swells from the deep, all life there promising to him dominion.
Intangible and inarticulate the vision spins; and through it all he
knows, he feels, that beneath his palm lies the cold white hand of the
fairest of the sea-brood; he perceives dimly a motionless figure seated,
and the hand not in his clasps her knee, and the eyes look away, and the
hair drifts wide. Then to his ears through the great murmurs comes her
voice, soft and low and very clear, but as though it has come from a
great way off: 'Lay your hand upon my breast--set your lips to mine--give
up your soul.'

'Christ! Christ! ah, Lord Christ!'

Diadyomene's hand lay free. Christian stared at his palm to find that it
had not come away bleeding. His lips were grey as ashes; he shook like a
reed. With haggard eyes he regarded the serene visage where a smile
dreamed, where absent eyes did not acknowledge that she had verily
spoken. Virtue was so gone from him that he was afraid, of her, of the
sun. He dropped to his knees for escape.

When he lifted his head, it was to solitude and long shadows. Her feet
bruised his heart as he tracked the signs of her going; for they had
approached him, and then retired; they had gone toward the sea, and
half-way altered back by two paces; they had finished their course to the
gorge and again turned; there they had worked the sand. A little folly!
Enacted it was a large frenzy.

Yet he took not a single pearl away.

Heavily drove the night, heavily drove the day over Christian,
comfortless, downcast, blank. Was her going with anger and scorn divided
by pity? or with stately diffidence? adorable, rendering him most
condemnable.

The dredge rose and swung in to great sighs of labour. Black coral!

In choice branches hard from the core, all rarity was there; delicate
pink and cream, scarce green, and the incomparable black. Precious--oh!
too precious for the mart--this draught was no luck, he knew, but a gift
direct from Diadyomene; a goodwill token of her generous excuse sent for
his solace. Fair shone love in the sky, and the taste of the day grew
sweet. No scruple could hold out against this happy fortune.

When the black coral was sighted by Giles from the quay, he raised such a
shout as gathered an eager knot. In a moment one flung up a hand, palm
outwards, to display the doubled thumb. Every hand copied. Christian saw
and went hot with anger, too plainly expressed in his dangerous eyes. Yet
would he have little lik