The Washington herald., 1908-05-28
CHAPTER XIV-Continued.

"A thousand million francsl Why, you
can buy all the love in the world with
that All the pleasurel You can'-she
dazzed him with her eyes again-''you
can buy me-Veeda Venestra-me"'-
put her hand to her breast-"who have
the secret OF the Aztec"-she interrupted
herself hastlly-'I mean. who know very
many ways to pleasure But tell you
this: with all your millions. you would
not sit at my table but that your eyes
were not afraid OF mine"
Said the man from South America 10
his companion: The Cobra has mated.
think am disappointed. I should
have liked 10 see a man outstared by that
woman. as you described IT.
And OF all the men who have taken
! the vacant chair, that youth was the
/ least likely-judging by appearances-to
retain e. But perhaps he IS the man she
was waiting for al these mOnths-the
man the jew syndicate aimed at Any
way, you must own there was thrill In
thar dramatic pause when we held our
/ breaths and watched the battle OF the
/ eyes"
/ The two men had finished their dinner
]
cigar boxes and the little liqueur flag
ons: pleasant moment for the man from
South America, a moment which put the
Z finishing touch 10 the sense Of perfection
! ne felt in his surroundings. Perfection
of stage setting. softened lights. enervat-
ing music immediately dressed men,
| subtly dressed women, each a throbbing
note in the sex sonata which vibrated
about him. And who so responsive 20 all
/ tails soft glitter as man who had touch
ed il and lost IL. and through the paths Of
/ the wilderness won his way back 70 IL
again? He had a feeling. too. that men
! Ike himself who had trOdden the wilder
/ ness. were entitled 70 the garden OF per-
. fection. Cor was It not the wealth they
fought for Ia the wilderness which made
the garden a possibility? From every
nugget Of gold they paved out OF the
earth big shaving came TO Paris. The
Jewels and aigrettes did not grow in her
streets. Men like himself had 10 ransack
the earth for them II would take the
toll OF thousands Of men during the day
| TO produce what was consumed here IN
one night. In this one restaurant.
While the man from South America Sc
lected his cigar. and pOndered on these
things his companion was holding a
whispered conference with the waiter
noddlng toward the Cobra and the light
haired youth who sat at her table.
Yes. said the man from South Amer
iea, continuing his thoughts aloud, 1t is
all very wonderful. I am surprised the
world does not add the god Of civilization
to the deities Il worships. I find a pocket
Of dirty clay and discolOred pebble:
among the tangled creepers on a noun
tain side; I wash the pebbles. and give
them to the god OF civilization, and be-
hold. he gives me all this IN exchange,
and he made a gesture which included his
cigar. his liqueur and his surroundings
1T is wonderful
Il viii tell you something more Won
derful That llght-haired youth who sit:
with the Cobra has not even found thC
dirty gold pebbles on the mountain side
Civilization gives him all this free. That {
young Vandraken, the richest young mar
IN America-S2oO, 600 Oc0l No!-let US max,
II as regal as possible thousand mil
lion fruncs, No wonder he conquered IL
the battle Of the eyes! 1 consider tn,
Jew syndicate theory completely proved.
"Circumstantial evidence" said tn,
man from South America, putting laZill
at mis- perfecto But all the same
believe the Cobra found her mate. Their,
was some quality in the young man him
self which was essential 10 her, as wei
as the money There are legends in Cen
trail America Of old temples where thou
sands OF years ago, strange religions.
= kind Of Venus-worship, were practice,
There were high priestesses OF these rite!
= who were adopts In lost mysteries Of sen
suality. What suggested II 20 my mlnC
was the emblem OF the snake-woman
which was its symbol. Was the religion
imported into Egypt from America, o.
l into America from Egypt? II is a verl
interesting problem. The traces are verl
faint. 1t came as the climax to a civili
. zation, that is certain, and went down II
the cataclysm which overwhelmed tina
civilization
Abr said his companion, as he III nj
cigar, you have answered your owl
question about setting up a god Of civil
zation. The world only worships immOr
tai gods and civilization is mortal Wne1
Il grows so large that ii throws shadOv
on the immoTtals, they push it over. Tha
is why there is no god OF civilization"
"Perhaps-yes. I think you are right,
he answered, rather absently. His gaZ
had wandered 20 Veeda and her com
panion Look at the movements Of III
little black head on the long neck, tn
quick, darting movements. You can al
most imagine the flicker OF the forke
tongue. as she leans toward him.
But apropos OF the ancient religion
what is your theory? Has she SLEPT
coiled up under ruined altar, all ties
thousands of years since the day she Jas
celebrated her mysterious rites; and "a
she now wriggle6 out from under Tn
monollth TO revive those ancient mys
teTies-to preside at another climacteri
of civilization? Come. nowl Let Us hay
/ your IDEAS"
"n,ry confne oneself to a single theor
for an unansWerable problem? Whe
there is only a single religion in tn
world II will mean that the problem Z
| this world and the next has been sOlves
! Till then, there viii be many theories
| many religions. Have some more char
! treuseR"
! Thanks, I will. But tell me some {
| your theories 20 account for the recrl
| deseence Of the snake-woman."
! Wei, she may be a reincarnation {
! one Of those priestesses-there's one th'
= ory. She may be simply descendant