Tiny mushrooms covered the entire exterior... Yet all this was apart from extraordinary decay... and there seemed to be a wild inconsistency between its still perfect adaptation of parts. .. In this there were many things that reminded me... that rotted for long years in some neglected crypt, without any disturbance from the breath of outside air. Beyond this evidence of extensive decay, however, the fabric showed little sign of instability. Perhaps the eye of a scrutinizing observer could have discovered a barely perceptible crack, which... until it was lost in the dark waters of