me as attractive. In truth, so
far as I was concerned, the matter had an academic rather than an actual
interest, such as we take in a fairy tale, since I did not believe that
I should ever put on this kind of immortality. Nor, I may add, now as
before, was I at all certain that I wished to do so.

These plans of Ayesha's were far reaching and indeed terrific.
Her acquaintance with the modern world, its political and social
developments, was still strictly limited; for if she had the power to
follow its growth and activities, certainly it was one of which she made
no use.

In practice her knowledge seemed to be confined to what she had gathered
during the few brief talks which took place between us upon this subject
in past time at Kor. Now her thirst for information proved insatiable,
although it is true that ours was scarcely up to date, seeing that ever
since we lost touch with the civilized peoples, namely, for the last
fifteen years or so, we had been as much buried as she was herself.

Still we were able to describe to her the condition of the nations and
their affairs as they were at the period when we bade them farewell,
and, more or less incorrectly, to draw maps of the various countries and
their boundaries, over which she pondered long.

The Chinese were the people in whom she proved to be most interested,
perhaps because she was acquainted with the Mongolian type, and like
ourselves, understood a good many of their dialects. Also she had a
motive for her studies, which one night she revealed to us in the most
matter-of-fact fashion.

Those who have read the first part of her history, which I left in
England to be published, may remember that when we found her at Kor,
_She_ horrified us by expressing a determination to possess herself of
Great Britain, for the simple reason that we belonged to that country.
Now, however, like her powers, her ideas had grown, for she purposed to
make Leo the absolute monarch of the world. In vain did he assure her
most earnestly that he desired no such empire. She merely laughed at him
and said--"If I arise amidst the Peoples, I must rule the Peoples, for
how can Ayesha take a second place among mortal men? And thou, my Leo,
rulest me, yes, mark the truth, thou art my master! Therefore it is
plain that thou wilt be the master of this earth, aye, and perchance of
others which do not yet appear, for of these also I know something, and,
I think, can reach them if I will, th