Then in answer to my questioning eyes, | Safura. At the end of this time, as I was and perhaps obedient to my will, said walking slowly to my house in the gray suddenly, "Yes, I did love once! Well, dawn after bidding Safura farewell before it can do no harm now if I do tell you. she faded with the moonlight into her Love like that can never trouble us here. shadowy spirit self and disappeared, I felt Yes; I have loved. After I met you in the unaccustomed presence of my strange the lane I could think of no one but you, master, and started suddenly from a deep and when I was dying I seemed to hear reverie as he addressed me. My only your voice calling me back to you as you thought at the time he spoke was of the did that day when I left you, and I felt next night's meeting; and my darling's once more all through me a thrill such as farewell, as she had faded slowly from my I felt when your hand touched mine. I close embrace, still thrilled in my ears. think your voice and touch would have called me back from death itself. But it is too late now; all that is past for us both," she added sadly.

"Why is it too late?" I burst out, unable to restrain myself longer. "Safura, my darling! I have never ceased to love you, cannot you love me still? Because you have left the world must all that is of the world die out of you, and must you be cold and cruel to all left in the world? Come back to me once more. I am no spirit, and warm, living love like mine is strong enough to bring you back to earth and make you live once more. Come, and I will teach you how happy life can be! come!' And as I spoke I felt my whole being rush into one channel and all my energy of will sweep irresistibly down it towards one great and steadfast purpose. I felt the boundless strength of my mighty master urge me on, supporting me and adding a thousandfold to the almost superhuman force I put forth at this the supreme moment of my life.

66

Well, friend," he said, "have I not been better than my word? Now it is your turn to keep your promise to Inglott and to me. Do you know that you have been amusing yourself here a good deal more than two months, and that you have only just time left to reach England to keep your appointment?

"But I am not going," I cried. "I know nothing about Inglott's sister nor her abductors. You must manage to fulfil your promise to him without me. Leave me here in peace."

"This will not do," the being said sternly, "I have your promise and you shall keep it. I have helped you, and you must help me. Your presence when I meet Inglott is absolutely necessary."

I argued and protested, but to no purpose. His will was stronger than mine. I begged for one more meeting with Safura in the old garden, but he was immovable and would not allow it. Being untrammelled by the bonds of the flesh except when I willed her to be otherwise, Gradually a strange change came over she could come to me as well in England her. Her shadowy form grew slowly as in Syria. I must return to England denser, color faintly tinged her lips, her and take up my residence in my old rooms eyes, her hair. By degrees the semblance without delay, otherwise I should be too of life came to her; in her dark eyes a late to help him in giving Inglott his look of tenderness appeared, which deep-revenge. All this the being urged, and I ened and deepened until at last her whole face and figure were lighted up by the divine fires of life and love. My patience was rewarded, my agonizing efforts were successful; her materialization was complete; and with a trembling sigh she nestled in my arms, all warm and living, a true woman, whose soft lips shrunk coyly from mine as I pressed on them the first long ardent kiss of love, while she whispered, "You have brought me back to life, and I am ever all your own!"

CHAPTER IV.

ONE short rapturous week of bliss passed all too quickly by, and I had quite forgotten Inglott, the duty I had undertaken, and all but myself and my love for

had no power to resist. Further, he extracted an unwilling promise from me that I would not summon Safura without receiving his permission to do so; and enjoined on me not to see or speak to Inglott before the appointed night, on penalty of ruining all his hopes.

And so I started for England haunted by visions of the sad face which I knew would look so wistfully for me that night in the dear old garden, where she would miss me for the first time for weeks past. The thought of the sorrowing spirit of the girl wandering through the trees, searching for me in all our favorite nooks, and longing in vain for the power which alone could give back to her the enjoy ment of warm human love, almost forced

me to play traitor to Inglott and to stay in Damascus with my shadowy mistress. But calling to my aid the whole strength of my will, and fortifying myself with the thought that I could summon her to my side in England as easily as I could in Syria, I compelled myself to start for home and by degrees to think of other things. I dared not think too much of Safura for fear of summoning her, and of thus destroying Inglott's happiness.

He turned to Inglott with a sneer which appalled me, and said, "Now, my master, be pleased to lay your commands upon your obedient slave!"

Inglott briefly replied, "Remember your promise. Where is my sister, and where are my enemies?

"Look at me!" said the being, with a laugh as baleful as Mephistopheles's; "do you not recognize me now? I was known throughout Syria as El Akrab" (the scorpion), "in compliment to my amiable qualities," he said, with a vicious grin, "though I am not so bad as I was painted, as your friend here will testify. Stay where you are!" he cried, as Inglott started up from the chair in which he was seated, his face

And now for some days I had ample time to think of Inglott, and I promised myself a very pleasant meeting with him, for I held him in sincere regard and esteem, and was truly rejoiced to think that he would so soon have his sister restored to him and be given an opportunity of aveng-purple with fury; "do not think that the ing himself on those who had injured him so cruelly. My conscience reproached me a good deal for having thought so little about him during the past few weeks, and for having done, so far as I could see, absolutely nothing for him. But I consoled myself by remembering that, after all, I had done everything the master had asked me to do; and that, judging from the complete manner in which he had fulfilled all that he had promised me, he was not likely to fail Inglott.

On the whole, my return journey to England was pleasanter and less disturbed by vain longings after Safura than I had anticipated; and when I entered my rooms on arrival, I remembered with much pleasure that it was the day fixed by the master for our meeting with Inglott. I promised myself with confidence the enjoyment of seeing his happiness, and I determined to obtain my master's permis. sion to see Safura at once, and if he would not give it, I decided I would summon her in defiance of him, as, having fulfilled his covenant with Inglott, my rebellion could do no one any harm.

At last the time arrived for me to go to Inglott's room, as I had been accustomed to do before we separated. There I found him looking anxious and excited, walking restlessly up and down the room. He greeted me cordially, but with a preoccupied manner. We had time only to exchange greetings, when, without warning, the being appeared before us. A look of triumphant hatred gleamed in his stern eyes, and a terrible smile of satisfied revenge lighted up his face. There was such a devilish joy expressed in his whole appearance that my heart sank within me, and my gladness changed to fear and dis

may.

privilege of inflicting the supreme injury on you has fallen to me. Be silent, and do not dare to interrupt me again, or you shall never see your sister. Now, listen! When I was little more than a boy I loved your mother. She was betrothed to me, and would have been my wife but for that dog, your father, who lured away her heart and stole her from me. When I discovered this I swore upon my father's grave that I would be revenged. I have been revenged already in part, but to-night my vengeance will be complete."

His manner as he said these words was so cruel and diabolical, and his face wore an expression of such satanic hatred that my blood curdled with horror. Inglott sat motionless, but the great veins in his forehead seemed near bursting, and his eyes glared with a fury rivalling that of the awful being.

He continued: I planned and led the attack on your father's house. I killed him with my own hand as I would a dog; and I carried off your sister, sparing her for her mother's sake, because I had loved her once; but my hatred of your race was too strong to suffer me to spare her long. I could not bring myself to slay or torture her; so I sold her to the gipsies, trusting they would drag her down to a fate worse than death. You escaped me, and your mother's person was sacred to me for the sake of the love I bore her years be fore."

My heart stood still for a moment when he mentioned the gipsies, and then beat furiously. Could I then, after all, have been doing Inglott service when I was at Damascus? Was it for me to bring back his sister to him, even for a short time, from the grave? But I dismissed the idea in a moment, thinking how improbable it

From The Contemporary Review.

ITS EFFECT UPON TRADE.

BY SIR LYON PLAYFAIR.

the being's speech. For one moment he looked at me with bloodshot eyes, filled THE PROGRESS OF APPLIED SCIENCE IN with reproach and contempt, and then he began to move unsteadily towards Safura, who crouched in one corner of the room in an agony of shame and remorse. But the being held up his hand to forbid his further advance. Inglott turned swiftly upon him with a furious gesture of wild rage and despair; but before he could reach him, he fell to the ground at his feet, the blood streaming from his mouth, and a bitter curse upon his lips.

He never spoke again. As he fell, the malignant being and poor Safura disappeared, this time forever.

on a couch.

PERIODS of depression in manufacturing industries are common in all machineusing countries, generally occurring at the same time and extending over the same periods. During the present century there have been twelve marked periods of depression, short, sharp, and severe in the early part of the century, because then machinery and hand labor were in full periods of depression were at tolerably conflict. From the year 1837 to 1873 the regular distances of ten years. Since 1873 the depression has been persistent, tries in 1879-1882, after which prices with a short cessation for special indusmaintained their abnormally low level. As this prolonged depression has been must have one cause, dominant and unicommon to all machine-using countries it

I gave the alarm, and tried to raise my friend, but he shrank from me with a look of horror in his glazing eyes, and I had no heart to force my unwelcome help upon him. Before medical aid could arrive he was dead, and the hands of a stranger and of his faithless friend laid his lifeless body An inquest was held, and, on the med-versal in its character, sufficient to govern ical evidence, a verdict of death by the visitation of God was returned. I was, of course, examined as the only witness of his seizure, but I had time to prepare some story I forget what - and no mention was made of the being and Safura. I knew that such a tale would not be believed. After the funeral, I went down into the country, but not to my home, for I cannot meet my family.

And here I remain, a broken man; broken in nerve, in spirit, and in health, -waiting for death, which I long for and yet dread, for I know that for me death is but the commencement of punishment even more severe and more awful than I now suffer. Yet, while I linger on earth, I am so haunted by the reproach and contempt conveyed in Inglott's last look; so weighed down by sorrow that my selfish conceit and overbearing passion should have been the instruments by which the accursed being was enabled to strike the deadly blow; so stung by remorse that my sin should have dragged down Safura -whom I loved, and shall ever love, with all the undisciplined strength of a wilful man's heart-from purity and happiness to lasting woe and degradation; and so maddened by the knowledge that my own presumption has placed her forever beyond my reach,- that a hundred times a day I make up my mind to risk the unknown horrors of future punishment, to escape the maddening tortures of my present existence.

And yet, I dare not - I dare not.

the local differences of countries and nationalities, with all their diverse fiscal arrangements. It matters not whether the mained in the enjoyment of peace; whether countries were devastated by war or rethey were isolated by barriers of protec tion, or conducted their industries under free trade; whether they abounded in the raw materials of industry, or had to import them from other lands; under all these varying conditions, the machineusing countries of the world have felt the fifteen years of depression in the same way, although with varying degrees of intensity. During this lengthened period the hand-labor countries were not seriously depressed, though in the later years since 1883 they have suffered in sympathy, because the purchasing power of Europe became lessened and the commodties grown by the hand-labor countries of Asia and Africa were not in demand at the old prices. Thus, comparing the years 1885 and 1886, the prices of exports, as given in the Economist, declined in the latter year 6.34 per cent., whilst prices of imports declined 6.37 per cent. In other words, the prices fell all round, practically the same both as to buying and selling. The machine-using countries have a population of four hundred millions, or if we exclude Russia, which is scarcely a machine-usingcountry, of three hundred millions; while the hand

The marked depressions in the United Kingdom have been in 1803, 1810, 1815, 1818, 1826, 1830, 1837, 1847, 1857, 1866, 1873, 1883.

labor countries contain one thousand mil- | part of the present one there were severe lion people. The depression in the former depressions caused by the rapid applicahas been general and synchronous, so that tion of machinery to industrial employthis universal result must have a universal ments after Watt's improvement in the cause. In a speech which I delivered at steam-engine. The sufferings of the handLiverpool some years ago I formulated laborers were severe, and labor riots, in this cause in the following words: "That which mills were burned and machinery the world has not yet accommodated itself destroyed, showed the acute conflict then to the wonderful changes which science existing between manual labor and mehas produced in the modes of produc- chanical power. Our late depressions have tion and in the exchanges of commerce." been altogether of a different kind. Labor Since that time many writers in political has suffered much less than capital, for, on economy have independently arrived at the whole, there has been a general tenthe same conclusion. Among foreign writ- dency to increase wages. The general iners may be mentioned Dr. Arthur von crease between 1850 and 1883 is 39.18 per Studnitz, of Dresden; Piermez, of Brus- cent. In the United States, a land of sels; Jules Duckerts, of Verviers; Emi! protection, the increase is 28.36 per cent. de Laveleye and Trasenster, of Liège; between 1860-1883. Even when they have Annecke and Engel, of Berlin. In the not increased, the large fall in the prices of United States, Caroll Wright, the com- the necessaries of life has been equivalent missioner of labor, David Wells, and to an increase in wages. But during the Atkinson have written admirable treatises whole of the depression there has been a supporting this view as the cause of the downward competition in prices of comlong depression. It is important that the modities, so that the margin of profit to the reason for this conclusion should be clearly capitalist is now exceedingly narrow. This stated, because, if it be true, all partial fall in prices has been nearly universal, remedies, such as protection, fair trade, bi- though not equal in all countries. The metalism, and the like, can only have local order of the descent is France, Germany, effects, which may benefit or injure partic- Great Britain, and the United States, the ular countries, but can do little to mitigate two last countries being at the bottom of the universal depression. All the great the inclined plane. The fall in prices of countries have had commissions or com- food stuffs has profoundly affected the mittees of their legislatures to inquire into agricultural industry of this country, the causes of the general depression, but, though at the same time it has given as the inquiries have been confined to cheap food to the people. As our largest their own countries, none of them have importations of food are from America, I taken a sufficiently broad view of a univer- give in a foot-note the reductions in sal cause. The committee of Congress price. The reductions in the prices of in the United States has taken evidence food stuffs are far too great to have any upon 286 causes for the depression, and important connection with the slight appoints to the same number of remedies. preciation of gold or the larger depreciaOur own voluminous inquiry in this coun- tion in silver. Countries with a protective try produced a majority and minority re- fiscal system feel the latter less than port, the first being practically that things England, because they have few direct had better be left to themselves, and the dealings with silver-using nations. The second that fair trade (which is nothing volume of trade with hand-labor countries but protection in a domino) is to be our is immense, but their credits are small, salvation. My object in the present arti- and their banking systems are limited. cle is to contend that there are only two The raw materials which they growcauses of the universal depression, viz: such as tea, coffee, sugar, rice, hemp, wool, cotton, spices, indigo, and dye-wood - are shut out or hampered by duties in protected countries, so this produce naturally gravitates to England as a land of free ports.

I. That the improvements in machinery, by new inventions, have produced great changes in the quickness and economy of distribution of commodities, and have profoundly altered the whole system of com

merce.

2. That the improvements of machinery used in production have increased the supply of commodities beyond the immediate demands of the world, and have too rapidly displaced the old forms of labor.

At the end of last century and in the early

During the continuance of the long depression both wages and the prices of

The following are the percentage reductions of prices in the United States between 1881 and 1886: Mess pork, 48%; lard, 46; hams, 24%; oats, 394; Indian corn, 43; butter, 47; tallow, 41; flour. 34; cattle, 183.