stately houses, and having in its centre a huge, white granite
obelisk which towered like a pillar of snow against the dense blue
of the sky. Below it a massively sculptured lion, also of white
granite, lay couchant, holding a shield between its paws,--and on
either side two fine fountains were in full play, the delicate
spiral columns of water being dashed up beyond the extreme point
of the obelisk, so that its stone face was wet and glistening with
the tossing rainbow shower.

Here he turned aside out of the main thoroughfare,--there were
tall, shady trees all about, and fantastically carved benches
underneath them, ... he determined to sit down and rest, and
steadily THINK OUT his involved and peculiar condition of mind.

As he passed the sculptured lion, he saw certain words engraved on
the shield it held,--they were ... "THROUGH THE LION AND THE
SERPENT SHALL AL-KYRIS FLOURISH."

There was no disorder in his intelligence concerning this
sentence,--he was able to read it clearly and comprehensively, ...
and yet ... WHAT was the language in which it was written, and how
did he come to know it so thoroughly? ... With a sigh that was
almost a groan, he sank listlessly on a seat, and burying his head
in his hands to shut out all the strange sights which so direfully
perplexed his reason, he began to subject himself to a patient,
serious cross-examination.

In the first place ... WHO WAS HE? Part of the required answer
came readily,--THEOS. Theos what? His brain refused to clear up
this point,--it repeated THEOS--THEOS,--over and over again, but