The Ghost of Guir House

"If I am not tiring you," continued Paul, "I should like to call your

attention to another point. You said that nothing was absolute; that

all was relative; and yet when it comes to fixed measures, I think

you must admit that this is not so. For example, a mile is a mile,

and a mile must always be a mile under every conceivable condition.

Am I not right?"

"At first thought it would seem so," answered Ah Ben. "A mile

certainly appears to be an absolute unchanging quantity of so many

feet, which must always and under every circumstance affect us in the

same way; and yet a little reflection will show that this can not be

so, and that a mile, after all, is only fixed so long as our mind is

fixed. In other words, it is a mental conception, and relative to

other mental conceptions. Let us, for example, suppose that the world

and all its contents, and, in fact, the entire universe, were exactly

twice as large as it is, the mile would then be twice as long as it

is now; and that which we now call a mile would only make the

impression of half as much distance as it now does. And so with all

material conditions; I say material, for in the spiritual life we

see these things more truly as they are, and not as they appear.

There is but one class of facts which is absolute. I speak of the

emotions. These are the realities of life--the soul qualities. Could

we measure love, hate, or happiness, the standard would be

fixed."

"Do not forget your promise to show me something more of your power

in the region of occultism," said Henley, "for I am greatly

interested."

"I will keep my word, but I warn you to prepare for a shock!"

"I am ready, and should like nothing better than to witness an

example of your greatest power!"

The old man looked solemn, and then slowly answered: "You shall be gratified. It is now past midnight. Dorothy is asleep,

and it is a fitting time. If you will follow me to my own room, I

will show you a mystery."

For a moment Paul hesitated. The thought of following this strange

man at such an hour into the realm of the unknown, to investigate the

supernatural, was uncanny, and he half wished he had not made the

request. He knew the man to be no trifler. That which he promised, he

would surely perform. Then, procuring a candle, Ah Ben led the way.