"Ie am glad yu caim, Clarke; verry glad indeed. Ie wos not suer yu cood spair the tym."

"Ie wos aibl tu maik arrainjmnts for a fue days; tthings ar not verry lyvly just now. But hav yu no misgivings, Raymond? Is it absoluotly saif?"

The tu men wr sloaly paissing the terress in front uv Dr. Raymonds houss. The sun stil hung abuv the westrn mountnlyn, but it shoan witth a dul red glo that cast no shadoas, and all the air wos quyet; a sweet bretth caim frum the grait wood on the hilsyd abuv, and witth it, at intervls, the soft mermering call uv the wyld duvs. Belo, in the long luvly valy, the rivr wound in and out between the loanly hils, and, as the sun huvrd and vanishd intu the west, a faint mist, puer whyt, began tu rys frum the hils. Dr. Raymond trnd sharply tu his frend.

"Saif? Uv corss it is. In itself the operaision is a perfectly simpl wun; eny serjn cood du it."

"And thair is no dainjr at eny uthr staij?"

"Nun; absoluotly no fizicl dainjr whotsoevr, Ie giv yu my wrd. Yu ar allways timid, Clarke, allways; but yu no my histry. Ie hav devoatd myself tu transndentl medisn for the last twenty yeers. Ie hav hrd myself calld quak and sharletn and impostr, but all the whyl Ie nue Ie wos on the ryt patth. Fyv yeers ago Ie reechd the gol, and sinss then evry day has bn a preparaision for whot we shal du tonyt."

"Ie shood lyk tu beleev it is all tru." Clarke nit his brows, and lookd doutfully at Dr. Raymond. "Ar yu perfectly suer, Raymond, that yor ttheory is not a fantazmagorea--a splendid vizion, sertnly, but a meer vizion aftr all?"

Dr. Raymond stopd in his wauk and trnd sharply. He wos a midl-aijd man, gaunt and tthin, uv a pail yelo complecsion, but as he ansrd Clarke and faissd him, thair wos a flush on his cheek.

"Look about yu, Clarke. Yu se the mountn, and hil folloing aftr hil, as waiv on waiv, yu se the woods and orchrd, the feelds uv ryp corn, and the medoas reeching tu the reed-beds by the rivr. Yu se me standing heer besyd yu, and heer my voiss; but Ie tel yu that all thees tthings -- yess, frum that star that has just shoan out in the sky tu the solid ground beneetth our feet--Ie say that all thees ar but dreems and shadoas; the shadoas that hyd the reel wrld frum our ies. Thair is a reel wrld, but it is beiond thiss glamr and thiss vizion, beiond thees 'chaises in Arras, dreems in a career,' beiond them all as beiond a vail. Ie du not no whethr eny huemn being has evr liftd that vail; but Ie du no, Clarke, that yu and Ie shal se it liftd thiss verry nyt frum befor anuthrs ies. Yu may tthink thiss all strainj nonsenss; it may be strainj, but it is tru, and the ainsionts nue whot lifting the vail meens. Thay calld it seing the god Pan."

Clarke shivrd; the whyt mist gathering oavr the rivr wos chily.

"It is wundrfl indeed," he sed. "We ar standing on the brink uv a strainj wrld, Raymond, if whot yu say is tru. Ie supoas the nyf is absoluotly nesesery?"

"Yess; a slyt lezion in the gray matr, that is all; a tryfling re-arrainjmnt uv sertn sels, a microscopicl alteraision that wood escaip the atension uv nynty-nyn brain spesialists out uv a hundred. Ie doant want tu bothr yu witth `shop,' Clarke; Ie myt giv yu a mass uv tecnicl detail which wood sound verry impoasing, and wood leev yu as enlytnd as yu ar now. But Ie supoas yu hav red, cazhuely, in out-uv-the-way cornrs uv yor paipr, that imenss stryds hav bn maid reesntly in the fizeolojy uv the brain. Ie saw a parragraf the uthr day about Digbys ttheory, and Browne Fabers discuverees. Theories and discuverees! Whair thay ar standing now, Ie stood fifteen yeers ago, and Ie need not tel yu that Ie hav not bn standing stil for the last fifteen yeers. It wil be enuf if Ie say that fyv yeers ago Ie maid the discuvry that Ie aluoded tu when Ie sed that ten yeers ago Ie reechd the gol. Aftr yeers uv laibr, aftr yeers uv toiling and groaping in the dark, aftr days and nyts uv disapointmnts and sumtyms uv despair, in which Ie uessd now and then tu trembl and gro cold witth the tthaut that prhaps thair wr uthrs seeking for whot Ie saut, at last, aftr so long, a pang uv sudn joy thrild my sol, and Ie nue the long jerny wos at an end. By whot seemd then and stil seems a chanss, the sugjestsion uv a moamnts iedl tthaut folload up upon familier lyns and patths that Ie had trakd a hundred tyms alredy, the grait trutth burst upon me, and Ie saw, mapd out in lyns uv syt, a hol wrld, a sfeer unnoan; continents and ielands, and grait oasions in which no ship has saild (tu my beleef) sinss a Man frst liftd up his ies and beheld the sun, and the stars uv hevn, and the quyet urtth beneetth. Yu wil tthink thiss all hy-floan langwaj, Clarke, but it is hard tu be literel. And yet; Ie du not no whethr whot Ie am hinting at cannot be set fortth in plain and loanly trms. For instenss, thiss wrld uv ours is prity wel gerdd now witth the telegraf wyrs and caibls; tthaut, witth sumtthing less than the speed uv tthaut, flashes frum sunrys tu sunset, frum nortth tu soutth, across the fluds and the dezrt plaisses. Supoas that an electrision uv today wr sudnly tu prseev that he and his frends hav meerly bn playing witth pebls and mistaiking them for the foundaisions uv the wrld; supoas that such a man saw utrmoast spaiss ly oapn befor the kerent, and wrds uv men flash fortth tu the sun and beiond the sun intu the sistms beiond, and the voiss uv articuelit-speeking men eko in the waist void that bounds our tthaut. As analojees go, that is a prity good analojy uv whot Ie hav dun; yu can undrstand now a litl uv whot Ie felt as Ie stood heer wun eavning; it wos a sumr eavning, and the valy lookd much as it dus now; Ie stood heer, and saw befor me the unuterabl, the untthinkabl gulf that yawns profound between tu wrlds, the wrld uv matr and the wrld uv spirit; Ie saw the grait empty deep strech dim befor me, and in that instnt a brij uv lyt leept frum the urtth tu the unnoan shor, and the abiss wos spand. Yu may look in Browne Fabers book, if yu lyk, and yu wil fynd that tu the preznt day men uv syenss ar unaibl tu acount for the preznss, or tu specify the funcsions uv a sertn group uv nrv-sels in the brain. That group is, as it wr, land tu let, a meer waist plaiss for fansifl ttheorees. Ie am not in the pozision uv Browne Faber and the spesialists, Ie am perfectly instructd as tu the posabl funcsions uv thoas nrv-sentrs in the skeem uv tthings. Witth a tuch Ie can bring them intu play, witth a tuch, Ie say, Ie can set fre the kerent, witth a tuch Ie can compleet the comuenicaision between thiss wrld uv senss and -- we shal be aibl tu finish the sentnss laitr on. Yess, the nyf is nesesery; but tthink whot that nyf wil efect. It wil levl uterly the solid wall uv senss, and probably, for the frst tym sinss man wos maid, a spirit wil gais on a spirit-wrld. Clarke, Mary wil se the god Pan!"

"But yu remembr whot yu roat tu me? Ie tthaut it wood be requizit that she--"

He whisprd the rest intu the doctrs ear.

"Not at all, not at all. That is nonsenss. Ie asuer yu. Indeed, it is betr as it is; Ie am quyt sertn uv that."

"Considr the matr wel, Raymond. Its a grait responsibility. Sumtthing myt go rong; yu wood be a mizerabl man for the rest uv yor days."

"No, Ie tthink not, eavn if the wrst hapnd. As yu no, Ie rescued Mary frum the gutr, and frum allmoast sertn starvaision, when she wos a chyld; Ie tthink hr lyf is myn, tu ues as Ie se fit. Cum, its geting lait; we had betr go in."

Dr. Raymond led the way intu the houss, tthru the hall, and doun a long dark passaj. He took a ke frum his poket and oapnd a hevy dor, and moasiond Clarke intu his laboratory. It had wunss bn a bilierd-ruom, and wos lytd by a glass doam in the sentr uv the seeling, whenss thair stil shoan a sad gray lyt on the figuer uv the doctr as he lit a lamp witth a hevy shaid and plaissd it on a taibl in the midl uv the ruom.

Clarke lookd about him. Scairsly a foot uv wall remaind bair; thair wr shelvs all around laidn witth botls and fyls uv all shaips and culrs, and at wun end stood a litl Chippendale bookcaiss. Raymond pointd tu thiss. "Yu se that parchmnt Oswald Crolius? He wos wun uv the frst tu sho me the way, tho Ie doant tthink he evr found it himself. That is a strainj saying uv his: 'In evry grain uv wheet thair lies hidn the sol uv a star.'"

Thair wos not much fernituer in the laboratory. The taibl in the sentr, a stoan slab witth a drain in wun cornr, the tu armchairs on which Raymond and Clarke wr siting; that wos all, exept an od-looking chair at the ferthest end uv the ruom. Clarke lookd at it, and raisd his iebrows.

"Yess, that is the chair," sed Raymond. "We may as wel plaiss it in pozision." He got up and wheeld the chair tu the lyt, and began raising and loering it, leting doun the seet, seting the bak at vaireus angls, and ajusting the foot-rest. It lookd comfrtabl enuf, and Clarke passd his hand oavr the soft green velvet, as the doctr manipuelaitd the levrs.

"Now, Clarke, maik yorself quyt comfrtabl. Ie hav a cupl ours wrk befor me; Ie wos oblyjd tu leev sertn matrs tu the last."

Raymond went tu the stoan slab, and Clarke wachd him dreerily as he bent oavr a ro uv fyls and lit the flaim undr the cruosibl. The doctr had a small hand-lamp, shaidd as the larjr wun, on a lej abuv his aparratus, and Clarke, hu sat in the shadoas, lookd doun at the grait shadaoy ruom, wundring at the bizar efects uv brilient lyt and undefynd darkness contrasting witth wun anuthr. Soon he becaim consius uv an od oadr, at frst the meerest sugjestsion uv oadr, in the ruom, and as it gru mor desydd he felt srpryzd that he wos not remyndd uv the kemists shop or the serjery. Clarke found himself iedly endevring tu analyz the sensaision, and haf consius, he began tu tthink uv a day, fifteen yeers ago, that he had spent roaming tthru the woods and medoas neer his oan hoam. It wos a brning day at the begining uv August, the heet had dimd the outlyns uv all tthings and all distnsses witth a faint mist, and peepl hu obzrvd the tthermometr spoak uv an abnorml rejistr, uv a tempretuer that wos allmoast tropicl. Strainjly that wundrfl hot day uv the fiftees roas up again in Clarkes imajinaision; the senss uv dazling all-prvaiding sunlyt seemd tu blot out the shadoas and the lyts uv the laboratory, and he felt again the heetd air beeting in gusts about his faiss, saw the shimr ryzing frum the trf, and hrd the meeried mermer uv the sumr.

"Ie hoap the smel duznt anoy yu, Clarke; thairs nutthing unholsum about it. It may maik yu a bit sleepy, thats all."

Clarke hrd the wrds quyt distinctly, and nue that Raymond wos speeking tu him, but for the lyf uv him he cood not rous himself frum his letthrjy. He cood oanly tthink uv the loanly wauk he had taikn fifteen yeers ago; it wos his last look at the feelds and woods he had noan sinss he wos a chyld, and now it all stood out in brilient lyt, as a pictuer, befor him. Abuv all thair caim tu his nostrils the sent uv sumr, the smel uv flours mingld, and the oadr uv the woods, uv cool shaidd plaisses, deep in the green deptths, draun fortth by the suns heet; and the sent uv the good urtth, lying as it wr witth arms strechd fortth, and smyling lips, oavrpourd all. His fansees maid him wandr, as he had wandred long ago, frum the feelds intu the wood, traking a litl patth between the shyning undrgroatth uv beech-trees; and the trikl uv wautr droping frum the lymstoan rok soundd as a cleer melody in the dreem. Tthauts began tu go astray and tu mingl witth uthr tthauts; the beech aly wos transformd tu a patth between ielex-trees, and heer and thair a vyn clymd frum bow tu bow, and sent up waiving tendrils and druopd witth perpl graips, and the sparss gray-green leevs uv a wyld olliv-tre stood out against the dark shadoas uv the ielex. Clarke, in the deep folds uv dreem, wos consius that the patth frum his fothrs houss had led him intu an undiscuvrd cuntry, and he wos wundring at the strainjness uv it all, when sudnly, in plaiss uv the hum and mermer uv the sumr, an infinit sylnss seemd tu fall on all tthings, and the wood wos hushd, and for a moamnt in tym he stood faiss tu faiss thair witth a preznss, that wos neethr man nor beest, neethr the living nor the ded, but all tthings mingld, the form uv all tthings but devoid uv all form. And in that moamnt, the sacramnt uv body and sol wos dizollvd, and a voiss seemd tu cry "Let us go henss," and then the darkness uv darkness beiond the stars, the darkness uv evrlasting.

When Clarke woak up witth a start he saw Raymond poring a fue drops uv sum oily fluid intu a green fyl, which he stoprd tytly.

"Yu hav bn doazing," he sed; "the jerny must hav tyrd yu out. It is dun now. Ie am going tu fech Mary; Ie shal be bak in ten minits."

Clarke lay bak in his chair and wundrd. It seemd as if he had but passd frum wun dreem intu anuthr. He haf expectd tu se the walls uv the laboratory melt and disapeer, and tu awaik in London, shudering at his oan sleeping fansees. But at last the dor oapnd, and the doctr retrnd, and behynd him caim a grl uv about sevnteen, dressd all in whyt. She wos so buetifl that Clarke did not wundr at whot the doctr had ritn tu him. She wos blushing now oavr faiss and nek and arms, but Raymond seemd unmuovd.

"Mary," he sed, "the tym has cum. Yu ar quyt fre. Ar yu willing tu trust yorself tu me entyrly?"

"Yess, deer."

"Du yu heer that, Clarke? Yu ar my witness. Heer is the chair, Mary. It is quyt eazy. Just sit in it and leen bak. Ar yu redy?"

"Yess, deer, quyt redy. Giv me a kiss befor yu begin."

The doctr stuopd and kissd hr moutth, kyndly enuf. "Now shut yor ies," he sed. The grl cloasd hr ielids, as if she wr tyrd, and longd for sleep, and Raymond plaissd the green fyl tu hr nostrils. Her faiss gru whyt, whyt than hr dress; she strugld faintly, and then witth the feeling uv submision strong witthin hr, crossd hr arms upon hr brest as a litl chyld about tu say hr prairs. The bryt lyt uv the lamp fel full upon hr, and Clarke wachd chainjs fleeting oavr hr faiss as the chainjs uv the hils when the sumr clouds float across the sun. And then she lay all whyt and stil, and the doctr trnd up wun uv hr ielids. She wos quyt unconsius. Raymond pressd hard on wun uv the levrs and the chair instntly sank bak. Clarke saw him cuting away a sercl, lyk a tonsuer, frum hr hair, and the lamp wos muovd neerer. Raymond took a small glitering instrumnt frum a litl caiss, and Clarke trnd away shuderingly. When he lookd again the doctr wos bynding up the wuond he had maid.

"She wil awaik in fyv minits." Raymond wos stil perfectly cool. "Thair is nutthing mor tu be dun; we can oanly wait."

The minits passd sloaly; thay cood heer a slo, hevy, tiking. thair wos an old clok in the passaj. Clarke felt sik and faint; his nees shook beneetth him, he cood hardly stand.

Sudnly, as thay wachd, thay hrd a long-draun sy, and sudnly did the culr that had vanishd retrnd tu the grls cheeks, and sudnly hr ies oapnd. Clarke quaild befor them. Thay shoan witth an aufl lyt, looking far away, and a grait wundr fel upon hr faiss, and hr hands strechd out as if tu tuch whot wos invizabl; but in an instnt the wundr faidd, and gaiv plaiss tu the moast aufl terrer. The musls uv hr faiss wr hideusly convulssd, she shook frum hed tu foot; the sol seemd strugling and shudering witthin the houss uv flesh. It wos a horrabl syt, and Clarke rushd forwrd, as she fel shreeking tu the flor.

Tthre days laitr Raymond took Clarke tu Marys bedsyd. She wos lying wyd-awaik, roling hr hed frum syd tu syd, and grining vaicntly.

"Yess," sed the doctr, stil quyt cool, "it is a grait pity; she is a hoapless idiot. Howevr, it cood not be helpd; and, aftr all, she has seen the Grait God Pan."