He made examination of the contents, but came to the conclusion that the glass objects were unsuitable.

They were too light for testing weight, and they were so frail as to be dangerous to send to such a height.
So he looked around for something more solid with which to experiment.
His eye caught sight of an object which at once attracted him.

This was a small copy of one of the ancient Egyptian gods--that of Bes, who represented the destructive power of nature.

It was so bizarre and mysterious as to commend itself to his mad humour.

In lifting it from the cabinet, he was struck by its great weight in proportion to its size.
He made accurate examination of it by the aid of some instruments, and came to the conclusion that it was carved from a lump of lodestone.