Produced by Steven desJardins and the Online Distributed Proofreading Team at https://www.pgdp.net THE BLUE GERM _WORKS BY THE SAME AUTHOR_ LORD RICHARD IN THE PANTRY CUPID GOES NORTH THE SPORTING INSTINCT IN MESOPOTAMIA. (With Illustrations in Colour by the Author.) LONDON: HODDER AND STOUGHTON THE BLUE GERM BY MARTIN SWAYNE HODDER AND STOUGHTON LONDON NEW YORK TORONTO MCMXVIII Printed in Great Britain By Richard Clay & Sons, Limited, BRUNSWICK ST., STAMFORD ST., S.E. 1, AND BUNGAY, SUFFOLK. TO J. E. H. W. CONTENTS CHAP. PAGE I. BLACK MAGIC 1 II. SARAKOFF'S MANIFESTO 5 III. THE BUTTERFLIES 14 IV. THE SIX TUBES 21 V. THE GREAT AQUEDUCT 29 VI. THE ATTITUDE OF MR. THORNDUCK 32 VII. LEONORA 40 VIII. THE BLUE DISEASE 58 IX. THE MAN FROM BIRMINGHAM 67 X. THE ILLNESS OF MR. ANNOT 79 XI. THE RESURRECTION 90 XII. MR. CLUTTERBUCK'S OPINION 101 XIII. THE DEAD IMMORTAL 110 XIV. FIRST IMPRESSIONS OF IMMORTALITY 123 XV. THE TERRIBLE FEAR 132 XVI. THE VISIT OF THE HOME SECRETARY 144 XVII. CLUTTERBUCK'S ODD BEHAVIOUR 156 XVIII. IMMORTAL LOVE 161 XIX. THE MEETING AT THE QUEEN'S HALL 177 XX. THE WAY BACK 188 XXI. JASON 196 XXII. THE FIRST MURDERS 206 XXIII. AT DOWNING STREET 216 XXIV. NIGHT OF AN IMMORTAL 224 XXV. OUR FLIGHT 229 XXVI. ON THE SPANIARD'S WALK 236 XXVII. LEONORA'S VOICE 245 XXVIII. THE KILLING OF DESIRE 252 XXIX. THE REVOLT OF THE YOUNG 260 XXX. THE GREAT SLEEP 273 CHAPTER I BLACK MAGIC I had just finished breakfast, and deeply perplexed had risen from the table in order to get a box of matches to light a cigarette, when my black cat got between my feet and tripped me up. I fell forwards, making a clutch at the table-cloth. My forehead struck the corner of the fender and the last thing I remembered was a crash of falling crockery. Then all became darkness. My parlour-maid found me lying face downwards on the hearth-rug ten minutes later. My cat was sitting near my head, blinking contentedly at the fire. A little blood was oozing from a wound above my left eye.