The Democratic advocate. [volume] (Westminster, Md.) 1865-1972, 1891-11-07

street. 10 the right OF this another door
stood ajar, throwing a squirt of yellow light
across the passage. "Come in here - said
the attendant shortly
Vausittart Smith hesitated He had
hoped that he had come to the end of his
adventure. Yet his curiosity was strong
within him. He could not leave the mat
ter unsolved, so he followed his strange
companion into the lighted chamber.
1t was small room, such as is devoted
to coincerge. A wood fire sparkled in
the CRATE. At one side stood a truckle-
bed, and at the other coarse wooden
chair, with round-table in the centre,
which bore the remains ofa meal. As the
visitors eye glanced round he could not but
remark with an ever recurring thrill that
all the small details of the room were Of
the most quaint design and antique work
manship. The candlesticks, the vases upon
the chimney-piece, the fire-rions, the orna-
ments upon the walls, were all such as he
had been wont to associate with the remote
past. The gnarled, heavy-eyed man, sat
himself down upon the edge of the bed and
motioned his guest into the chair.
"There may be design in this" he said;
still speaking excellent English. at may
be decreed that I should leave some ac-
count behind as a warning to all rash NOR
tails who would set their wits up against
workings of nature. | leave it with you.
Make such use as you will of it. speak
TO you now with my feet upon he thresh-
old of the other world
81 am, as you surmised, an Egyptian
not one of the down-trodden race of slaves
who now inhabit the delta of the Nile, but
a survivor of that tiercer and harder peo-
pie who tanned the Hebrew, drove the
Ethiopian back into the southern deserts,
and built those mighty works which have
been the envy and the wonder of all after
generations. 1t was in the reign of Tuth-
mosis, sixteen hundred years before the
birth of Christ, that first saw the light.
You shrink away from me- Wait, and
you will see that | am more to be pittied
than to be feared.
"My name was Sosra, My father had
been the chief priest of Osiris in the great
temple of Abaris, which stood in those
days upon the Bubastic branch of the
Nile. was brought up in the temple, and
was trained in all those mystic arts which
are spoken of in your own Bible. [ was
an apt pupil Before | was sixteen | had
learned all which the wisest priest could
teach me. From that time ON | studied
natures secrets for myself and shared my
knowledge with no man.
"Of all the questions which attracted
me there were none over which | labored
so long as over those which concern them
selves with the nature of life. | probed
deeply into the vital principle The aim
of medicine had been to drive away disease
when it appeared 1t seemed to me that
method might be devised which should so
fortify the body as to prevent weakness or
death from ever taking hold of it. 1t is
useless that | should recount my research
es. You would scarce comprehend them
if / did. They were carried out partly
upon animals, partly upon slaves, and partly
on myself. Suffice it that the result was
to furnish me with substance which. when
! injected into the blood, would endow the
body with strength to resist the effects of
time of violence, or of disease 1t would
not indeed confer Immortality, but its po-
tency would endure for many thousands of
years. | used it upon cat and afterwards
drugged the creature with the most deadly
poisons. That cat is alive in Lower Egypt
at the present moment There was moth
ing of mystery or magic in the matter. 1t
was simply chemical discovery, which
may well be made again.
Love of life runs high in the young
1t seemed to me that [ had broken away
from all human care now that | had abol-
ished pain and driven death to such a
distance. With light heart poured the
accursed stuff into my veins Then l
looked round for some one whom could
benefit. There was young priest of
Thoth, Parmes by name, who had won my
good will by his earnest nature and his
devotion to his studies. To him | whis-
pered my secret, and at his request in
ected him with my elixir | should now.
| reflected, never be without a companion
of the same age as myself.
After this grand discovery | relaxed
my studies to some extent, but Parmes con-
tinued his with redoubled energy. Every
day | could see him working with Lis
TASKS and his distilIer in the Temple of
Thoth, but he said little to me as to the
result of his labors. For my own part |
used to walk through the city and look
around me with exultation as | reflected
that all this was destined to pass away and
that only | should remain, The people
would bow to me as they passed me, for
the fame of my knowledge had gone
| abroad.
There was war at this time, and the
Great King had sent down his soldiers to
the eastern boundary to drive away the
HyskOs. A governor, too, was sent to
Abaris, that he might hold it for the King.
| had heard much of the beauty of the
daughter Of this governor, but one day as
| walked out with Parmes we met her
borne upon the shoulders of her slaves. |
was struck with love as with lightning.
My heart went out from me. could
have thrown myself beneath the feet of
of her bearers. This was my woman. Life
without her was impossible. swore by
the head of Horus that she should be mine
sWOTe II 10 the priest OF lhoth. lie
turned away from me with brow which
was as black as midnight
There is no need to tell you of our WOO
ing. She came to love me even as loved
her. 1t seems that Parmes had seen her
before did, and had shown her that he
too loved her, but could smile at his pas
sion, for knew that her heart was mine.
The white plague had come upon the city,
and many were stricken, but | laid my
hands upon the sick and nursed them with
out fear or seattle. She marvelled at my
daring. Then | told her my secret and
begged her that she would let me use my
art upon her.
"Your flower shall then be unwithered
Atma," l said. "0ther things may pass
away, but you and l, and our great love