age! Evil passions are but poor company, in the early
morning.

But was not Salome left him? The only sincerely tender words he had
ever spoken to woman had been said to her: his humblest and happiest
thoughts had been born of their early acquaintance,--before he had
raised his eyes to the proud and languid mistress. Yet on her only did
the evil passions of Manetho wreak themselves in harm and wrong; her
only, on a later day, did he dastardly strike down. Poor Salome had
given him her heart. These walls had seen their meetings.

Years afterwards, Manetho had here embalmed his foster-father:
through long hours had he labored at his hateful task, with curious
zest and conscientiousness. As regarded the strange place of
sepulture, the Egyptian had perhaps imagined a symbolic fitness in
enclosing his human immortal in the empty shell of time. Over this
matter of Hiero Glyphic's death and burial, however, must ever brood a
cloud of mystery. Undoubtedly Manetho loved the man,--but death was
not always the worst of ills in Manetho's philosophy.

The clock had been affixed to the study door both as an additional
concealment, and possibly as a congenial sentry over the interior
associations. Since then the place had become the clergyman's almost
daily resort. Pacing the contracted floor, sitting moodily in the
chair,--many a brooding hour had gone over his barrenly busy head, and
written its darkening record in his book of life. Here had been
schemed that plan of revenge, whose insanity the insane schemer could
not perceive. Nor could he understand that mightier powers than he
could master worked against him, and even used his efforts to bring
forth contrary results.

But not all hours had passed so. Spaces there had been wherein evil
counsels had retired to a cloudy background, athwart which had
brightened a rainbow, intangible, whose source was hidden, but whose
colors were true before his eyes. The grace and aerial beauty of
sunshine lightened through the rain,--the pleasing loveliness of
essential life was projected on the gloom of evil imaginations. For
Manetho's actual deeds were apt to be prompted by far gentler
influences than governed his theories. The man was better than his
mind: and goodness, perhaps, bears an absolute blessing; insomuch that
the sinner, doing ignorant good, yet feels the benefit thereof; just
as the rain, however dismal, cannot prevent the sun from making
rainbows out of it.

On this particul