. The narrow streets. You won't try to understand. he seemed to look behind you.

 He could not resist taking her hand. the audacious sureness of his hand had excited his enthusiasm.' he said casually. You will see that the owner's name had been cut out. who smarted still under Haddo's insolence. She had ceased to judge him. exhausted.'I thought once of writing a life of that fantastic and grandiloquent creature. and in the dim light. Dr Porho?t was changed among his books. he went on. a big stout fellow. by the pursuit of science.' she gasped. and a wonderful feeling for country. if I could only make a clean breast of it all.''I am astonished that you should never have tried such an interesting experiment yourself. and his skin was sallow.'I shall start with the ice. Finally he had a desperate quarrel with one of the camp servants.''I see a little soot on your left elbow. _L?? Bas_.

' laughed Susie.'How on earth did you get here?' cried Susie lightly. I wondered how on earth I could have come by all the material concerning the black arts which I wrote of.''I wish you would. My only surprise is that your magician saw no more. It was characteristic that. for she knew now that she had no money. who had left. in the dark hollowness of the eyes. more sinister and more ruthless than Crowley ever was. but Oliver Haddo's. and the causes that made him say it.'She did not answer. her tact so sure. came to Scotland in the suite of Anne of Denmark. I must have spent days and days reading in the library of the British Museum. She would have given much to confess her two falsehoods.' he said.'What on earth's the matter?''I wish you weren't so beautiful. It was evident that he sought to please. and I know exactly how much sugar to put in. and he seemed to be dead.

 I have copied out a few words of his upon the acquirement of knowledge which affect me with a singular emotion. put his hand on the horse's neck. but his sarcastic smile would betray him. and come down into the valleys. muttering words they could not hear. meditating on the problems of metaphysics. The flames invested every object with a wavering light. and a native friend of mine had often begged me to see him.There was a knock at the door.They came down to the busy. the cruel eyes. There is a sense of freedom about it that disposes the mind to diverting speculations. I felt that. but could not resist his fascination.' he said. 'you will be to blame. But now Margaret could take no pleasure in its grace.Dr Porho?t drew more closely round his fragile body the heavy cloak which even in summer he could not persuade himself to discard. the mirrors. The trembling passed through the body and down its limbs till it shook from head to foot as though it had the staggers.She started to her feet and stared at him with bewildered eyes. and they were moist with tears.

'The shadow of a smile crossed his lips.'They meant to have tea on the other side of the river. I tried to find out what he had been up to. he took her in his arms. without method or plan. because I shall be too busy. when I tried to catch him. with palm trees mute in the windless air.' she whispered. Margaret tried to join calmly in the conversation. Arthur started a little and gave him a searching glance. and took pains to read every word. His success had been no less than his courage. This person possessed also the _Universal Panacea_. and Haddo told her not to look round. evil-smelling and airless. Dr Porho?t opened in person.'You've never done that caricature of Arthur for me that you promised. very fair. with his ambiguous smile. and Bacchus.'You are a bold man to assert that now and then the old alchemists actually did make gold.

 but curiously had no longer the physical repulsion which hitherto had mastered all other feelings.The other shrugged his shoulders. I think Jules G??rard. for it seemed to him that something from the world beyond had passed into his soul. for he smiled strangely. It was thus that I first met Arnold Bennett and Clive Bell.Arthur Burdon and Dr Porho?t walked in silence. but got nearer to it than anyone had done before. While we waited.''I knew. and I made friends. that I picked it up. and she saw a lovely youth.''Margaret's a wise girl.'"Do you see anything in the ink?" he said. a hard twinkle of the eyes. and the instrument had the tremulous emotion of a human being. a fried sole. intelligence. furiously seizing his collar. If there were a word of truth in anything Haddo says. others with the satin streamers of the _nounou_.

 and she marvelled that even the cleverest man in that condition could behave like a perfect idiot.' he said. Once there. It might be very strange and very wonderful. turning to his friend. He did not know what on earth the man was talking about. When she went to see him with tears in her eyes. in postponing your marriage without reason for two mortal years. His eyes rested on a print of _La Gioconda_ which hung on the wall. I called up his phantom from the grave so that I might learn what I took to be a dying wish. When Arthur recovered himself..' she whispered. very white and admirably formed. and salamanders by an alliance with man partake of his immortality. She felt like an adventurous princess who rode on her palfrey into a forest of great bare trees and mystic silences. but the sketches of Arthur had disappeared. She found it easy to deceive her friends. and the woman in the dim background ceased her weird rubbing of the drum." he said. He had thrown himself down in the chair.She turned to Dr Porho?t.

 The gibe at his obesity had caught him on the raw. Whenever he could snatch a free day he spent it on the golf-links of Sunningdale.'What on earth's the matter with you?' she asked. which flamed with a dull unceasing roar. and the bushes by trim beds of flowers. In one corner they could see the squat. It had a singular and pungent odour that Margaret did not know. for their house was not yet ready. All those fierce evil women of olden time passed by her side. horribly repelled yet horribly fascinated.'You give me credit now for very marvellous powers. and occasionally dined with them in solemn splendour.' said Miss Boyd.' he muttered. her nerves shattered by all that she had endured. and did as she bade him. The tavern to which they went was on the Boulevard des Italiens. physically exhausted as though she had gone a long journey. she gave him an amorous glance.She believed privately that Margaret's passion for the arts was a not unamiable pose which would disappear when she was happily married. Suffer me to touch thy body.'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.