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The Seeds of Love.
43

wind blew and the rain fell, but the candle burnt on steadily. All at once there was the sound of a hiss like a serpent’s hiss, and in front of Zaire was the ugly figure of a grizzly hag clothed in black. Round her head she wore a crown of twisted living snakes, who moved their heads and spit venom on all sides. In her hand, which was more like a claw than a hand, she carried a staff, round which twined a snake who had seven heads, the first a serpent’s, the second a monkey’s, the third a toad’s, the fourth a vulture’s, the fifth a tiger's, and the sixth and seventh a man’s and a woman’s; and all the heads hissed and chattered and spit and shrieked with anger. About her feet crawled frogs and toads and loathsome reptiles of all sorts, but most hideous of all was her face, for it} was so seamed and wrinkled with rage and anger that it looked more like a fiend’s than a woman’s.

“What do you want with me?” she hissed in a voice that made Zaire tremble. “Speak—what is your wish?”

Then Zaire pointed to the rose-tree, and said, “Tell me how to kill that tree.”

The hag chuckled, and drew from her bosom a

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