those in the shop in Physic Street were almost all authentic. The old broker, in his character as retired connoisseur, took pleasure in revealing the secrets of the trade to M. de Legrené, and in pointing out to him the means by which an antique may be distinguished from a modern imitation. As these details did not interest me in the least, I gave my whole attention to the objects which presented themselves to our curiosity, to whatever age they might have belonged. Generally speaking, the Buddhist gods had that placid expression which becomes revealers, who teach that man must, through infinite transmigrations, continue the annihilation of his own personality; and the Houanins seated in the calyx of the lotus, the symbol of festivity, eloquently represented the saints of that material religion—their faces, devoid of expression, seemed to say that woman in this life is but the passive agent of eternal regeneration. According to the Llaman doctrine, matter alone is regenerated, and does not die, and the intervention of an immaterial agent is not essential to eternal procreation. However, notwithstanding the religious intention which had inspired these sacred images, they were of much less value as works of art than the perfume pans and incense burners. These vases—of all shapes and sizes, round, oblong, and square—as humble as a bird's nest, and as magnificent as a funeral urn—were for the most part very remarkable pieces of workmanship.
