probes them to the core, and discovers all their weaknesses; . . she
has no trust in virtue, no belief in honesty. And she is right!
Who but a madman would be honest in these days of competition and
greed of gain? And as for virtue, 'tis a pretty icicle that melts
at the first touch of a hot temptation! Aye! the Virgin Priestess
of Nagaya hath a most profound comprehension of mankind's
immeasurable brute stupidity; and, strong in this knowledge, she
governs the multitude with iron will, intellectual force, and
dictative firmness: . . when she dies I know not what will happen."

Here he interrupted himself, and a dark shadow crossed his brows.
"By my soul!" he muttered, "how this thought of death haunts me
like the unburied corpse of a slain foe! I would there were no
such thing as Death; 'tis a cruel and wanton sport of the gods to
give us life at all if life must end so utterly and so soon!"

He sighed deeply. Theos echoed the sigh, but answered nothing. At
that moment the restless Aizif gave another appalling roar, and
pounced swiftly toward the eastern side of the pavilion, where a
large painted panel could be dimly discerned, the subject of the
painting being a hideous idol, whose long, half-shut, inscrutable
eyes leered through the surrounding foliage with an expression of
hateful cunning and malevolence. In front of this panel the
tigress lay down, licking the pavement thirstily from time to time
and giving vent to short purring sounds of impatience: . . then all
suddenly she rose with ears pricked, in an attitude of attention.
The panel slowly moved, it glided back,--and the great brute
leaped forward, flinging her two soft paws on the shoulders of the
figure that appeared--the figure of a woman, who, clad in
glistening gold from head to foot, shone in the dark aperture like