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Show J- CHAPTER XIII. B Allan Hears a Strange Tale 7-ES, there she .sat in her white Y robes and veil, the point and , A centre of a little lake of light, a wondrous, and, in a sense, a spiritual vision, tor in truth there was something -about, her which was not of the world, '.something, that drew and yet frightened me. Still as a statue she sat, like one to whom time is of no account and who has grown , weary oC motion, 1 and on either side of her yet more 1 still, like caryatides supporting a shrine, stood two of the stately P women who were her attendants. She spoke no word, yet 1 knew , she was inviting me to come nearer and moved forward till I reached a curious carved chair thSt was placed just beneath -the dais, and H there halted, not liking to sit down 1 williout permission, fl; For a long while she cdnteni- B templntcd me. for as before I could H feel her eyes searching itic from 1 head to foot and, as it were, look H ing through me as though she H would discover my very soul. Then H , at length she moved, waving those H two ivory arms of hers outwards H with a kind of swimming stroke, . H whereon the women to right and Bl left of her turned and glided sway.. H,' I know not whither. B "Sit, Allan," she said, "and let us Bf talk, for I think we have much to H say to each other. Have you .slept ! well? And eaten, though I fear that H the food is but rough? Also, was H the bath made ready for you?" H "Yes, O Ayc8ha," I answered to H nil three questions, adding, for I H ; know not what to say. "it seems to H ! be a very ancient baj.h." B "When last I saw it," she replied, H; "it was well enough, with statues H standing round it worked by a H" sculptor who had seen beauty in H his dreams. But in two thousand H i years, or is it more? the tooth of H time bites deep and doubtless like all else in this dead placo it is now H I coughed to cover up the cxcla- H , matlon of disbelief that rose to my H ' Hps and remarked blandly that two B I thousand years was certainlv a long H; "When you say one thing, Allan, and mean another your Arabic, is 1 even more vile than usual and docs B not serve to cloak your thought." H "U may be so, O Aycsha. for 1 only know that tongue as I do many sther of the dialects of Africa by learning it from common men. My own speech is English, in which, if you are acquainted with It I should prefer to talk.1' . 'I know not English, which doubtless is, some language that has arisen siuce I left the world. ' Perhaps by and by you shall teach it 'to me, but I tell you. you anger me, whom it is not well to anger, because you believe nothing that passes my lips, and yet do not dare to say it." "How can 1 believe one, O Aye-sha, Aye-sha, who, if I understand aright, 'speaks of having seen a certan. bath two thousand ypars ago, whereas one hundred years are man's utmost days? Forgive me therefore if I cannot believe what 1 know to be untrue." Now I thought that she would bo very angry and was sorry that j had spoken. But as it happened she wasnot. "You must have murage to give me tho lie so boldly, and I like courage," she said, "who have been cringed to for so long. Indeed, I know that you have who have heard how you bore yourself in the fight yesterday, and much else about you. I think that we shall be friends, but seek no more.'' "What else should I seek, 0 Aye-sha?" Aye-sha?" I asked, innocently. "Now you are lying again," she said, "who know well that no mai. who is a man sees a woman who Is beautiful and pleases him, without wondering, should he desire' it If she could come to lore him, that Is, It. she bo young." "Which at least is not possible when she lias seenv two thousand years, after which time naturally she would prefer to wear a veil," I said, boldly, seeking to avoid the argument into which I saw she wished to drag mq.' "Ah!" she answered, "the little yellow man who is named Light-in-Darkness put that thought into your heart, I think. Oh I do not trouble as to how I know it who have many spies here, as he guessed well euough. So a woman who has lived two thousand years must be hideous and wrlnkleo. must she? The stamp of youth and loveliness must long have fled from her; of that you, the wise man, arp sure. Very well. .Now you tempt , me to do what I had determined l would not do, and you shall pluck tho fruit of the tree of curiosity which grows so Tast within you. Look, 0 Allan,' and say whether I am old and hideous, oven though I havo lived two thousand years upon the earth aud mayhap many more." Then she lifted her hands and did something to her veil, so that (or a moment, only one moment, her face was revealed, after which the veil fell into Its place. I looked. 1 baw, and If that chair had lacked a back I believe that I should have fallen nut of It lo the ground. 'As for what I saw well, it cannot be described, ai any rate by me, except perhaps as a flash of glory. Evory man has dreamed of perfect per-fect beauty, basing his ideas of it perhaps on that of some woman he has met who chanced to take his fancy, with a few accessories from splendid pictures of Greek statues thrown In. plus a garnishment of the imagination- At any rate I have, and here was that perfect beauty multiplied by ten. such beauty, that, ai the sight of it the senses reeled. And yet I repeat that It Is not to be described. I ao not know what the nose or the Hps w,ere like; in fact, all that I can remember re-member with 'distinctness is tho splendor of the eyes, of which I had caught some hint through her veil on the previous night. , Oh! they were wondrous, those eyes, but I cannot tell their color save that the groundwork of them was black. Moreover, they seemed to be more than eyes as we understand under-stand them. They were Indeed windows of the poul, out of which looked thought and majesty and Infinite wisdom, mixed with all the allurements and the mystery that ve are accustomed to see or to Imagine In woman. Hero let me say something at once. If this -marvellous creaturo expected that the revelation of her splendor was going to make me her slave, to cause nie to fall In love with her, as It is called, well, she .must have been disappointed, for It had no such effept. It fright cned and In a sense humbled me, that is all, for I felt myself to be in the presence of something that was not human, something alien to' me as a man, which I could fear and even adore as humanity would adore what Is Divine, but with which I had no desire to mix. Moreover, was it divine, or was It something very different? I did not know, I only knew that it was not for me; as soon should I havo thought of asking for a star to set within my lantern. ' (O 1020, InfernaUonil I T think that she felt this, felt that her stroke was missed, as the French say that is if she meant to strike at me at this moment, of which I am not certain, for it was In a changed voice, one with a suspicion sus-picion of chill in It, that she said with a Hle laugh: ''Do you admit now, 0 Allan, that a woman may be old and still remain re-main fair and unwrlnkled?" "I admit," I answered, although I was trembling so much that T could hardly speak with steadiness, "that a woman may be splendid and lovely beyond anything that the mind of man can conceive, whatever her age may be, of which I know nothing, and I would add this. 0 Aycsha, that I thank you very much for having revealed to mo the glory that Is hid beneath your veil." "Why?" she asked, and I thought that. I detected curiosity in her question. "For thi3 reason, 0 Ayesha. That now there is no fear of my troubling troub-ling you in such a fashion as you seemed to dread a little while ago. As soon would a man desire to court the mcon sailing in lier silver loveliness through heaven." "The moon! It is strange that you should compare me to the moon." she said musingly. "Do you know that the moon was a great goddess in Old Egypt, and that her name wa3 Isis and well, once I had to do with IbIs? Perhaps Per-haps you were there and knew It, since moro lives than one are given to most of us. I must search and learn. For the rest, all have not thought as you do, Allan. Many, on the contrary, love and seek to win tho Divine." "So do I at a diptance, 0 Ayesha, but to come too near to It I do not presume, knowing that I might bo consumed." "You have wisdom," she replied, ' not without admiration. "Tho -moths are few that fear the flame, but those aro the moths which live. Also I think that you have scorched your wings before and learned that fire hurts. Indeed, now I remember remem-ber that I have heard of three such tires through which you have flown, hough all of them aro dead ashes now or burn elsewhere Two wore in your youth, and one of them died to save you. a great woman that, is it not so? And the third, 'caturo SerTlce, Inc. Great Brit; v .' : - VV-' : iJv3 all! ahf v;a3 a Are indeed, though r.he burnt with a copper hue. What was her name? I cannot remember, re-member, but I think It had something some-thing to do with the wind, yes, with the wind when it wall3." I stared at her. Was this Ma-mcena Ma-mcena myth to be dug up again here in a secret place in the heart of Africa? And how the deuce did she know anything about her? Could she have been pumping Hans or T'mslopogaas? No, it was not possible, for she had never seen them out of my presence. "Perhaps," she went on in a mocking voice, "perhaps onco again your disbelieve, 0 Allan, whose cynic mind Is so hard to open to now truths. Well, shall I show you the faces of these three? I can." and she waved her hand toward some object that, stood on a tripod to tho right of her in tho shadow it looked like a crystal basin. "But what is the use when you know them so well and would only think that I drew their pictures out of your own soul? Also perchance per-chance but one face would appear, and that one strange to you. Have you heard, O Allan, that among the wise some hold that not all of us is visible hero on earth at once within the same house of flesh? I shook my head blankly, for I had never 'heard anything of 'ho sort. "You still have much to learn, O Allan, although there are some think you wise," she went on in the same mocking voice. "Well. I hold that this doctrine is 'built upon a rock of truth; also," sho added, after studying me for a minute, min-ute, "that these three women do not complete tho circle. I think thero is a fourth who as yet is strange to you in this life, though you have known her well enough in others." I groaned, imagining that she alluded lo herself, which was foolish fool-ish for me, for at onco she read my mind and went on with a rather acid little laugh: "No, no, not the humble slave who sits before you, whom you have informed me it would pleaso you to reject as unworthy wore she brought to you In offering, ns in the old days was done at tvi courts of the great kings of the East. O fool, fool! who hold your- self so strong and flo not know that if I chose, beforo yon shadow had moved a handsbreadth. I could bring you to my feet, praying that yon might be suffered to kiss my robe, yes, just the border of my robe." "Then I 'beg of you not to choose, O Ayesha, sinco I think that when there is work to be done by both of us we shall find more comfort side by side than if I were on the ground seeking to kiss a robe that doubtless then It would delight you to snatch away." At these words her- whole attitude atti-tude seemed to change. I could see her lovely shape brace itself up, as it were, beneath her robes, and felt in some way that her mind had also changed, that It had rid Itself of mockery and woman's pique, and, like a shifting searchlight, search-light, was directed upon some new objective. "Work to be done," she repeated after me in a new voice. "Yes. I thank you who bring it to my mind since the hours pass and that work presses. Also 1 think there is a bargain to bo made between us who are both of tho blood that keeps bargains, even if thpy be not written on a roll and signed and sealed. Why do you come to mo and what do you seek of me, O Allan, Watchor-ln-the-NIght?" Now I hesitated, as what I had lo telL her seemed so foolish indeed, in-deed, so insano while she waited patiently as though to give mo time to shape my thoughts: Speaking Speak-ing at last because I must, I saidr "I come to ask you, 0 Ayesha. to show me the dead, if the dead still live elsewhere." "And who told you, O Allan, that I could show you the dead, if thev are not truly dead? There is bur. one, I think, and it you aro his messenger, show me his token, for without it we, do not speak together to-gether of this business." "What token?" I asked innocently, inno-cently, though I guessed her meaning mean-ing well enough. She searched me with her great eyes, for I felt, and. Indeed, saw them on me through the veil, then answered : "I think nay let me be sure," and. half rising from the couch, she bent her head over the tripod that I have described, and stared into what seemed to be a bowl of i ,v crystal. "If I road aright," sh said, straightening herself present- ; ly, "it is a hideous thing enou?;li, the carving of an abortion of a ' man such as no woman would caro ! to look on lest her babe should 1. bear its stamp; a charmed thing n also that has virtues for lym who ( wears It. especially for you. 0 i Allan, since something tells mo that it is dyed with the blood of ( enc who loved you. If you have it. 9: let It be revealed, since without it I do not talic with you of your J. dead." ); Now I drew the talisman from its hiding-place and held it toward her. "Give it me," she said. ? I was about to obey when sonic- V thing seemed to warn me not to do so. ', "Nay," I answered. "Ho who ; lent me this carving for a whl'o charged me that except in emer- jr ency to. save others I must wear it night and day till I returned it to , Ills hand, saying that if I parted f from It fortune would desert me." "Draw near," sho said, "and lei me look. Man. be not afraid." She took the talisman in her ; hand and examined It closely. I "I have heard of tins charm and It is tj-ue that the thing has power." ( She said, "for I can feel it rtinlng through my veins; also that it 13 u a shield of defence to him who wears it. Yes. and now I under- slnnd what perplexed me some- f what, namely, how It came about that you vexed me into unveiling-hut unveiling-hut let that matter be. The wis- dom was not your own, but an- other's, that is all. Ycg. the wis- dom of one whose years have -t borne him beyond the shafts that (; fly from woman's eyes, the ruinous . shafts tiiat bring men to doom and nothingness. Tell me. Allan, is this the likeness of him who gave it you?" ik "Yes, 0 Ayesha. the very picture, as r think, carved by himself, though he said that it is ancient. and others tell that it has boon i known in the land for centuries." i "So perchance has he," she an- ; swered drily, "since some of out company live long. Now tell mo f this wizard's name. Nay, wait i awhile, for I would prove that in- sj deed you are his messenger wih V i Continued on ycxt Payc. t ' 9 I ii i j fflP,.,ifrf f"' 1'rrcodh,!, Page i i i inpv talk about the (loall , .! j .le? things. 0 Allan. You 1 1 ,n iiil Arabic, can you not? . i in Mp " 1 answered. J :L w a stool at her side ' naper. or rather papyrus, . M 1 pen. and on her knee ;"on,eW on the. sheet ' 4 i shf Pave to me folded up. ' i-. tell me the names," sh .1 ? then let us see if they 'V 'il willi what I have written, for IfL xou arc a true man. not a ?'-iJe vnnderer or a spy. i- VI "?Th. principal names of Ihla ' 'fo'l.J-ir arc Alkali, the Opener of . ',r a;e 'Thin? that - should --'. 'J K.Vr nave-bpen-born." I answered. ; rMhe writing" he said i u"ro!d'vd the sheet and read i ..I Arabic words, which meant. ' I 'Papons Heaver of Rocks. One ,j 'hom doss bark and children ' 'Ihc lost two are near enough." ' - t i j,, old. "bv1 t,,e first is wronP" ' "VaV Avcha. since in this man's ciie ' Zl'kiiH means Weapons,' " V -' ; S nce at which She clapped 1 " hands as a merry girl might do. '""' i 'The won." I went on- ,s wthout i1 ,ioul)i a srent doctor, one who sees ' knw things tnat others do i not but wbv this token carved in Hi- 'likeness should have power, as j you say it Has. not under-j under-j St''Bccatise with it goes his spirit, i 0 Anan. Have you never heard of the EKyptlans. a very wise peopK ; lio ns I remember, declared that i fflan'has a Ka or double, a second1-' geif, that can dwell in their statues f 0l be sent afar?" i answered that I had heard this. ?&.,lt "Well, the Ka of this Zikali goes ''M -dth that hideous image of him. 'j r,ich Is perhaps why you have a i come safe through many dangerc Jl i end why I seemed to dream so 4 juuch of him last night alBO. Sny W ) i,0r.-, what does Zikali want of me ''M vbo'so power he knows very well?" j "An oracle, the answer to a rid-J rid-J die. 0 Ayesha." '.'"v'l j "Then set it out another time. V '' So yo" desire to see the dead, and r!H this' old dwarf, who in a heme of ,. yisdoin. desires an oracle from ono i who is greater than he. Good. r"aI I .-.i ii-hni nrn voii. nr hnth nf von. "m l prepared to pay for these boons? 3wa i Know, Allan, that I am a merchant v who sobs my favors dear. Tell me, ,iH& then will you pay?" 1"- "I tiunk that it depends upon the jg i price," I answered cautiously. "Set I cut the priee, O Ayesha." "Ce not afraid, 0 cunning dcal-I dcal-I j er," she mocked. "I do not ask I ) jour soul, or evon that love of ifl yours which you guard bo jeal-kpjjt. jeal-kpjjt. ously. since these things I could 'fi take without Uie asking. Nay, I k ask only what :i brave and honest fa) aan may give withoiit "sliahie E yojurhelp in war, and, perhaps." she I added with a softer tone, "your s- friendship, for I think. Allan, thai j ' 1 like you well, perhaps hocauso( I j you lemlnd me of others whom t' ; knew in the forgotten years." I bowed at the compliment, feel-j feel-j '; Ing proud and pleased at the pros"-I pros"-I I pect of a friendship with this won j dcrful and splendid creature, al-j al-j f tlwugh I was aware that it had many dangers, then sat still and '; wondered, j "Listen," she said after a while. "I will toil you a story, and when you have heard it you shall answer, even if you do not believe it, but I not before. Does It please you to I ; listen?" ; Again I bowed, thinking to my-' my-' self that I knew nothing that would "j please mo more, who was eaten up with a devouring curiosity about j this woman. L iVow she rose from her couch, k and descending off the dais began ft to walk up and down the chamber, w I say, i walk, but her movement-, were r.orc like the gliding of an 'j! eagle through the air. , "Lisl'.n." she said again, "and i f;ven If the tale seems marvellous . to you. interrupt, and above all :j mock me not, lest I should grow angry, which might bo 111 for you. I am not as other women are. O Allan, who, having conquered the secrets of nature" (here I felt an intense desire to ask'what secrets, I but remembered and held my ! tongue) "to my sorrow, have pre- served my youth and beauty through many ages. Moreover, in the past, perhaps in payment for my sins, I hnve lived other lives of which the memory remains with me. "By my last birth I am an Arab 1 lady of royal blood, a descendant : of the Kings of the East. There I dwelt In the wilderness and ruled I a people, and at night I gathered wisdom from the stars and the spirits of the earth and air. At Jength I wearied of it all aud my people, too, wearied of me and be-eought be-eought me to depart, for, Allan, I "would have naught to do with men, Bvet men went mad because of my beauty and slew each other out of jealousy. Moreover, other peoples made war upon my people, hoplni; j to take me captive that I might ' be a wife to their kings , "So I loft them, and being furnished fur-nished with great wealth In hoard-; hoard-; cd gold and jewels, I wandered through the world, studying the : nations and their worships. At Jerusalem I tarried and loarned of Jehovah, who Is, or was, their God At Paphos, in the Isle of Chltlm, i 1 dwelt a while till the folk of that J Clt-V thought that I was Aphrodite ; returned to earth and sought to orsiilp me. For this reason and because I made n mock of Aphrodite Aphro-dite I, who, as I have said, would have naught to do with men, she, through her priests, cursed mc, j saying that her yoke should J lo more heavily upon my neck from f i age to age than on that of any Somali who. had breathed beneath the sun. "It was a wondrous scene." she added reflectively, "that of the cursing, since for every word I gave back two. Moreover, I told the "hoary villain of a high priest to make report to his goddess that long after -she was dead In the world I should live on. for the spirit of prophecy was on me in" that lour. Vet the curse fell in its season, since in her day. doubt it not. Aphrodite had strength, us, indeed, under other names, she has and will have while the world endures, and for aught I know beyond be-yond It. Do they worship her now in nny land, O Allan?" "No; only her statues, because of their beauty, though Love Is always worshipped." "Yes, who can testify to that better than you yourself, 0 Allan, if ho who Is called Zikali tells me the truth concerning you in the dreams he sends? As for the statues. I saw some of them as they left the master's hand in-Greece. in-Greece. and- when I told him that lie might have found a better model, once I stood for one myself. If it still endures it must be the most famous of them all. though perchance Aphrodite shattered it in her jealous rage. You shall tell me of these statues afterward; mine had a mark on the left shoul der like n mole, but the marble was imperfect, not my shoulder, as I can prove If you wish." Thinking it better not to "con- ' tlnue this discussion, I remained silent, and she went on: "From Cyprus I went to Egypt, and there, to be rid of ;meh. who wearied me with their sighs and importunities, also to acquire more wisdom of which she was the mis- tress, I entered the service of the goddess Isis. Queen of Heaven, vowing to remain virgin forever. Sonn I became her high priestess, and In her most sacred shrine upon the Nile I communed with the goddess god-dess and shared her power, since from me she withheld none of her secrets. "So it came about that though Pharaohs and high priests held the sceptre, it was I who ruled Egypt, and in my day it was creat. "Vos, kings would come to seek counsel from mo and to kiss my feet where I sat throned, dressed in the garb of Isis and breathing out her powr. Yet of it all I grew weary at the last, as men will surely do of the heavens Hint they preach, should they chance to find them " "Why?" I asked. "Ipcause in their pictured heaven all things lie to their hands, and man, being man, cannot be happy without struggle, and wo-- wo-- man, .being woman, without vlctory over others. What is cheaply bought or given has no value, Allan: to be enjoyed it must first be won. But I bade you not to Interrupt In-terrupt mc and break my line of thought." I asked pardon and she went qn. "Here In Egypt it yas that the curse of Aphrodite fell upon me. Yes, and the curse of Isis. also, so that' these twin maledictions have made mo what I am a lost soul dwelling in the wilderness waiting the fulfilment of a fate whereof I know not the end, for though I have all wisdom, all knowledge of the past and much power, together with the gift of life and beauty, the future is as dark to me as night without its moon and stars. "Hearken, this chanced to me. Though it bo to my nhamo 1 tell it you that all may be clear. tt the temple of Isis on the Nile where I ruled, there was a certain priest, a Greek by birth, vowed, likp myself, to the service of the goddess, and, therefore, to wed none hut her, I mean in the splri" He was named Kalllkrates and man of great beauty, such as one ns those old Greeks carved in the statuos of their god Apollo, Never. I think, was a man more beautiful in face and form, though of intelligence intelli-gence he had but little, as often happens to men who have all else, and well-nigh always happens to women, sae myself and perhaps one or two others that history tells ' of. doubtless magnifying their fabled charms. "Now It chanced that the Pharaoh Pha-raoh of that day had a daughter, the Princess of Egypt, a fair woman wo-man in her fashion, though somewhat some-what swarthy, who came to Mm temple to Bpend a moon there communing com-muning with the goddess, or rather with me who held her sceptre, since she knew not the secret bridges whereby alone a few can cross the gulf which lies between us and that Immortal. This Amen-nrtas Amen-nrtas saw the priest Kalllkrates, and becoming enamored of him, as dark women are apt to do of those of a higher and fairer type, cast her net about his foolish senses by such arts as are the heritage even of the humblest of our sex. "Learning of the thing and knowing know-ing It for sacrilege, I sent for the priest and warned him of his danger dan-ger and of the doom which awaited him should he continue in that path. He grow affrighted. He tlung himself upon the ground before be-fore me with groans and supplications, supplica-tions, and kissing my feet vowed to me that his dealings with the royal Amenartas were but a veil and that It was I whom he worshipped. wor-shipped. His unhallowed words filled me with horror, and sternly I bade him bogono and do penance for his crime, saying that I would pray the goddess on behalf of him. Ho wenL lenving me alone, lost in thought in the darkening shrine. "There slep fell on me, and in - imu mil Mm Swwm k'M RM? & i mmmr my sleep I dreamed a dream or saw a vision. For suddenly there stood before me a woman, beauteous beaut-eous as myself, clad in nothing save-a golden girdle and a veil of., gossamer. "'0 Ayosha,' she said In a honeyed voice, 'priestess of Isis of the Egyptian, vowed to the barren bar-ren worship of Isis and fed on the ashes of her unprofitable wisdom, know that I am Aphrodite of the Greeks whom thou didst mock and defy in my shrine at Paphos, and Queen of the breathing world, a.i . Isis is Queen of the world that is dead. Now because thou didst despise de-spise me and pour contempt upon my name, I smite thee with my strength and lay a curse upon thee. It is that thou shalt love and desire this man who but now has kissed thy feet, over lonping till the world's end to V:isfi his Hp3 in payment, although thou art as far above him as the moon thou servest is abovo the Nile. Think not that thou shalt escape my doom, for know that however strong the spirit, here upon th' earth the flesh is stronger still, and of all flesh I nni the queen.' "Then she. laughed softly and smoto me across the eyes with a lock of her scented hair and was gone. "Allan. I awoke from my sleep and a great trouble fell upon me, for I, who had never loved before, was now rent with a rage of love for this man. who. till that moment, mo-ment, had been naught to me but as some beauteous Image of gold and Ivory. I longed for him, mv heart was racked "with jealousy because of the Egyptian who favored fa-vored him; an eating flame possessed pos-sessed my breast 1 grew mad. There in the shrine of Isis the divine I cast myself upon my kneesxand cried to Aphrodite to return and give mo him I sought, for whose sake I would renounce all else, though I must pour my wisdom Into his beauteous cup of emptiness. Yes, thus I prayed and lay upon the ground and wept', until, outworn, once more sleep fell upon me. i "Then in the darkness of the holy place once more there came a dream or vision, since before me In her glory stood the goddess Isle, crowned with the shape of tho young moon .and holding in her hand the jewelled sistrum that ia her symbol, from which came music like to the melody of distant hells. She gazed at mc, and in hei great eyes were scorn and anger. " 'O Ayesha,' she said in her slow and solemn voice, 'Ayesha, whom I. Isis. had' come to look upon rather as a sister than a servant, ser-vant, since In none other of my priestesses was such wisdom to be found, and whom in a day to bo I had purposed to false to tho very pteps of my heavenly throne, thou hast broke thine oath and hero In my shrine itself hast worshipped Aphrodite of the Greek who Is mine enemy. Yeu, In the eternal war hetween the spirit and the flesh, thou 'hast chosen the part of fiesh. Therefore I hate thee and mid my doom to that which Aphrodite Aphro-dite laid upon thee, which, hndst iO 1020. Interna tloDal -' VfBWUIBItg-IT. . thou prayed to me and not to her, I would have lifted from thy heart. This man whom thou hast chosen, who has beauty and no more, thou . . ehaltJpvG as the .Pa thin n said,. """More, thy love shall bring bin blood upon thy hands; nor mayest thou follow him to the grave. For I will show thee the source of life and thou shall drink of It to make thyself more fair even than thou art, 'and thus outpace thy rival, , and when he is dead in a desolate place thou shalt wait In grief and solitude till he be bom again and find thee. Yet shall this be but the beginning of thy sorrows, since through all time thou shalt pursue thy fate till at length thou canst draw up this man to the height on which thino own soul stands by tho ropes of love and loss and suffering. suf-fering. Moreover, through it all thou shalt despise thyself, which is man'o or woman's hardest lol ; thou who having the rare feast of spirit spread out befqre thee, hast chosen lo fill thyself from tho troughs of flesh.' "Now, Allan, In my dream I made a proud answer to the goddess. god-dess. "Mighty mistress of many forms who dost appear in all that lives,' I said, 'hear me! An evil fate- has fallen upon me, but was it I who chose that fate? Can the leaf contend against tho driving gale? Can the falling stone turn upward to the sky, or. when nature draws it, can the tide cease to llow? A goddess whom 1 have offended, of-fended, thaC goddess whose strength causes the "whole world to be, has laid her curse upon me. and because be-cause I have bent before the storm, as bond 1 must or break, another goddess whom I serve, thou thyself. thy-self. 0 Isis, hast added to the curse. Where, then, Is Justice, 0 Lady of the Moon?' " 'Not hero, woman.' she answered. '.Yet far away justice lives and shall bo won at last, and mayhap because thou art so proud and higli-stomachod higli-stomachod It is laid upon thee lo soek her bandaged face through many an ago. Yet at Inst I think thou shalt set thy sins against her weights and find tho balance even. Therefore cease from questioning tho high degrees of destiny, which thou canst not understand, and be content to suffer, remembering that all joy grows from the root of pain. Moreover, know this for thy comfort com-fort that the wisdom which thou hast Bhall grow and gather on thee, and with it thy beauty and thy power; also that at the last thou shalt look upon my face again. In token whereof I leave to thee my symbol, the sistrum that I bear, and with It this command: Follow that false priest of mine wherever he may go to an end that I have appointed, ap-pointed, and If thou lose him there wait while the generations pass till ho return again, for such Is thy doom.' J'Then, O Allan, the vision faded, and when I awoko the lights of dawn played upon the image of the goddess in the sanctuary. They played, moreover, upon the holy jewelled thing that In my dream her hand hnd held, the sistrum of her worship shaped like the loop of life, the magic symbol tha she had Feature Serrlcc, Ine. Great Br rowed to me. wherewith goes her power, which henceforth was mine. "I took It and went out to seek ihe priest. Kallikratc-s, to whom I was bound by passion's lies that are stronger than all the goddesses, in this' wide universe." Horo I, Allan, could contain myself my-self no longer and asked: "'What for?" "By Aphrodite, or by Isis, or both of them I did not know. All I know was that 1 must seek him, then anu evermore, as seek I do to-day and shall purchnnce through cons yet unborn. In any case I found him not, sinco he had fled wjth the Egyptian. I followed, the sistrum being my guide, how it matters not, and giving me the means, and so at last I came to this ancient land whereof the ruin in which you sit once was known as Kor." CHAPTER XIV. Allan Mioses Opportunity. N-OW, all the while that she was talking the Lady or the Queen or the Witoh-woman Ayesha, had been walking up and down tho place from the curtains to the foot of the dais, sweeping me with her scented robes as sht' passed to and fro, and as sho walked she waved her arms as an orator might do to emphasize tho more moving passages of her tale. Now, at the end of It, or what I took to bo tho end, sho stepped on to tho dais and Bank upon the couch as though exhausted, though I think her spirit was wean' rather than her frame. Here she sat a while, brooding, her chin resting on her hands; then suddenly looked up and fixing her glance upon mo, for I could see the flash of it through her thin veil, said: "What think you of this story, O Allan? Do you believe it and have you over heard ltn like?" "Never." I answered with emphasis, em-phasis, "and, of course, I believe every -vrord. Only there are one or two questions that with your leave I could wish to ask, 0 Ayosha," "By which you mean, Allan, thai you believe nothing, being by nature na-ture without faith and doubtful of all that you cannot sec and touoh and handle. Well, out with your questions and I will answer them unloss they bo too long and foolish. Come, I wait." "0 Ayesha." 1 said humbly, "even I who am not learned have heard of those goddesses of whom you speak, of tho Grecian 'Aphrodite who rose from tho sea upon the rshoros of Cyprus and dwelt at Paphos and elsewhere " "Yes. doubtless like most men you have heard of her and perchance per-chance been struck across tho eyes with her hair, like your betters before be-fore you," she Interrupted with sarcasm. sar-casm. "Also." I went on. avoiding argument. argu-ment. "I have heard of Isis of tho Egyptians, Lady of the Moon. Mother of Mysteries, Spouse of Osiris, whose child was Horus the Avenger." "Aye, and I think will hear more i of her before you have done, O Allan, for now something comes Unln Rlclit Bc-erred. back to mc concerning you and her md another I am not the only one vho has broken the oaths of Isis ind received her curse, O Allan, as you may find out. But what of hese heavenly queens?" "Only this. Ayesha; I have been iaught that they were bu,t fables In-rented In-rented by men with many another false divinity, and could have sworn that this was true. And yet you talk of them as real and living, vhlch perplexes me." "Being dull of understanding Joubtless It porplexos you, O Allan. Yet if you had imagination you might understand that these goddesses god-desses are great Principles of Nature, Na-ture, Isis of throned Wisdom and straight virtue, and Aphrodite of Love, as it is known to men and women who, being human, have It laid upon them that they must hand on the torch of Life in their little hour. Also you would know that such principles can seem to take shape and form and at certain ages of the world appear to their Ecrvants clothed in majesty, though perchance to-day others with changed names wield their sceptres and work t.heir will- Now, you are answered on this matter. So to the next." Privately I did not feel as though I were answered at all and I was sure I knew nothing of the kind she indicated, but thinking it best to leave ihe subject, I went on: "If I understood rightly, Ayesha, the unusual and Interesting events which you hayc been pleased to describe to 'me took place when the Pharaohs reigned. Now, no Pharaoh has sat upon the throne of Egypt for near two thousand thou-sand years, for the last of them was a woman whom tho Romans conquered con-quered and drove to death. And yet, Ayesha. you speak as though you had lived all through that gulf of time, or so I gather, and in thl3 there must be some mistake, because be-cause it is impossible, though 1 take it that you mean that the history his-tory of these happenings has come down to j'ou in writings or perhaps per-haps in dreams. "I believe that even in such far-off far-off times there were writers of romance ro-mance and we all know of what stuff dreams are made. At least this thought comes to me," I added hurriedly, "fearing lest 1 had said too muoh, "and one so wise as you are, repeat, knows well that a woman who says she has lived two thousand years must be mad or suffer Trom delusions, because, I repeat, it is impossible." At this quite innocent remark she sprang to her feet In a rage that might truly be called royal in every sense. "Impossible! Romance ! Dreams! Delusions! Mad!" she cried in a ringing voice. "Oh!, of a truth you" weary me and I have a mind to send you where you will learn what is impossible and what is not. Indeed, I would do it, and now, only I need your services, and If I did there would be none left for mo to talk with, since your companion com-panion is moonstruck and the others are but savages of whom I have seen enough. "Hearken, fool. Nothing is impossible. im-possible. Why do you seek, you who talk of the impossible, to girdle gir-dle the great world in the span of your two hands and to weigh the secrets of tho Universe in the balance bal-ance of your petty mind and, of that which you cannot understand, to say that It is not? Life you admit ad-mit becauso you see it all about you, but that It should endure for two thousand years which after all is but a second's beat in the story of tho earth, that to you is 'impossible, 'impos-sible, although in truth the protected pro-tected seed, or tho sealed-up toad an live as long, and doubtless you lave some faith which promises 'ou this same boon to all eternity, uftor the little change called Death. "Doubtless you think it impossible impossi-ble that I should speak with and oarn of you from yonder old black .vizard who dwells in the country whence you came. And yet when-over when-over I will I do so in the night because be-cause ho is in tune with me, and what I do shall bo done by all men In tho years unborn. Yes. they shall talk with each oilier across tho wido spaces of the earth and the lover shall hear her lover's voice although great seas roll between be-tween them. Nor perchance shall it stop at this; perchance in future time men shall hold converse with tho denizens of tho stars, and oven with tho dead who have passed into silence and tho darkness. Do you hear and understand me?" "Yes, yos," I answered feebly. "You lie as you are prone to do. You hoar but you do not understand nor believe, and oh! you vex me sore. Nov I had it In mind to tell you tho secret of this long life of mine, long, mark you, but not endless, end-less, for doubtless I must die and change and return again, like others, oth-ers, and oven to show you how it may be won. But you are not worthy In your faithlessness." "No, no, I am not worthy," I answered, who at that moment did not feel the least desire to live two thousand years, perhaps with this woman as a companion rating me from generation to generation. Yot it is true, and now when I am older and a certain event cannot bo post-posed post-posed much longer, I do often regret re-gret that I neglected to take this unique chance, if In truth there was one, of prolonging an existonco which after all has its consolation especially when one has made one's pile. "So that is done with," she went on with a littlo stamp of indignation, indigna-tion, "as soon you will be also, who, had you not crossed and doubted me, might have lived on for untold time and become one of the mastera ' M of the world, as I am." 1 I , iH Here she paused, choked, I think, lH with her almost childish anger, and ri !H because I could not help it, I said: !H "Such place and power, if they bo )' j jH yours, O Ayesha, do not seem to ' IH bring you much reward. If I -were 'H a master of the world I do not think J iH I should choose to dwell unchnng- ' iH ingly among savages who eat men " ' !H and in a pile of ruins. But perhaps ' , iH tho curses of Aphrodite and of Isis ! are bigger masters still?" "You have more wisdom than I thought," she said reflectively, "who havo come to understand that no one is really lord of anything, i ' since above there is alwavs a i stronger lord who withers ail his , ' pomp and pride to nothingness, ' even as the groat kings learned in i i olden days and I who am higher 1 f than they, am learning now. Hear- ken. Troubles beset me wherein I v ' would hnve your help and that of your companions, for which I will , pay each of you the fee that he de- "The brooding white man who Is it j with you, shall free his daughter , and unharmed; though that he will f be unharmed I do not promise. Tho ' 1 ; black savage captain shal fight his ' ' fill and gain glory that ho seeks, ( also something that he seeks still 1 more. The little yellow ape asks nothing save to be with his master like a dog aud to satisfy at once ' his stomach and .his apish curiosity. ! IH You, Allan, shall see the dead over ' i whom you brood at night, though ' f 'H tho other guerdon that you might i ( 'H have won is now passed from your I' reach because you mock at me in , ' your heart." '' iH "And what must we do to gain ! these things?" I asked. 'V lH "You must make war under my 'V banner and rid mo of my foos. As ' i for why, listen to the end of my , 'lH talc and you shall learn." '. I reflected that it was a marvel- 'IH lous thing that this queen who 1 ''I claimed supernatural powers 1 'jH should need our help in a war, but 'H thinking it wiser to keep my medi- 1 : jH tations to myself, said nothing. As a matter of fact I might as well ' jH have spoken, since as usual she i PH road my thoughts, j ' "You are tnlnking that it is Qtrange, Allan, that I, tho Mighty and Undying, should seek your aid i, ( iH in some petty tribal ibattle. and so . H it would be were my foes but com- ij jH mon savages. But they are more; IIH they arc men protected by the ' ancient god of this immemorial city , jH of Kor, a great god in his day, jH wnoae spirit sun naunts tuese ruins ' , and whose strength still protects fH the worshippers who cling to him , ;l j ;,H and practice his unholy rites of (H human sacrifice?" . .IpH "How was this god named?" I iMiH asked. fill .'iRezu was his name-and from. jH him came the Egyptian Re or Ra." 'H "Ra was the sun, was he not?" I ' IjH asked. , 'H "Aye, and Rozu also was a sun- !H god who from his throne in the fires i ;H of the Lord of Day gave life lo men, H or slow them It he willed with his jj ' jH thunderbolts of drought and pes ) H tilence aud storm. He was no !,H gentle king of heaven, but one who demanded blood-sacrifice from his . jH worshippers, yes, even of maids and .'" lH children. J ;H "So it came about that tho people ',, fM of Kor who saw their virgins slain , I and eaten by the priests of Rezu, 'H aud their infants burned to ashes in . tho fires that his rays lit, turned ' jH 'themselves to the worship of the gentle moon, the goddess whom i they named Lulala, while some of 1 11 them chose Truth for their queen, ''11 since Truth, they said, was greater jjj jlH nnd more to be desired than the J jH fierce Sun-King ortho sweet Moon- s 'jH lady and eat above them both ft lH throned in the furthest stars of ''11 Heaven. Then the demon, Rezu, grow wroth and sent a pestilence upon Kor and its subject lands and - slew their peoples, e-ave thoso who , clung to him in the great apostacy, I 1 IH and with them some others who ! served Lulala and Truth the Divine, , that escaped I know not how." "Did you sec this great pes , 'H tilence?" I asked, much interested. t j "Nay, it befell many a generation l" hofore I came to Kor. One Junie. a priest, wrote a record of it in tho , ! caves yonder where I have my homo ' ' jH and whore is the burying place of i tho countless thousands that it ', slew till none were left to hurl V'll them to tho pit. In my day Kor , JM was -a ruin as it is now, though I'il scattered in the lands about amidst the tumbled stones which once built J , IB her subject cities, a people named ,i j 11 tho Amahagger dwelt in House holds or Tribes and there sacrificed ' men by fire, following the rites of I f the demon Rezu, and devoured J.I them. For these woro the doscend- ants of thoso who escaped tho pes- tilence." " H "What brought you to Kor, O Ayesha?" I asked irrelevantly. i f JM "Have I not Bald that I was led , tH hlthor by the command and the symbol of great Isis whom I servo? V Also," she added after a pause, VM "that I might track down a certain ' pair, one of whom had broken his oaths to her, tempted thereto by ' tM the other." 1,1 H "And did you find them, O , if . fM " Ayesha?" I asked. ! f! 11 "Aye, I found them and in my ' prosenco tho goddess executed hor 1 decree upon hor falso prlost and (j I drove his temptress back to the j world." i "That must have been dreadful ' J n ' VM for you, O Ayesha, sinco I under ! ij IH stood that you liked this prlost," h Sho sprang from her couch with - a low, hissing voice which re- 1 m sombled the sound made by an T IH angry snake and turned my blood t IH cold to hear. 4 To Be Continued Next Sunday. k JM CopjTlsbr, 1920, by Sir H. Blder IIoMrd. " jH A I jr H |