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204 I bowed to the mysterious beings, and entered the jewelled room. Maud stood at the threshold still awe-struck, but I beckoned her to come in also. It was truly an unearthly scene. I never realised till now how perfectly and cleverly Aleriel had disguised himself to seem so human.

I looked around me. All was quaint and unearthly, but, for all that, beautiful. Crystals of every tint glittered around and about me in curious and quaint designs. Everything looked different to what we are accustomed to see. It was impossible to conjecture what some things were for, and why they were so made. It was evident that nothing there was earthly, or made by human hands.

"You are cold," said Aleriel. "We can easily warm the car. All the forces of nature are under our command here."

So saying, he touched a metal knob on the side of the vault. In a moment a warm breath seemed pouring down upon us from above. I looked up and saw two of the ornaments in the roof glowing at white heat, apparently under powerful electric action.

There was no seat in the room; but Aleriel took two downy couches and laid them at our feet, bidding us repose there, and, as he did so,