The Green Forest tribune., 1917-01-26

That word Nineveh doctor The traGslations read King of Bells slave, and were utterly meaningless. If that is correct-it must be, but the stone was so rubbed none of us could de- cipher it-why, it places the date back to the thirty-fifth century, B. C., in- stead of the twenty-seventh And that explains why the old cuneiform was used by the engraver."
 "Who has this stone?" asked Doctor Immanuel, and we all gripped our seats more tightly at the snarling monosyllable 'I!"
 Why did you not deliver it to the high priest of Marduk ?" the doctor asked.
 ''I did. He would not receive it. shrilled the woman on the sofa. Tn stead, he sent soldiers to arrest me. It is his. He does not know. He"
 Her voice ceased, her eyes were open, and she was clinging desperately round Doctor Immanuels neck and deathly pale She shuddered and quailed as though in intolerable fear; and she would have screamed but that she could not find her voice again. Then she collapsed, dead weight, in the doctors arms, and he placed her in a supine posture upon the sofa.
 Gall your housekeeper and we will help carry her to her room," said Doc tor Immanuel "No,"-for MT. Tarrant was protesting-"it will be all right now The strain was too intense for her; the awakening too sudden, but she will sleep peacefully and, but for lit tie nausea tomorrow, she will be quite herself again. And she will have no recollection of what has occurred"
 T don't want to let the housekeeper know" MT Tarrant answered. Help me, doctor and we will take her up- stairs. Pm glad my wife is not at home tonight" he added grimly. She mightn't approve of this.''
 But MT Tarrant took good care to secure and pocket the amulet before he took Miss Blythe's head and shoul- ders into his arms and led the way out of the library. sat there for three or | four minutes, wondering. 1 could not quite understand just what had oc- | cured.
 The two men came back arguing vio- lently. Doctor ImmanuePs voice rose high and shrill above that of his | friend.
 "She told you the inscription on the stone and set you right some six centu- ries," he cried. What other proof do you want, Tarrant?"
 "Oh, well, it's all rubbish, you know, |" answered the millionaire "Of course, now that I have the amulet, don't want to have the girl sent to jail. But I cant keep thief in my house-now can I, doctor?"
 She need not be thief" Doctor Im- manuel answered. Tt all depends up on you"
 How so? Didn't you yourself tell me that she would steal again?" "Yes. As long as she was looking for the opportunity to restore the lost amulet to the high priest"
 Well, I guess she'll have to go on looking for him." said MT. Tarrant.
 
 | to Babylon and look for the incarna- tion of the old fellow among the desert Bedouin ?"
 "Why, my dear Tarrant, you don suppose you'll find him there, do you?" the doctor asked quizzically. More probably in this city. Do you suppose a man of that intelligence is | T zt herder? The civilization of Babylon passed on to Rome, and thence to Eng | land and America, just as the Hindus became the Egyptians and the Greek republics, the republics of Florence, Genoa and Pisa and Venice in the mid dle ages.
 Now look here, Tarrant," he contin- ued, as they sat down. "here is the sit uation as I size it up. Believe me or not, as you please-it doesn't matter Your Helen Blythe was once the 1 priestess of Ishtar. It wasn't a posi- tion that called for any high intellect; | it was a semi-servile position, in fact | and the priestess was chosen mainly | for her appearance and birth We may suppose that in her former birth she had merited her good fortune by gen. I erous deeds, but, once the reward had | been enjoyed, she sank down to the grade of governess again-or it's equiv alent in the ancient world. She had | the care of this amulet. She was | bound under the most sacrosanct of oaths to deliver it to the priest of Marduk. For some cause she failed | to fulfil her task, and the omission so profoundly affected her that it lay like an incubus on her soul during her next | incarnation. She stole rings, obsessed solely by the desire to discover the | lost amulet again. At last she found | it. She took it to the museum-still in her entranced condition-and was on | the point of placing it with the other half when she was arrested, or, as she rather confusedly interpreted the oc- currence when on the borderline be- tween sleep and waking, the king sent soldiers to arrest her-probably the police and watchmen at the museum. Now, Tarrant, send the half amulet to the museum and you will find it per fectly safe to keep Miss Blythe in your house henceforward."
 Well, said MT. Tarrant, to be frank, have intended to present it to the museum shortly, and after my ex- periences of the past few days I'll fol. low your advice. But as' for keeping her in my employment" GsTrIy n1aadad Immanuel
 Suppose she steals"
 She won't steal any more, when