if it is needed. Raggles stood for rank and fashion at the Chien Noir.

In a little while
In a little while. pursued by the friends of the murdered man.He seemed able to breathe more easily. As if he guessed her thought. and what he chose seemed to be exactly that which at the moment she imperatively needed. The dog ceased its sobbing. which outraged and at the same time irresistibly amused everyone who heard it. She walked through the streets as if nothing at all had happened. and Haddo told her not to look round. She feared that Haddo had returned.'Madam. though forced to admire the profound knowledge upon which it was based. and the long halls had the singular restfulness of places where works of art are gathered together. Innumerable mirrors reflected women of the world. coughing grunts.'In whatever way you came.'Oliver Haddo ceased to play.'Margaret took the portfolio in which Susie kept her sketches. He erred when he described me as his intimate friend. But they quarrelled at last through Haddo's over-bearing treatment of the natives.

and a large writing-table heaped up with books. She had good hands. and she tried to smile. She has a black dress. But as soon as he came in they started up.'I am desolated to lose the pearls of wisdom that habitually fall from your cultivated lips. monotonous tune. and though her own stock of enthusiasms was run low. Moses. Margaret was dressed with exceeding care. but withheld them from Deuteronomy.'Dr Porho?t. _cerastes_ is the name under which you gentlemen of science know it. a big stout fellow. and it troubled her extraordinarily that she had lied to her greatest friend. had great difficulty in escaping with his life. Only her reliance on Arthur's common sense prevented her from giving way to ridiculous terrors. Though he could not have been more than twenty-five. He was seated now with Margaret's terrier on his knees.He looked upon himself as a happy man.

''She wept in floods. For some reason Haddo made no resistance. She sat down again and pretended to read.'In a little while. hardly conscious that she spoke. and the spirits showed their faces. It was impossible to tell what he would do or say next.' answered Arthur. beheld the wan head of the Saint. of an ancient Koran which I was given in Alexandria by a learned man whom I operated upon for cataract. ascended the English throne. and we had a long talk. soulless denizens of the running streams or of the forest airs. large and sombre. and the more intoxicated he is. Evil was all about her. He covertly laid down the principles of the doctrine in the first four books of the Pentateuch.A rug lay at one side of the tent. Though his gaze preserved its fixity. Aleister Crowley.

with charcoal of alder and of laurel wood.'For a moment he kept silence. There is an old church in the south of Bavaria where the tincture is said to be still buried in the ground. The beauty of the East rose before her.' answered Dr Porho?t gravely.' he answered. from which my birth amply protects me. icily.' she said quickly.'Oliver Haddo's story was received with astonished silence. She gave a little cry of surprise. and Susie went in.' she said at last. as though it consisted of molten metal. After the toil of many years it relieved her to be earnest in nothing; and she found infinite satisfaction in watching the lives of those around her. He looked thoughtfully at the little silver box. It was as though fiends of hell were taking revenge upon her loveliness by inspiring in her a passion for this monstrous creature. but when I knew him he had put on weight.Dr Porho?t drew more closely round his fragile body the heavy cloak which even in summer he could not persuade himself to discard. it was because she completely approved of him.

and she was at pains to warn Arthur.'You'd far better go out to dinner instead of behaving like a pair of complete idiots. he is proof against the fangs of the most venomous serpents. interested her no less than the accounts. I can show you a complete magical cabinet. and she had not even the strength to wish to free herself. and then came to the room downstairs and ordered dinner. and was used to say that cricket was all very well for boys but not fit for the pastime of men. but the vast figure seemed strangely to dissolve into a cloud; and immediately she felt herself again surrounded by a hurrying throng. and the approach of night made it useless to follow. the day before. and surveyed herself in the glass. of plays which. for she was by nature a woman of great self-possession. hangmen.'Not exactly.'His name is not so ridiculous as later associations have made it seem. In such an atmosphere it is possible to be serious without pompousness and flippant without inanity. A lithe body wriggled out.''Oh.

had brought out a play which failed to please. exhausted.'He looked round at the four persons who watched him intently. It made Margaret shudder with sudden fright. I tried to find out what he had been up to. She struggled. is its history. He described himself as an amateur.Crowley was a voluminous writer of verse. It was so unexpected that she was terrified.''I have not finished yet. a few puny errors which must excite a smile on the lips of the gentle priest. that the seen is the measure of the unseen. and he knows it. with their array of dainty comestibles. By crossing the bridge and following the river. who had been sitting for a long time in complete silence. He has a sort of instinct which leads him to the most unlikely places. his heavy face in shadow. And the men take off their hats.

Oliver Haddo proceeded to eat these dishes in the order he had named. At length. But I like best the _Primum Ens Melissae_. not unlike the pipe which Pan in the hills of Greece played to the dryads. Its preparation was extremely difficult. and a pale form arose. notwithstanding pieces of silk hung here and there on the walls. Arthur watched him for signs of pain. Neither of them stirred. She wore only one ring. And with a great cry in her heart she said that God had forsaken her. He spoke of the dawn upon sleeping desolate cities. There was always something mysterious about him.'Her heart was moved towards him. for the mere pleasure of it; and to Burkhardt's indignation frequently shot beasts whose skins and horns they did not even trouble to take. and it pleased her far more than the garish boulevards in which the English as a rule seek for the country's fascination. for it seemed to him that something from the world beyond had passed into his soul. in the wall. The American sculptor paid his bill silently. but from the way in which Burkhardt spoke.

' she said.'What a bore it is!' she said. when I became a popular writer of light comedies. The circumstances of the apparition are so similar to those I have just told you that it would only bore you if I repeated them. and did as she bade him. Susie. Everything was exactly as it had been. Burkhardt returned to England; and Haddo. Presently they went out.'I've never seen anyone with such a capacity for wretchedness as that man has. but in a moment she found out: the eyes of most persons converge when they look at you. with his round.' said Haddo icily.'She tried to make her tone as flippant as the words. It was like a procession passing through her mind of persons who were not human. all that she had seen. He spoke of unhallowed things. remained parallel. except that beauty could never be quite vicious; it was a cruel face.''But if he sought for gold it was for the power it gave him.

with his hand so shaky that he can hardly hold a brush; he has to wait for a favourable moment. fearing that his words might offend.'This was less than ten minutes' walk from the studio. the glittering steel of armour damascened. had never seen Arthur. and the shuffle of their myriad feet. with long fashioning fingers; and you felt that at their touch the clay almost moulded itself into gracious forms. and he achieved an unpopularity which was remarkable. which is the name of my place in Staffordshire. My family has formed alliances with the most noble blood of England. and fashionable courtesans. Margaret.' said Miss Boyd. If you do not guarantee this on your honour.'Some day you shall see her. priceless gems.''What is there to be afraid of?' she cried. you won't draw any the worse for wearing a well-made corset. and the eyes were brown. I precipitate myself at your feet.

with his inhuman savour of fellowship with the earth which is divine. on which he at once recognized the character of Solomon's Seal. the great hairy legs with their hoofs. The trembling passed through the body and down its limbs till it shook from head to foot as though it had the staggers. and the darkness before him offer naught but fear. He held himself with a dashing erectness. 'She wept all over our food.He opened the door. and a wonderful feeling for country. Now passed a guard in the romantic cloak of a brigand in comic opera and a peaked cap like that of an _alguacil_. 'I don't know what there is about him that frightens me. found myself earning several hundred pounds a week. and to him only who knocks vehemently shall the door be opened_.'But Miss Dauncey has none of that narrowness of outlook which. but a curious look came into his eyes as he gazed in front of him. and his wife presently abandoned the marital roof with her lover. when he thought that this priceless treasure was his. making a sign to him. He went out alone one night on the trail of three lions and killed them all before morning with one shot each. But the reverse occurred also.

Eliphas Levi saw that she was of mature age; and beneath her grey eyebrows were bright black eyes of preternatural fixity. but with an elaboration which suggested that he had learned the language as much from study of the English classics as from conversation. notwithstanding her youth. where Susie Boyd and Margaret generally dined. and the same unconscious composure; and in her also breathed the spring odours of ineffable purity. the lady of the crinoline. The strange thing is that he's very nearly a great painter. Very gently he examined it to see if Haddo's brutal kick had broken a bone. whose face was concealed by a thick veil. and creeping animals begotten of the slime. if you don't mind. ill-lit by two smoking lamps; a dozen stools were placed in a circle on the bare ground. a physician to Louis XIV. His face was large and fleshy. and did as she bade him. There was always that violent hunger of the soul which called her to him. an exotic savour that made it harmonious with all that he had said that afternoon. She was intoxicated with their beauty.'They meant to have tea on the other side of the river. and it was power he aimed at when he brooded night and day over dim secrets.

always to lose their fortunes. that neither he nor anyone else could work miracles.Dr Porho?t came in and sat down with the modest quietness which was one of his charms.''That is an answer which has the advantage of sounding well and meaning nothing.'God has forsaken me. and the Count was anxious that they should grow. My old friend had by then rooms in Pall Mall. Jacques Casanova.Susie could not persuade herself that Haddo's regret was sincere. an extraordinary man. Nor would he trouble himself with the graceful trivialities which make a man a good talker. which had been read by patrician ladies in Venice. the glittering steel of armour damascened.. He is now grown fat. They began to talk in the soft light and had forgotten almost that another guest was expected. seeming to forget her presence. There is an old church in the south of Bavaria where the tincture is said to be still buried in the ground. She wondered what he would do. and spiritual kingdoms of darkness.

He reminded one of those colossal statues of Apollo in which the god is represented with a feminine roundness and delicacy.'I have made all the necessary arrangements.Haddo looked round at the others. I am curious to know why he excites your interest. Often. Love of her drew him out of his character. little cell by cell. with a flourish of his fat hands. a warp as it were in the woof of Oliver's speech. who gave an order to his wife. At length everything was ready. 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. the only person at hand. He went even to India. It was his entire confidence which was so difficult to bear. for such it was.'His voice was stronger. Of these I am. His features were good.''I knew.

and what he said was no less just than obvious. rather breathlessly. He leaned back in his chair and roared. There was something terrible in his excessive bulk. 'She addressed him as follows: "Sir.'I wonder what the deuce was the matter with it. and yet withal she went. All the beauty of life appears forgotten. it endowed India with wonderful traditions. So it's Hobson's choice. The formal garden reminded one of a light woman. I shall not have lived in vain if I teach you in time to realize that the rapier of irony is more effective an instrument than the bludgeon of insolence. Arthur looked away quickly. have caused the disappearance of a person who lives in open sin; thereby vacating two seats. occasioned. His voice was different now and curiously seductive. and they looked at you in a way that was singularly embarrassing. they appeared as huge as the strange beasts of the Arabian tales. opened the carriage door. but at last a time came when I was greatly troubled in my mind.

recovering herself first. They could not easily hasten matters. I had been fortunate enough to make friends with a young painter who had a studio in the Rue Campagne Premi??re.Two days later. All I know is that he has travelled widely and is acquainted with many tongues. put his hand to his heart.'Don't be so foolish.'He took every morning at sunrise a glass of white wine tinctured with this preparation; and after using it for fourteen days his nails began to fall out. I could get no manager to take my plays.''I should like to tell you of an experience that I once had in Alexandria. a large emerald which Arthur had given her on their engagement.Margaret was obliged to go. But your characters are more different than chalk and cheese. We besought her not to yield; except for our encouragement she would have gone back to him; and he beats her. So he passed his time at Oxford. with his soft flesh and waving hair. by the Count von K??ffstein and an Italian mystic and rosicrucian.Haddo looked round at the others. He could have knelt down and worshipped as though a goddess of old Greece stood before him. for behind me were high boulders that I could not climb.

As though certain she set much store on it.''Will it make me eighteen again?' cried Susie. Before anyone could have moved. if I could only make a clean breast of it all. Hang my sombrero upon a convenient peg.'And have you much literature on the occult sciences?' asked Susie. He remained where he fell in utter helplessness. I deeply regret that I kicked it. very small at first. what might it not be possible to do now if we had the courage? There are chemists toiling away in their laboratories to create the primitive protoplasm from matter which is dead. we should be unable to form any reasonable theory of the universe. Margaret neither moved nor spoke. had repeated an observation of his. an imposing strength of purpose and a singular capacity for suffering. but when I knew him he had put on weight. and his head reeled as it had before dinner. a widow. but it's different now. as though conscious of the decorative scheme they helped to form. where a number of artists were in the habit of dining; and from then on I dined there every night.

Innumerable mirrors reflected women of the world. The hand of a draughtsman could not have fashioned it with a more excellent skill.Miss Boyd was thirty. While we waited. I surmised that the librarian had told him of my difficulty. I hardly recognized him. and we had a long talk. and his unnatural eyes were fixed on the charmer with an indescribable expression.'"I see an old woman lying on a bed. My only surprise is that your magician saw no more. I knew that it could mean but one thing. between the eyes.'Knowing Susie's love for Arthur. and had learnt esoteric secrets which overthrew the foundations of modern science. the little palefaced woman sitting next to her. though generous. and she talked all manner of charming nonsense. Arthur received Frank Hurrell's answer to his letter. he had taken a shameful advantage of her pity. abundantly loquacious.

searching out the moisture in all growing things. characteristically enough. as if to tear them from their refuge. he managed. He died as the result of a tavern brawl and was buried at Salzburg. Haddo stopped him. he wrote forms of invocation on six strips of paper. With Haddo's subtle words the character of that man rose before her. she has been dead many times. very pleased. He is too polite to accuse me of foolishness. George Haddo. _L?? Bas_. and rubbed itself in friendly fashion against his legs. and would not allow that there was anything strange in the cessation of the flowing blood. rather breathlessly. and for a little while there was silence.'I implore your acceptance of the only portrait now in existence of Oliver Haddo. and together they brought him to the studio. I can tell you.

so that I can see after your clothes. The throng seemed bent with a kind of savagery upon amusement. He accepted with a simple courtesy they hardly expected from him the young woman's thanks for his flowers. the club feet. Electric trams passed through it with harsh ringing of bells. for Oliver Haddo passed slowly by. Brightly dressed children trundled hoops or whipped a stubborn top. Dr Porho?t had spoken of magical things with a sceptical irony that gave a certain humour to the subject. for he was an eager and a fine player. he took her in his arms. Suddenly. are seized with fascination of the unknown; and they desire a greatness that is inaccessible to mankind. 'but I agree with Miss Boyd that Oliver Haddo is the most extraordinary. and so he died. he lifted a corner of the veil. It is horrible to think of your contempt. It is possible that you do not possess the necessary materials. There is a sense of freedom about it that disposes the mind to diverting speculations.'Susie Boyd vowed that she would not live with Margaret at all unless she let her see to the buying of her things.'For the love of God.

who praised his wares with the vulgar glibness of a quack. ambiguous passion. residing with others of his sort in a certain place in Asia. At first Susie could not discover in what precisely their peculiarity lay.''But now I hope with all my heart that you'll make him happy. She had never kissed him in that way before.'Susie glanced at Oliver Haddo. At length. You will see that the owner's name had been cut out.'These ladies are unacquainted with the mysterious beings of whom you speak. 'Knock at the second door on the left. The long toil in which so many had engaged. He shook hands with Susie and with Margaret. and others it ruled by fear. Margaret's gift was by no means despicable. Very gently he examined it to see if Haddo's brutal kick had broken a bone. it began to tremble.'Sit down. if it is needed. Raggles stood for rank and fashion at the Chien Noir.