to which this fabulous head was such an exquisite adjunct. Though I beheld it only from behind, I saw that the waist was slender, the hips generous, and the buttocks altogether matchless enough to put the snowy slopes of any volcano to shame. The whole enchanting figure was sheathed in a long, crisp dress of apricot-coloured silk which swept to the floor. My aesthetic senses, roused by the proportions of the face, were overtaken by my carnal ones and I resolved to approach this beauty at whatever cost.
All the while, Bengtsohn was talking in his cranky way, mistaking the subject of my absorption, â⦠this beautiful view was never touched by human hands â¦â
âGlad I am to hear you say it.â
âThe exciting effect of fire and snow in conjunction â¦â
âOh, yes, and that conjunction â¦â
âYet this is but an imitation of an imitation â¦â
âNo, that I canât believe! This is the real thing at last.â
âYou flatter me, but the zahnoscope can be made to capture the real thing, to go straight to life rather than art â¦â
I put the slide down. The vision was preparing to leave the gallery; I might never see her again and my happiness would never be complete.
âYou must excuse me, Maestro â I do have more preference for life than for art, just as you do. You must manage your affairs and I mine ââ
Seeing I was making to go, he grasped my arm.
âListen, please, young man. Iâm offering you work and money. All-People canât be mistaken. You have not work or money. I want to do a new thing with the zahnoscope. I want to mercurize â thatâs how I call it â I want to mercurize a whole story on slides, using real actors, not just paintings. It will be a dazzling new success, it will be revolutionary â and you can take prominently part in it. Now, come into the workshop and let me explain properly all.â
âIâve just seen a friend â whoâs the fair creature at the far end of the gallery?â
He answered sharply. âThatâs Armida Hoytola, daughter of the gallery-owner, a difficult, flighty girl. Sheâs a parasite, a class enemy. Donât waste your time ââ
âA thousand thanks for the meal, but I cannot work for you. All-People looked at the wrong constellation. There is other work more fitting â¦â
I bowed to him and left. He drew himself up, folding his arms over his ancient coat, with the funniest expression on his face.
At the far end of the gallery, beyond the counter, was a doorway into a coffee lounge. My fair creature was making her way through it with a friend. No chaperons that I could see. The friend was about the same age as â Armida? â Armida! â and striking too in her own way, a plump girl with chestnut ringlets. On an ordinary day she would certainly have attracted oneâs attention; her only fault was to be caught with the divine Armida. They made a pretty pair as they moved into the lounge, although I had eyes for only one of them.
Pausing in the doorway, I wondered whether to appear tragic or cheerful; the poverty of my clothes decided me on the latter course.
The two of them were settling at a nearby table. As Armida sat back, our eyes met. Streams of animal magnetism poured across the room. On impulse, holding her gaze, I went forward, seized one of the empty chairs at her table, and said, âLadiesâ â but I addressed myself only to her â âI see in your faces such human warmth that I venture uninvited to thrust my company upon you. I desperately need counsel and, since we are total strangers to each other, you can give me impartial advice at a time when my whole life is in crisis.â
There was hauteur in their manner directly I started speaking. As they looked at each other, I saw that the companion with the brown hair was quite a beauty, by no means as elegantly slender