m out."

"This, at least, is bright and weighty," exclaimed the student, as the old
man displayed the sword of sharpness.

"In truth a doughty weapon," returned the treasurer, "if wielded by a
stronger arm than thine, for it will no longer fly in the air and smite
off heads of its own accord, since the new blade hath been fitted to the
new hilt."

After a hasty inspection of the empty frame of a magic mirror, and a
fragment of the original setting of Solomon's seal, the youth's eye lighted
upon a volume full of mysterious characters.

"Whose book is this?" he inquired. "Heavens, it is Michael Scott's!"

"Even so," returned the venerable man, "and its spells have lost nothing of
their efficacy. But the last leaf, containing the formula for dismissing
spirits after they have been summoned from the nether world, hath been
removed by me. Inattention to this circumstance hath caused several most
respectable magicians to be torn in pieces, and hath notably increased the
number of demons at large."

"Thou old villain!" shouted the exasperated youth, "is this the way in
which the treasures in thy custody are protected by thee? Deemest thou that
I will brook being thus cheated of my dear-bought talisman? Nay, but I will
deprive thee of thine. Give me that lock of hair."

"O good youth," supplicated the now terrified and humbled old man, "bereave
me not of the source of all my power. Think, only think of the
consequences!"

"I will not think," roared the youth. "Deliver it to me, or I'll rend it
from thy head with my own hands."

With a heavy sigh, Time clipped the lock from his brow and handed it to the
youth, who quitted the place unmolested by any of the monsters.

Entering the great city, the student made his way by narrow and winding
streets until, after a considerable delay, he emerged into a large public
square. It was crowded with people, gazing intently at the afternoon sky,
and the air was rife with a confused murmur of altercations and
exclamations.

"It is." "No, I tell you, it is impossible." "It cannot be." "I see it
move." "No, it's only my eyes are dazzled." "Who could have believed it?"
"Whatever will happen next?"

Following the gaze of the people, the youth discovered that the object of
their attention was the sun, in whose aspect, however, he could discover
nothing unusual.

"No," a man by him was saying, "it positively has not moved for an hour. I
have my instruments by me. I cannot possibly