Your new science
should teach you, at least, not to gamble against certainties."

He passed out of the room, and Saton returned slowly to where Rachael
was sitting. Her eyes sought his inquiringly. They read the anguish in
his face.

"You are afraid," she muttered.

"I am afraid," he admitted. "Given an inversion of their relative
positions, I feel like Faust befriended by Mephistopheles. I felt it
when he stood by my side on the hilltop, seven years ago. I felt it
when he thrust that money into my hand, and bade me go and see what I
could make of life, bade me go, without a word of kindness, without a
touch of his fingers, without a sentence of encouragement, with no
admonitory words save that one single diatribe against failure. You
know what he told me? 'Go out,' he said,'and try your luck. Go out
along the road which your eyes have watched fading into the mists. But
remember this. For men there is no such thing as failure. One may swim
too far out to sea on a sunny day. One may trifle with a loaded
revolver, or drink in one's sleep the draught from which one does not
awake. But for men, there is no failure.'"

The woman nodded.

"Well," she said harshly, "you remembered that. You did not fail. Who
dares to say that you have failed!"

Saton threw himself into the easy-chair drawn apart from hers. His
head fell forward into his hands. The woman rested her head upon her
fingers, and watched him through the shadows.

CHAPTER XVII

THE GREAT NAUDHEIM

Naudheim had finished his address, and stood talking with his host.

"Do you mind," Saton asked, "if I introduce some of these people to
you? You know many of them by name."

Naudheim shook his head. He was a tall man, with gray, unkempt hair,
and long, wizened face. He wore a black suit of clothes, of ancient
cut, and a stock which had literally belonged to his grandfather.

"No!" he said vigorously. "I will be introduced to no one. Why should
I? I have spoken to them of the things which make life for us. I have
told them my thoughts. What need is there of introduction? I shake
hands with no one. I leave that, and silly speeches, and banquets, to
my enemies, the professors. These are not my ways."

"It shall be as you wish, of course," Saton replied. "You are very
fortunate to be able to live and work alone. Here we have to adapt
ourself in some way to the customs of the people with whom we are
forced to come into daily contact."

Naudheim sudde