"It is thought," he said, "to be a cabalistic formula, imprecations taken from a Greek poet …"
"Which poet?"
"I am not very well up in them."
"Theocritus."
"Theocritus perhaps."
Through the glass I could make out distinctly a group of four letters:
K H P H
"That doesn't spell a name," said my friend.
"I pointed out to him that in Greek it is the equivalent of:
K E R E
And I gave him back the stone. He looked at it long in a dazed manner and then put it on to his finger.
"Come," he said briskly. "Come."
"Where are you going?"
"Towards the Madeleine. And you?"
"I? Where am I going? Parbleu! I am going to Gaulot's to see a horse which he refuses to buy until I have looked at it. For, as you know, I am an authority on horses and something of a veterinary surgeon to boot. I may describe myself also as a furniture broker, an upholsterer, an architect, a
