or a year, up to a hundred years. It is the ideal for which we
strive, and there is no reason why the body should not live one
thousand years as well as one hundred, when vitality becomes more
developed."

I was astonished at the remarks of the sorcerer, and yet I remembered
the case of Adam, Noah, and Methusaleh. I told him that men on the
outer sphere had lived almost one thousand years.

"You may be sure they never practised the austerities of the ascetic
life you have just mentioned. They must have enjoyed life always
turning their faces to the sun."

"I think one hundred years a great step toward immortality," I
remarked.

"At twenty years the body is developed, but even a hundred thousand
years will not develop the soul. Think of the development involved in
having power over disease and death, power to create substantialities
of matter!"

"Do you create matter?" I inquired breathlessly.

"I will show you what we can do," replied the sorcerer; "if you will
follow me."

The sorcerer led the way to seats upon a platform of silver, on which
stood in terrific grandeur the figure of a hehorrent, or dragon of
gold, whose eyes were blazing rubies. He stood before the dragon, at
least twenty feet above the pavement of the palace.

Presently the sorcerer shouted with a loud voice, "My host! my host!"
and at once several thousand twin souls thronged into the immense
temple, dancing with naked feet on the polished aquelium pavement.
Beneath the monster miles of wire were wound in a coil, and to the
wire were attached twenty thousand fine wires of terrelium, each wire
terminating in a terrelium wand. These wires were held one each by
priest and priestess, who began to move in a strange dance on the
pavement and sing an anthem to Harikar. As they moved more and more
rapidly the clamor of bells arose, and explosions of sound, like
bullets rained upon drums, shook the building. In the semi-darkness
the body of the hehorrent seemed to quiver, and, as I gazed, lo! a
shower of blazing jewels issued from its mouth. There were emeralds,
diamonds, sapphires, and rubies flung upon the pavement, scintillating
with fire the colors of the stones themselves!

The sorcerer, waving his terrelium wand, shouted, "Hold! It is
enough!" and the seance was at an end. He received the jewels that had
been collected by his hierophants, and descending, offered me a
splendid ruby as large as a hen's egg. I looked at him with awe, as I
felt