more distant ballroom, rose about them in confused babel, as
they tiptoed to the exquisitely carved marble railing and peered down
upon the gorgeous pageant. The ceiling rose far above them, delicately
tinted like a soft Italian sky. The lofty walls dropped, like
gold-gray veils, to the richly carved paneled wainscoting beneath,
which had once lined the halls of a mediaeval castle on the Rhine. The
great windows were hidden behind rare Venetian lace curtains, over
which fell hangings of brocade, repeating the soft tints of the wall
and the brocade-covered chairs and divans ranged close about the sides
of the splendid room. On the floor lay a massive, priceless Persian
carpet, dating from the fifteenth century.

Haynerd drew a long breath, and whistled softly. From the end of the
salon he could mark the short flight of steps which led to the
mezzanine, with its walls heavily tapestried, and broken by rich oak
doors opening into lavatories and lounging rooms, itself widening at
the far end into the grand billiard and smoking parlors, done off in
Circassian walnut, with tables and furniture to harmonize. From the
mezzanine he saw the grand stairway falling away in great, sweeping
curves, all in blended marble from the world's greatest quarries, and
delicately chased and carved into classic designs. Two tapestries,
centuries old, hung from the walls on either side. Far above, the oak
ceiling, for which the _Schwarzwald_ had been ranged, was overlaid
with pure gold leaf. The whole was suffused with the glow of myriad
hidden and inverted lights, reflected in a thousand angles from
burnished gold and marble and rarest gems.

Haynerd turned to the waiting secretary. He groped in the chambers of
his imagery for some superlative adjective to express his emotion
before this colossal display of wealth. But his ample vocabulary had
faded quite. He could only shake his head and give vent to the inept
remark, "Swell--by George!"

The secretary, without replying, motioned them to follow. Passing
noiselessly around the balcony to the opposite side, she indicated a
door below, leading off to the right from the grand salon.

"That room beyond," she said, "is the petit salon. The decorative
effects are by French artists. Beyond that is the morning room. It is
in panels from French chateaux, covered with Gobelin tapestry. Now
from here you can see a bit of the music room. The grand organ cost,
installed, about two hundred thousand doll