Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1909-03-20

but the old witch-wtfe, Nya, sat waiting
and watched them.
to herself. as she gazed at the slumbering
Rachel. for to her who Is so pure and
good, and who has suffered such cruel
wrong. the guardians would not lie.
Think that I understand and that can
find a path. Sleep on. sweet maiden.
sleep on in hope"
Then she looked at Mole and shook her
IT do not understand" she muttered.
1.-THE black tree shaped like the tree Of
seated beneath 1t. The tree that went
up in fire. and the maid Of the old blood
left alone with the ghost of it while the
dwarf people few into light and freedom.
What does it mean? All: That picture in
the bowl! Now can guess. Those who
dare much for love- 1t did. not say for
love of man. and woman can love woman.
But would she dare a deed that none
Of our race could even dream? Well. the
Zulu blood Is bold Perhaps, perhaps
Oh! Edo. thou black sorcerer whittier
art thou leading the children of the tree ?
On thy head be ii. Edo, not on mine, on
thy head forever and forever"
When Rachel awOke. refreshed. on the
following day, she lay while thinking.
Every detail Of her vision was perfectly
clear in her mind. only now she was sure
that ii had been but dream. Yet what
a wonderful dream? How, even i'm her
=
conceive circumstances so inconceivable?
That magic rush beyond the stars: that
mighty world set round with black cliffs
against which rolled the waves of space;
that changeful. wondrous world which
unfolded itself petal by petal like rose.
every petal lovelier and different from
the last; that gray hall rooted with tilted
precipices:. and then those dead, those
multitudes OF the dead!
What power had been born in her that
she could imagine such things as these?
Vision she had, like her mother. but not
after this sort. Perhaps 1t was but an
aftermath Of her madness. for into the
minds of the mad creep strange sights
and sounds. and this place. and the people
among whom she sojourned. the ghost
people. the gray dwarf people, the deal
ers in dreams. the dwellers in the somber
forest. might well open new doors in such
a soul as hers. Or perhaps she was still
mad. She did not know, she did not
greatly care. All she knew was that her
poor heart ached with love for man who
was dead, and yet whom she could not
wished to die, but now she longed for
death no more, fearing lest after all there
should be something in that vision which
the magic of Nya had summoned up. and
that when she reached the further shore
she might not find him who dwelt in a
different world. Oh! If only she could
find him. then she would be glad enough
to go wherever 1t was that he had gone
they talked together.
I'VE must have dreamt dreams, Mole =
she said. Perhaps the mother mingled
some drug with our food"
Il do not know, Zoola." answered Mole.
''but if so want no more of those dreams
which bode no good to me. Besides. who
tell what is dream and what is
truth? Mayhap this world is the dream
and the truth is such things as we saw
last night" and she would say no more
on the matter.
Nothing happened within the Wall that
day. that is. nothing out of the common.
A certain number of the privileged. priestly
caste of the dwarfs were carried or con-
Quoted into the holy place. and up to the
Fence of Death that they might die
there and certain number were
brought out for burial. Some of those
who came in were folk weary of life or
in other words, suicides. and these
walked. and some were sick of various
diseases, and these were carried. But
the end was the same, they always died.
though whether this result was really
brought about by some poison distilled
from the tree, as Nya alleged. or
whether it was the effect of a physical
collapse induced by that inherited belief,
Rachel never discovered
At least they died, some almost at
once. and some within a day or two of
entering that deadly shade. and were
borne away to burial by the mutes who
spent their spare time in the digging of
niue graves Whlch tney must HI. IN
deed. these mutes either knew or pre-
tended that they knew, who would be
the occupant Of each grave. Al least
they intimated by signs that this was
revealed to them In their bowls and
when the victims appeared within the
Wall, took pleasure in leading them 20
the holes they had prepared and show
ing to them with what care these had
been dug to suit their stature. For this
service they received a fee that sucn
r,onrit,lfn,l brought with then,
either of finely woven robes or of mats
or of different sorts of food. or soElc-
times of gold and copper rings manu-
featured by the Imkulu or other sub
iect saVages which they wore upon
their wrists and ankles.
Certain OF these doomed folk. how