blessed, most beautiful in the world!" and the "tap-tap" of horses' feet
on the asphalt, the "b-r-r-r-rp" of the cable cars and the rattle of
elevated trains kept time, until all the city seemed ringing with my joy.

I know it's foolish; if I had been beautiful from my childhood; if I could
have grown up to think of it as a matter of course; if I had been used to
the awe of men and women's envy, I might think less about it, might even
fancy that I would have preferred learning or wealth--for we all love what
we have not. But now--it is so new, so marvellous!

I had plenty of things to think about when I could calm myself. Only
yesterday I'd had a long talk with Prof. Darmstetter.

"The experiment is not yet complete," he declared. He had asked me to stay
for--but that is a part of the secret which is to pass with this record
from me to all women.

"You are beautiful," he said; "mein Gott, yes! More beautiful t'an any
ot'er voman since t'e appearance of man on eart'. But perfectly beautiful?
I do not know; I t'ink not yet. Who can tell for v'at ultimate perfection
Nature destined t'e human body? But we shall see. T'at perfection you
shall reach. In a veek, a mont', t'ree mont's--I cannot tell. Ve must vait
and experiment and still vait, but success is assured--absolute success. I
shall gif it. I do not know if t'e human type is t'e highest t'at eart' is
capable of supporting, but it is t'e highest present type, and it shall be
my vork to gif it t'at for v'ich it has hungered and t'irsted, and towards
v'ich slowly it has groped its vay; it shall be my vork to gif humanity
beauty and perfection."

The light that illumined his yellow, wrinkled face made me cry out:--