Peter  Schlemihl,  being  in  reduced  cir-
cumstances, encounters  a  mysterious  g^ray
man,  to  whom  he  surrenders  his  shadow
in  return  for  Fortunatus's  purse.  His
boundless  wealth,  however,  brings  him
little  satisfaction,  as  people  regard  his
shadowless  estate  with  aversion  and  hor-
ror.  He  is  constrained  to  shun  even  the
moonlight,  and  passes  most  of  his  time
in  forced  seclusion.  Finally  his  unpopu-
larity drives  him  from  the  town,  and  he
takes  up  his  residence  in  a  remote  spot.
Here,  by  means  of  the  greatest  caution,
his  secret  remains  for  a  time  unguessed;
and  on  account  of  his  wealth  and  liber-
ality he  is  regarded  as  a  nobleman.  He
finds  his  g^reatest  satisfaction  in  the  so-
ciety of  the  innocent  and  affectionate
Mina,  a  forester's  daughter;  and  is  about
to  marry  her  when  his  misfortune  is  be-
trayed by  a  faithless  servant,  and  Mina's
father  bids  him  begone.  The  gray  man
then  reappears,  and  offers  to  restore  the
shadow  at  the  price  of  Peter's  soul.  The
broken-hearted  man  has  the  strength  of
will  to  refuse,  and  relinquishes  aU  hopes
of  earthly  happiness  rather  than  en-
danger his  eternal  welfare.  He  throws
the  purse  into  a  fathomless  cavern,  and
wanders  about  in  poverty  till  by  chance
he  g^ns  possession  of  the  Seven-League
Boots.  He  is  thus  enabled  to  travel
over  all  the  surface  of  the  earth,  except,
for  some  mjrsterious  reason,  Australia
and  the  neighboring  islands.  He  makes
his  headquarters  at  ancient  Thebes,  and
enters  upon  the  career  of  a  scientific
explorer,  taking  refuge  in  the  world  of
nature,  since  the  world  of  men  is  for-
ever closed  to  him.
nPreatige  on  Painting,  by  Leonardo
•^  Di  Vinci  This  famous  treatise  was
probably  written  before  the  year  1498.
