Produced by Anna Hall and the Online Distributed Proofreading Team at http://www.pgdp.net (This file was produced from images generously made available by The Internet Archive) _NEW SIX SHILLING NOVELS._ THE BLUE LAGOON. By H. DE VERE STACPOOLE. EVE'S APPLE. By ALPHONSE COURLANDER. PARADISE COURT. By J. S. FLETCHER. THE TRAITOR'S WIFE. By W. H. WILLIAMSON. MAROZIA. By A. G. HALES. LONDON: T. FISHER UNWIN. THE WOMAN WHO VOWED (THE DEMETRIAN) BY ELLISON HARDING [Illustration] LONDON T. FISHER UNWIN ADELPHI TERRACE MCMVIII CONTENTS CHAPTER PAGE I. A Goddess and a Comic Song 7 II. Harvesting and Harmony 21 III. The Cult of Demeter 37 IV. Anna of Ann 53 V. Iréné 63 VI. Neaera 77 VII. A Tragic Denouement 94 VIII. How the Cult was Founded 101 IX. How It Might be Undermined 119 X. An Unexpected Solution 127 XI. The Plot Thickens 135 XII. Neaera's Idea of Diplomacy 144 XIII. Neaera Makes New Arrangements 150 XIV. "I Consented" 162 XV. The High Priest of Demeter 171 XVI. Anna's Secret 183 XVII. Designs on Anna of Ann 190 XVIII. A Dream 200 XIX. The Legislature Meets 207 XX. On Flavors and Finance 219 XXI. The Investigating Committee 226 XXII. "Treasons, Stratagems, and Spoils" 238 XXIII. A Libel 249 XXIV. Neaera Again 259 XXV. The Libel Investigated 266 XXVI. The Election 285 XXVII. The Joint Session 293 XXVIII. Lydia to the Rescue 302 Conclusion 315 THE DEMETRIAN CHAPTER I A GODDESS AND A COMIC SONG I remember awakening with a start, conscious of a face bending over me that was beautiful and strange. I was quite unable to account for myself, and my surprise was heightened by the singular dress of the woman I saw. It was Greek--not of modern but of ancient Greece. What had happened? Had I been acting in a Greek play and been stunned by an accident to the scenery? No; the grass upon which I was lying was damp, and a sharp twinge between the shoulders told me I had been there already too long. What, then, was the meaning of this classic dress?