e stones, and the old man,
who had drawn a little nearer, and looked at him with a strange smile.
And again he pointed to the stone; and Gilbert looked again and saw
the cloud work very swiftly and part, and the man who swept the clouds
off came forth for an instant, and then was lost to view.

And Gilbert saw a very dark place, with something long and white,
that glimmered faintly, lying in the midst; and he bent down to look
at it, but could not discern what it was. Then he saw in the darkness
which surrounded the glimmering thing some small threads of dusky
white, and some small round things; and he looked at them long; and
presently discerned that the round things were pebbles, and that the
white threads were like the roots of trees; and then he perceived that
he was looking into the earth; and then with a sickly chill of fear he
saw that the long and glimmering thing was indeed the body of a man,
wrapped in grave-clothes from head to foot. And he could now
distinguish--for it grew more distinct--the sides of a coffin about
it, and some worms that moved to and fro in their dark burrows; but
the corpse seemed to shine with a faint light of its own--and then he
could see the wasted feet, and the thin legs and arms of the body
within; the hands were folded over the breast; and then he looked at
the face; and he saw his own face, only greatly sunk and fallen, with
a bandage that tied up the chin, and leaden eyes; and then the clouds
swept in upon it; and he came to himself like a drowning man, and saw
that he was in the same place; and his first thought was a thrill of
joy to know that he was alive; but then he groaned aloud, and he saw
the old man stand beside him with a very terrible look upon his face,
holding out his hand for the stone in silence; so Gilbert gave him
back the stone, and then with a fierce anger said, "Why have you shown
me this? for this is the trickery of hell." And the old man looked at
him very sternly and said, "Why then did you come to this place? You
were not called hither, and they that pry must be punished. A man who
pulls open the door which leads from the present into the future must
not be vexed if he sees the truth--and now, sir," he added very
angrily, "depart hence in haste; you have seen what you have seen." So
Gilbert went slowly from the circle, and very heavily, and as he
stepped outside he looked back. But there was nothing there but the
turf and the grey stones.

Gilbert went s