DEDICATION
MyDearLittle,Somefive—and—thirtyyearsagoitwasourcustomtodiscussmanymatters,amongthem,Ithink,thehistoryandromanceofthevanishedEmpiresofCentralAmerica。
Inmemoryofthosefar—offdayswillyouacceptatalethatdealswithoneofthem,thatofthemarvellousIncasofPeru;withthelegendalsothat,longbeforetheSpanishConquerorsenteredontheirmissionofrobberyandruin,thereinthatundiscoveredlandlivedanddiedaWhiteGodrisenfromthesea？
Eversincerelyyours,H。RiderHaggard。
Ditchingham,Oct。24,1921。
JamesStanleyLittle,Esq。
THEVIRGINOFTHESUN
INTRODUCTORY
Therearesomewhofindgreatinterest,andevenconsolation,amidtheworriesandanxietiesoflifeinthecollectionofrelicsofthepast,driftorlong—sunktreasuresthattheseaoftimehaswashedupuponourmodernshore。
Thegreatcollectorsarenotofthisclass。Havinglargesumsattheirdisposal,theseacquireanyraritythatcomesuponthemarketandaddittotheirstorewhichinduecourse,perhapsimmediatelyupontheirdeaths,alsowillbeputuponthemarketandpasstothepossessionofotherconnoisseurs。Norarethedealerswhobuytosellagainandthusgrowwealthy。Noraretheagentsofmuseumsinmanylands,whopurchaseforthenationalbenefitthingsthataregatheredtogetherincertaingreatpublicbuildingswhichperhaps,someday,thoughthethoughtmakesoneshiver,willbelootedorgiventotheflamesbyenemiesorbyfurious,thievingmobs。
ThosethatthisEditorhasinmind,fromoneofwhomindeedheobtainedthehistoryprintedinthesepages,belongtoaquitedifferentcategory,menofsmallmeansoften,whocollectoldthings,forthemostpartatout—of—the—waysalesorprivately,becausetheylovethem,andsometimessellthemagainbecausetheymust。Frequentlytheseoldthingsappeal,notbecauseofanyintrinsicvaluethattheymayhave,notevenfortheirbeauty,fortheymaybequiteunattractiveeventothecultivatedeye,butratherfortheirassociations。Suchfolklovetoreflectuponandtospeculateaboutthelong—deadindividualswhohaveownedtherelics,whohavesuppedtheirsoupfromthewornElizabethanspoon,whohavesatatthericketyoaktablefoundinakitchenoranout—house,oruponthebroken,ancientchair。Theylovetothinkofthelittlechildrenwhoseskilful,tiredhandswroughtthefadedsamplerandwhosebrighteyessmartedoveritsinnumerablestitches。
Who,forinstance,wastheMayShore（\"Fairy\"broideredinabracketunderneath,washerpetname）,whofinishedyonderelaborateexampleonhertenthbirthday,the1stofMay——doubtlessthatiswhereshegothername——intheyear1702,andonwhatfarshoredoesshekeepherbirthdaysnow？Nonewilleverknow。Shehasvanishedintothegreatseaofmysterywhenceshecame,andthereshelivesandhasherbeing,forgottenuponearth,orsleepsandsleepsandsleeps。Didshedieyoungorold,marriedorsingle？Didsheeverset/her/childrentoworkothersamplers,orhadshenone？wasshehappyorunhappy,wasshehomelyorbeautiful？Wassheasinnerorasaint？Againnonewilleverknow。Shewasbornonthe1stofMay,1692,andcertainlyshediedonsomedateunrecorded。Sofarashumanknowledgegoesthatisallherhistory,justasmuchoraslittleaswillbeleftofmostofuswhobreatheto—daywhenthisearthhascompletedtwohundredandeighteenmorerevolutionsroundthesun。
Butthekindofcollectoralludedtocanbestbeexemplifiedintheindividualinstanceofhimfromwhomthemanuscriptwasobtained,ofwhichasomewhatmodernizedversionisprintedonthesepages。Hehasbeendeadsomeyears,leavingnokin;andunderhiswill,suchofhismotleytreasuresasitcaredtoacceptwenttoalocalmuseum,whiletherestandhisotherpropertyweresoldforthebenefitofamysticalbrotherhood,fortheoldfellowwasakindofspiritualist。
Therefore,thereisnoharmingivinghisplebeianname,whichwasPotts。Mr。Pottshadasmalldraper\'sshopinanundistinguishedandrarelyvisitedcountrytownintheeastofEngland,whichshopheranwiththehelpofanassistantalmostasoldandpeculiarashimself。
Whetherhemadeanythingoutofitorwhetherheliveduponprivatemeansisnowunknownanddoesnotmatter。Anyway,whentherewassomethingofantiquarianinterestorvaluetobebought,generallyhehadthemoneytopayforit,thoughattimes,inordertodoso,hewasforcedtosellsomethingelse。Indeedtheseweretheonlyoccasionswhenitwaspossibletopurchaseanything,indifferenthosieryexcepted,fromMr。Potts。
Now,I,theEditor,whoalsoloveoldthings,andtowhomthereforeMr。Pottswasasympatheticsoul,wasawareofthisfactandenteredintoanarrangementwiththepeculiarassistanttowhomIhavealluded,toadvisemeofsuchcriseswhicharosewheneverthelocalbankcalledMr。Potts\'sattentiontothestateofhisaccount。ThusitcameaboutthatonedayIreceivedthefollowingletter:——
Sir,TheGuv\'norhasgoneabustuponsomecrackedchina,theugliestthateverIsawthoughnojudge。Soifyouwanttogetthatoldtallclockatthefirstpriceoranyotherofhisrubbish,Ithinknowisyourchance。Anyhow,keepthisdarkasperagreement。
Yourobedient,Tom。
（HealwayssignedhimselfTom,Isupposetomystify,althoughI
believehisrealnamewasBetterly。）
Theresultofthisepistlewasalonganddisagreeablebicyclerideinwetautumnweather,andavisittotheshopofMr。Potts。Tom,aliasBetterly,whowastryingtosellsomemysteriousundergarmentstoafatoldwoman,caughtsightofme,theEditoraforesaid,andwinked。
InashadowedcorneroftheshopsatMr。Pottshimselfuponahighstool,awizenedlittleoldmanwithabentback,abaldhead,andahookednoseuponwhichweresetapairofenormoushorn—rimmedspectaclesthataccentuatedhisgeneralresemblancetoanowlperchedupontheedgeofitsnest—hole。Hewasbusilyengagedindoingnothing,andinstaringintonothingnessas,accordingtoTom,washishabitwhencommuningwithwhathe,Tom,calledhis\"drattedspeerits。\"
\"Customer！\"saidTominaharshvoice。\"Sorrytodisturbyouatyourprayers,Guv\'nor,butnothavingtwopairofhandsIcan\'tserveacrowd,\"meaningtheoldwomanoftheundergarmentsandmyself。
Mr。Pottsslidoffhisstoolandpreparedforaction。Whenhesaw,however,whothecustomerwashebristled——thatistheonlywordforit。Thetruthisthatalthoughbetweenustherewasaninwardandspiritualsympathy,therewasalsoanoutwardandvisiblehostility。
TwiceIhadoutbidMr。Pottsatalocalauctionforarticleswhichhedesired。Moreover,afterthefashionofeverygoodcollectorhefeltittobehisdutytohatemeasanothercollector。Lastly,severaltimesIhadofferedhimsmallersumsforantiquesuponwhichhesetacertainmonetaryvalue。ItistruethatlongagoIhadgivenupthisbargainingforthereasonthatMr。Pottswouldnevertakelessthanheasked。IndeedhefollowedtheexampleofthevendoroftheSibyllinebooksinancientRome。Hedidnotdestroythegoodsindeedafterthefashionofthatpersonanddemandthepriceofallofthemfortheonethatremained,butinvariablyheputuphisfigureby10percent。andnothingwouldinducehimtotakeoffonefarthing。
\"Whatdo/you/want,sir？\"hesaidgrumpily。\"Vests,hose,collars,orsocks？\"
\"Oh,socks,Ithink,\"Irepliedathazard,thinkingthattheywouldbeeasiesttocarry,whereuponMr。Pottsproducedsomepeculiarlyobjectionableandshapelesswoollenarticleswhichhealmostthrewatme,sayingthattheywereallhehadinstock。NowIdetestwoollensocksandneverwearthem。Still,Imadeapurchase,thinkingwithsympathyofmyoldgardenerwhosefeettheywouldsoonbescratching,andwhiletheparcelwasbeingtiedup,saidinaninsinuatingvoice,\"Anythingfreshupstairs,Mr。Potts？\"
\"No,sir,\"heansweredshortly,\"atleast,notmuch,andiftherewerewhat\'stheuseofshowingthemtoyouafterthebusinessaboutthatclock？\"
\"Itwas？5youwantedforit,Mr。Potts？\"Iasked。
\"No,sir,itwas？7andnowit\'s10percent。ontothat;youcanworkoutthesumforyourself。\"
\"Well,let\'shaveanotherlookatit,Mr。Potts,\"Irepliedhumbly,whereonwithagruntandamutteredinjunctiontoTomtomindtheshop,heledthewayupstairs。
NowthehouseinwhichMr。Pottsdwelthadoncebeenofconsiderablepretensionsandwasvery,veryold,Elizabethan,Ishouldthink,althoughithadbeenrefrontedwithahorriblestuccotosuitmoderntastes。Theoakstaircasewasgoodthoughnarrow,andledtonumeroussmallroomsupontwofloorsabove,someofwhichroomswerepanelledandhadoakbeams,nowwhitewashedlikethepanelling——atleasttheyhadoncebeenwhitewashed,probablyinthelastgeneration。
Theseroomswereliterallycrammedwitheverysortofoldfurniture,mostofitdecrepit,thoughformanyofthearticlesdealerswouldhavegivenagoodprice。ButatdealersMr。Pottsdrewtheline;notoneofthemhadeversetafootuponthatoakenstair。Totheatticstheplacewasfilledwiththisfurnitureandotherarticlessuchasbooks,china,samplerswiththeglassbroken,andIknownotwhatbesides,piledinheapsuponthefloor。IndeedwhereMr。Pottssleptwasamystery;eitheritmusthavebeenunderthecounterinhisshop,orperhapsatnightsheinhabitedaworm—eatenJacobeanbedsteadwhichstoodinanattic,forIobservedakindofpathwaytoitrunningthroughanumberofleglesschairs,alsosomedirtyblanketsbetweenthemoth—riddledcurtains。
Notfarfromthisbedstead,proppedinanintoxicatedwayagainsttheslopingwalloftheoldhouse,stoodtheclockwhichIdesired。Itwasoneofthefirst\"regulator\"clockswithawoodenpendulum,usedbythemakerhimselftocheckthetime—keepingofallhisotherclocks,andenclosedinachasteandperfectmahoganycaseoftheverybeststyleofitsperiod。Sobeautifulwasit,indeed,thatithadbeenaninstanceof\"loveatfirstsight\"betweenus,andalthoughtherewasanestrangementonthematterofsettlements,orinotherwordsoverthequestionofprice,nowIfeltthatnevermorecouldthatclockandIbeparted。
SoIagreedtogiveoldPottsthe？0or,tobeaccurate,？814s。
whichheaskedonthe10percent。riseprinciple,thankfulinmyheartthathehadnotmadeitmore,andpreparedtogo。AsIturned,however,myeyefelluponalargechestofthealmostindestructibleyellowcypresswoodofwhichweremade,itissaid,thedoorsofSt。
Peter\'satRomethatstoodforeighthundredyearsand,foraughtI
know,arestillstanding,asgoodasonthedaywhentheywereputup。
\"Marriagecoffer,\"saidPotts,answeringmyunspokenquestion。
\"Italian,about1600？\"Isuggested。
\"Maybeso,orperhapsDutchmadebyItalianartists;butolderthanthat,forsomebodyhasburnt1597onthelidwithahotiron。Notforsale,notforsaleatall,muchtoogoodtosell。Justyoulookinsideit,theoldkeyistiedtothespringlock。Neversawsuchpoker—workinmylife。GodsandgoddessesandIdon\'tknowwhat;andVenussittinginthemiddleinawreathofflowerswithnothingon,andholdingtwoheartsinherhands,whichshowsthatitwasamarriagechest。Onceitwasfullofsomebride\'soutfit,sheetsandlinenandclothes,andGodknowswhat。Iwonderwhereshehasgottoto—day。
Someplacewherethemothdon\'teatclothes,Ihope。Boughtitatthebreak—upofanancientfamilywhofledtoNorfolkontherevocationoftheEdictofNantes——Huguenot,ofcourse。Yearsago,yearsago！
Haven\'tlookedintoitformanyyears,indeed,butthinkthere\'snothingtherebutrubbishnow。\"
Thushemumbledonwhilehefoundanduntiedtheoldkey。Thespringlockhadgrownstifffromdisuseandwantofoil,butatlengthitturnedandreopenedthechestrevealingthepoker—workgloriesontheinnersideofthelidandelsewhere。Gloriestheywereindeed,neverhadIseensuchartistryofthesort。
\"Can\'tseeitproperly,\"mutteredPotts,\"windowswantwashing,haven\'tbeendonesincemywifedied,andthat\'stwentyyearsago。
Missherverymuch,ofcourse,butthankGodthere\'snospring—
cleaningnow。ThethingsI\'veseenbrokeninspring—cleaning！yes,andlost,too。ItwasafteroneofthemthatItoldmywifethatnowI
understoodwhytheMahomedansdeclarethatwomenhavenosouls。WhenshecametounderstandwhatImeant,whichittookheralongtimetodo,wehadarow,aregularrow,andshethrewaDresdenfigureatmyhead。LuckilyIcaughtit,havingbeenacricketerwhenyoung。Well,she\'sgonenow,andnodoubtheaven\'satidierplacethanitusedtobe——thatis,iftheywillstandherrummagingsthere,whichIdoubt。
LookatthatVenus,ain\'tsheabeauty？MighthavebeendonebyTitianwhenhispaintsranout,andhehadtotaketoahotirontoexpresshisart。What,youcan\'tseeherwell？WaitabitandI\'llgetalantern。Can\'thaveanakedcandlehere——thingstoovaluable;nomoneycouldbuythemagain。MywifeandIhadanotherrowaboutnakedcandles,oritmayhavebeenaparaffinlamp。Yousitinthatoldprayer—stoolandlookatthework。\"
OffhewentcrawlingdowntheduskystairsandleavingmewonderingwhatMrs。Potts,ofwhomnowIheardforthefirsttime,couldhavebeenlike。Anaggravatingwoman,Ifeltsure,foruponwhateverpointsmendiffer,asto\"spring—cleaning\"theyareallofonemind。Nodoubthewasbetterwithouther,forwhatdidthatdried—upoldartistwantwithawife？
DismissingMrs。Pottsfrommymind,which,totellthetruth,seemedtohavenoroomforhershadowyandhypotheticalentity,Ifelltoexaminingthechest。Oh！itwaslovely。Intwominutestheclockwasdeposedandthatchestbecamethesultanainmyseraglioofbeauteousthings。Theclockhadonlybeenthelightloveofanhour。Herewastheeternalqueen,thatis,unlessthereexistedastillbetterchestsomewhereelse,andIshouldhappentofindit。Meanwhile,whateverpricethatoldslave—dealerPottswantedforit,mustbepaidtohimevenifIhadtooverdrawmysomewhatslenderaccount。Seraglios,ofwhateversort,itmustberemembered,areexpensiveluxuriesoftherichindeed,though,ifofantiques,theycanbesoldagain,whichcannotbesaidofthehumankindforwhowantstobuyalotofantiquefrumps？
Therewereplentyofthingsinthechest,suchassomeoddsandendsoftapestryandoldclothesofaQueenAnnecharacter,puthere,nodoubt,forpreservation,asmothdoesnotlikethiscypresswood。Alsothereweresomebooksandamysteriousbundletiedupinacuriousshawlwithstripesofcolourrunningthroughit。Thatbundleexcitedme,andIdrewthefringesoftheshawlapartandlookedin。SofarasIcouldseeitcontainedanotherdressofrichcolours,alsoathickpacketofwhatlookedlikeparchment,badlypreparedandmuchrottedupononesideasthoughbydamp,whichparchmentappearedtobecoveredwithfaintblack—letterwriting,donebysomecarelessscribewithpoorinkthathadfadedverymuch。Therewereotherthings,too,withintheshawl,suchasaboxmadeofsomeredforeignwood,butI
hadnottimetoinvestigatefurtherforjustthenIheardoldPotts\'sfootuponthestair,andthoughtitbesttoreplacethebundle。Hearrivedwiththelanternandbyitslightweexaminedthechestandthepokerwork。
\"Verynice,\"Isaid,\"verynice,thoughagooddealknockedabout。\"
\"Yes,sir,\"herepliedwithsarcasm,\"Isupposeyou\'dliketoseeitneatandnewafterfourhundredyearsofwear,andifso,IthinkI
cantellyouwhereyoucangetonetoyourliking。Imadethedesignsforitmyselffiveyearsagoforafellowwhowantedtolearnhowtomanufactureantiques。He\'sinquodnowandhisantiquesareforsalecheap。IhelpedtoputhimtheretogethimoutofthewayasadangertoSociety。\"
\"What\'stheprice？\"Iaskedwithairydetachment。
\"Haven\'tItoldyouitain\'tforsale。WaittillI\'mdeadandcomeandbuyitatmyauction。No,youwon\'t,though,forit\'sgoingsomewhereelse。\"
ImadenoanswerbutcontinuedmyexaminationwhilePottstookhisseatontheprayer—stoolandseemedtogooffintooneofhisfitsofabstraction。
\"Well,\"IsaidatlengthwhendecencytoldmethatIcouldremainnolonger,\"ifyouwon\'tsellit\'snousemylooking。Nodoubtyouwanttokeepitforaricherman,andofcourseyouarequiteright。Willyouarrangewiththecarrieraboutsendingtheclock,Mr。Potts,andI
willletyouhaveacheque。NowImustbeoff,asI\'vetenmilestorideanditwillbedarkinanhour。\"
\"Stopwhereyouare,\"saidPottsinahollowvoice。\"What\'sarideinthedarkcomparedwithamatterlikethis,evenifyouhaven\'talampandgethauledbeforeyourownbench？Stopwhereyouare,I\'mlisteningtosomething。\"
SoIstoppedandbegantofillmypipe。
\"Putthatpipeaway,\"saidPotts,comingoutofhisreverie,\"pipesmeanmatches;nomatcheshere。\"
Iobeyed,andhewentonthinkingtillatlastwhatbetweenthechestandtheworm—eatenJacobeanbedandoldPottsontheprayer—stool,I
begantofeelasifIwerebeingmesmerized。Atlengthheroseandsaidinthesamehollowvoice:
\"Youngman,youmayhavethatchest,andthepriceis？0。Nowforheaven\'ssakedon\'tofferme？0,oritwillbe？00beforeyouleavethisroom。\"
\"Withthecontents？\"Isaidcasually。
\"Yes,withthecontents。It\'sthecontentsI\'mtoldyouaretohave。\"
\"Lookhere,Potts,\"Isaid,exasperated,\"whatthedevildoyoumean？
There\'snooneinthisroomexceptyouandme,sowhocanhavetoldyouanythingunlessitwasoldTomdownstairs。\"
\"Tom,\"hesaidwithunutterablesarcasm,\"Tom！Perhapsyoumeanthemawkinthatwasputuptoscarebirdsfromthepeasinthegarden,forithasmoreinitsheadthanTom。Noonehere？Oh！whatfoolssomemenare。Why,theplaceisthickwiththem。\"
\"Thickwithwhom？\"
\"Who？why,ghosts,ofcourse,asyouwouldcalltheminyourignorance。SpiritsofthedeadInamethem。Beautifulenough,too,someofthem。Lookatthatonethere,\"andheliftedthelanternandpointedtoapileofoldbedpostsofChippendaledesign。
\"Goodday,Potts,\"Isaidhastily。
\"Stopwhereyouare,\"repeatedPotts。\"Youdon\'tbelievemeyet,butwhenyouareasoldasIamyouwillremembermywordsandbelieve——
morethanIdoandsee——clearerthanIdo,becauseit\'sinyoursoul,yes,theseedisinyoursoul,thoughasyetitischokedbytheworld,theflesh,andthedevil。Waittillyoursinshavebroughtyoutrouble;waittillthefiresoftroublehaveburnedthefleshaway;
waittillyouhavesoughtLightandfoundLightandliveinLight,thenyouwillbelieve;/then/youwillsee。\"
Allthishesaidverysolemnly,andstandingthereinthatduskyroomsurroundedbythewreckofthingsthatoncehadbeendeartodeadmenandwomen,wavingthelanterninhishandandstaring——atwhatwashestaring？——reallyoldPottslookedmostimpressive。Histwistedshapeanduglycountenancebecamespiritual;hewasonewhohad\"foundLightandlivedinLight。\"
\"Youwon\'tbelieveme,\"hewenton,\"butIpassontoyouwhatawomanhasbeentellingme。She\'saqueersortofwoman;Ineversawherlikebefore,aforeigneranddark—huedwithstrangerichgarmentsandsomethingonherhead。There,that,/that/,\"andhepointedthroughthedirtywindow—placetothecrescentofayoungmoonwhichappearedinthesky。\"Afinefigureofawoman,\"hewenton,\"andoh！heaven,whateyes——Ineversawsucheyesbefore。Bigandtender,somethinglikethoseofthedeerintheparkyonder。Proud,too,sheis,onewhohasruled,andalady,thoughforeign。Well,Ineverfellinlovebefore,butIfeellikeitnow,andsowouldyou,youngman,ifyoucouldseeher,andsoIthinkdidsomeoneelseinhisday。\"
\"Whatdidshesaytoyou？\"Iasked,forbynowIwasinterestedenough。Whowouldn\'tbewhenoldPottstooktodescribingbeautifulwomen？
\"It\'salittledifficulttotellyouforshespokeinastrangetongue,andIhadtotranslateitinmyhead,asitwere。Butthisisthegistofit。Thatyouweretohavethatchestandwhatwasinit。
There\'sawritingthere,shesays,orpartofawritingforsomehasgone——rottedaway。Youaretoreadthatwritingortogetitreadandtoprintitsothattheworldmayreaditalso。Shesaidthat\'Hubert\'
wishesyoutodoso。IamsurethenamewasHubert,thoughshealsospokeofhimwithsomeothertitlewhichIdonotunderstand。That\'sallIcanremember,exceptsomethingaboutacity,yes,aCityofGoldandalastgreatbattleinwhichHubertfell,coveredwithgloryandconquering。Iunderstoodthatshewantedtotalkaboutthatbecauseitisn\'tinthewriting,butyouinterruptedandofcourseshe\'sgone。
Yes,thepriceis？0andnotafarthingless,butyoucanpayitwhenyoulikeforIknowyou\'reashonestasmost,andwhetheryoupayitornot,youmusthavethatchestandwhat\'sinitandnooneelse。\"
\"Allright,\"Isaid,\"butdon\'ttrustittothecarrier。I\'llsendacartforitto—morrowmorning。Lockitnowandgivemethekey。\"
Induecoursethechestarrived,andIexaminedthebundlefortheothercontentsdonotmatter,althoughsomeofthemwereinteresting。
PinnedinsidetheshawlIfoundapaper,undatedandunsigned,butwhichfromthecharacterandstyleofthewritingwas,Ishouldsay,pennedbyaladyaboutsixtyyearsago。Itranthus:——
\"Mylatefather,whowassuchagreattravellerinhisyoungdaysandsofondofexploringstrangeplaces,broughtthesethingshomefromoneofhisjourneysbeforehismarriage,IthinkfromSouthAmerica。Hetoldmeoncethatthedresswasfounduponthebodyofawomaninatombandthatshemusthavebeenagreatlady,forshewassurroundedbyanumberofotherwomen,perhapsherservantswhowerebroughttobeburiedwithherherewhentheydied。Theywereallseatedaboutastonetableattheendofwhichweretheremainsofaman。Myfathersawthebodiesneartheruinsofsomeforestcity,inthetomboverwhichwasheapedagreatmoundofearth。Thatofthelady,whichhadakindofshroudmadeoftheskinsoflong—wooledsheepwrappedaboutitasthoughtopreservethedressbeneath,hadbeenembalmedinsomeway,whichthenativesoftheplace,whereveritwas,toldhimshowedthatshewasroyal。Theothersweremereskeletons,heldtogetherbytheskin,butthemanhadalongfairbeardandhairstillhangingtohisskull,andbyhissidewasagreatcross—hiltedswordthatcrumbledtofragmentswhenitwastouched,exceptthehiltandtheknobofamberuponitwhichhadturnedalmostblackwithage。I
thinkmyfathersaidthatthepacketofskinsorparchmentofwhichtheundersideisbadlyrottedwithdampwassetunderthefeetoftheman。Hetoldmethathegavethosewhofoundthetombagreatdealofmoneyforthedress,goldornaments,andemeraldnecklace,asnothingsoperfecthadbeenfoundbefore,andtheclothisallworkedwithgoldthread。Myfathertoldme,too,thathedidnotwishthethingstobesold。\"
Thiswastheendofthewriting。
HavingreaditIexaminedthedress。ItwasofasortthatIhadneverseenbefore,thoughexpertstowhomIhaveshownitsaythatitiscertainlySouthAmericanofaveryearlydate,andliketheornaments,probablypre—IncaPeruvian。ItisfullofrichcolourssuchasIhaveseeninoldIndianshawlswhichgiveageneraleffectofcrimson。Thiscrimsonrobeclearlywaswornoveraskirtoflinenthathadapurpleborder。IntheboxthatIhavespokenofweretheornaments,allofplaindullgold:awaist—band;acircletofgoldfortheheadfromwhichrosethecrescentoftheyoungmoonandanecklaceofemeralds,uncutstonesnowmuchflawed,forwhatreasonIdonotknow,butpolishedandsetratherroughlyinredgold。Alsothereweretworings。Roundoneoftheseabitofpaperwaswrappeduponwhichwaswritten,inanotherhand,probablythatofthefatherofthewriterofthememorandum:——
\"Takenfromthefirstfingeroftherighthandofalady\'smummywhichIamsorry,inourcircumstances,itwasquiteimpossibletocarryaway。\"
Thisringisabroadbandofgoldwithaflatbezeluponwhichsomethingwasonceengravedthatowingtolongandhardwearnowcannotbedistinguished。Inshort,itappearstobeasignetofoldEuropeanmakebutofwhatageandfromwhatcountryitisimpossibletodetermine。Theotherringwasinasmallleatherypouch,elaboratelyembroideredingoldthreadorverythinwire,whichI
supposewaspartofthelady\'scostume。Itislikeaverymassiveweddingring,butsixoreighttimesasthick,andengravedalloverwithanembossedconventionaldesignofwhatlooklikestarswithraysroundthem,orpossiblypetalledflowers。Lastlytherewasthesword—
hilt,ofwhichpresently。
Suchwerethetrinkets,ifsotheymaybecalled。Theyareoflittlevalueintrinsicallyexceptfortheirweightingold,because,asI
havesaid,theemeraldsareflawedasthoughtheyhavebeenthroughafireorsomeotherunknowncause。Moreover,thereisaboutthemnothingofthegraceandcharmofancientEgyptianjewellery;
evidentlytheybelongedtoaruderageandcivilization。Yettheyhad,andstillhave,tomyimagining,acertaindignityoftheirown。
Also——hereIbecameinfectedwiththespiritofthepeculiarPotts——
withoutdoubtthesethingswererichinhumanassociations。Whohadwornthatdressofcrimsonwiththecrossesworkedonitingoldwire（theycannothavebeenChristiancrosses）,andthepurple—borderedskirtunderneath,andtheemeraldnecklaceandthegoldencircletfromwhichrosethecrescentoftheyoungmoon？Apparentlyamummyinatomb,themummyofsomelong—deadladyofastrangeandalienrace。
WasshesuchaoneasthatoldlunaticPottshaddreamedhesawstandingbeforehiminthefilthy,cumberedupper—chamberofaruinoushouseinanEnglandmarkettown,Iwondered,onewithgreateyesliketothoseofadoeandaregalbearing？
No,thatwasnonsense。Pottshadlivedwithshadowsuntilhebelievedinshadowsthatcameoutofhisownimaginationandintoitreturnedagain。Still,shewasawomanofsomesort,andapparentlyshehadaloverorahusband,amanwithagreatfairbeard。Howatthisdate,whichmusthavebeenremote,didagolden—beardedmancometoforegatherwithawomanwhoworesuchrobesandornamentsasthese？
Andthatswordhilt,wornsmoothbyhandlingandwithanamberknob？
Whencecameit？Tomymind——thiswasbeforeexpertexaminationconfirmedmyview——itlookedveryNorse。IhadreadtheSagasandI
rememberedatalerecoveredinthemofsomeboldNorsemenwhoabouttheyearseightorninehundredhadwanderedtothecoastofwhatisknownnowtobeAmerica——IthinkacertainEricwastheircaptain。
