N OLD man, his fel
low lodgers would
have called him.
had they not long
ceased to1 specu
late u p o'n Elerr
Julius Mayo's ac
1 1 ? 1 1 1 e 8 In yie
three poorly f u r
&.?hed rooms at
the top of the old
converted nansion
on lower Second
avenue. But he
was not so old ?
barely sixty, In
fact. Still, time Is
measured by * Its
fullness* and the
o I d German had
lived through youth
and maturity, marriage apd parent
hood, bo that the future held nothing
In store for him except what he had
pat Into It; and of all life's riches he
had held to one thing only after his
wife had died.
That waa his chemical researches
Interest had attached Itself to him
at lint because he was suspected ot
being a counterfeiter. He had. in fact,
been honored with a visit from the
chief of detectives when he first took
op his abode In the ramshackle old
place five years before. But Hen
Mayo had speedily convinced, his call
er that he waa only a harmless crank,
encaged on some obstruse and appar
ently Insoluble problem.
Bat the problem happened to t*
omm toward whose solution a thousand
brains were lust then concentrated tr
se i ei ai hundred labui'atuites. ? It ?as.~
in fact, the manufacture of synthetic
robber. To this end, which would
mean fabulous wealth for the discov
?rer, Herr Mayo bent all his energies
A tiny patrimony supported him mean
while. Once he had been well-to-do.
and had had friends; that was wheD
he waa a lecturer at the Imperial uni
versity of Bonn, and before his reck
1? a marriage with a uuturious actress
shocked and scandalised the purlUnl
oal society ? but why should he be
recalling this sow, aa he bent over
his teat tubee and welched oat Imper
ceptible quantities 01 compounds
from his tiny measuring scales? That
was Herr Mayo's one chivalrous act,
and he had paid In honor and wealth
and friends when he planged into the
irretrievable because love proved
stronger than prudence. And they
had alwaya been happ^ until she died,
five years before,, though often the
lean hanger wolf howled against the
threshold. But then there was their
child, Ida, and she, too. had become
a memory, and nothing remained (ex
cept the bubbling test tube and the
spreading color beneath the surface
layer of gold.
. The old German shook his memories
away and smiled at the changing
lipoid. What waa paat was past,' but
there waa always the future, and juat
Why Am I Thinking of Minna Tonight!
M* he felt Tery mn that ha waa oa
tha track of hla discovery Than boa
N and waalth would be hla;
0m? la a million times tha seeker
at aynthatic compounds may hit npon
hla gaal chance. But almoet uni
?anally it u a proceae of elimination,
at aBdlaaa'worklnc round and round
toward Afe'OttJMtlTe point whl?h taami
to WMil tha mora elualvely aa on
approaahaa tt Nina hundred and (or
ty formulae ka had written down to
microscopic figures upon a large fold
ed sheet of paper, and these were com
pounds of but a single form of carbon.
Of these seven and twenty were the
most promising^ and he had grouped
them together.
"Nqw why am I thinking of Minna
tonight?" growled the old man impa
tiently. rising and pushing back the
damp hair frohi his furrowed forehead.
But he was not thinking of Mbna,
except Indirectly. He was thinking of
Ida. their daughter. It was five year*
since hia wife had died, and almost
upon the first anniversary of her death
he had driven his daughter from his
home when in her agony and despair
she confessed to him that she had sul
lied the name she bore. She had mar
ried secretly a worthless fellow who.
it turned out, had a wife living. He
had died since, but he could not forget
the stigtna. The Mayos had been of
the old Junker families, who had held
honorable records in Kast Ifussla. He, -
Julius, had lost caste when he mar
ried the actress, but that, at least,
was a legitimate union. And now, hi?
daughter's involuntary offense would
banish them both forever should he
return with his discovery, to seek
Boclal recognition In his native land
The years qt ostracism and loneliness,
to be-redeemed at the end by this tri
umph, had made the old man very bit
ter. When Ida left him the last link
that bound him to humanity seemed to
have snapped. He often told himself
that he was glad she was gone. He
had put the very thought of her away ;
It should not rise up now.
A tapping sounded at the door, and
he roSfe up wearily to open it Outside
stood the postman. H? was very late
because it was the holiday season and
his mail was large. The old man gave
him a small weekly sum to bring his
letters to his apartment instead of
leaving them In the box beneath. His
correspondence was too precious, just
now, to trust to the mercies of those
easily opened boxes., One letter that
He Tore the Papers Into 20 Strips.
went astray might throw him back a
week in his researches, and others
-were. pn_ the track, eager to antici
pate him in His" discovery? ? took-]
a thin envelope from the I postman,
glancing at it indifferently. No, this
was not from the chemical works
Well, doubtless that one would arrive
on the morrow. He voiced the hope
unconsciously.
"Why, professor, there's no delivery
tomorrow," said the letter carrier,
xtreertully. ? "Don't you know what
night this is? This is Christmas Eve."
Christmas Eve! OootH- That would
mean less traffic in the street beneath
his window to disturb him the next
day. But stay! That meant a post
ponemcnt in the letter's arrival. He
grumbled something at the letter car
rier, who went down the uncarpeted
stairs, shaking his head at the strange
ness of Eome people in not knowing
when Christmas Eve came. But doubt
less he had no friends to keep the date
In his memory, poor old fellow!
Heir Mayo looked at the letter again
and hiB face paled. His heart began
to drum In his ears, and he cast It
down on a table and sank into a chair,
passing his hand wearily across his
forehead. The letter was from hlr
daughter.
After awhile he found courage tc
-ypon it, and, when he had read the
first line, he read it all, swallowing
hard In his throat.
"Dearest Father" (R ran):
"Don't think that I am writing1 to
you tonight to beg your aid. But It is
Just five years since mother died, and
a little more than four since I last saw
yoA, and J cannot keep silence any
logger. I want to tell you that a little
boy wag J}qi;n tie 1b ail th?
hfrppy. I teach him to mention you
in his prayers. We do not. want
money, for I can support him, and I
would work my fingpri \ lln ln'fn1 fnl "
But i want hlnn tn fans ? n
you not forget all the
paBt and let me bring or send him
to you, for mother's sake, *o that he
may grow up to feel that I am not
the only relative he has on earth? He
Is named Julius, after you, and he ha?
flaxen curls all over his shoulders
He la the dearest thing In the world
to me."
The address given was quite near
where tf err Mayo lived. No doubt his
daughter bad often passed hie house,
perhaps sho Had seen him sometimes
when, pondering over his problem, be
PAfied'^tb? sti^ets. a curious, ahabb?
figure, in '.hat busy mart of men.
H err Ukyo ralsod his head and set
the letter down wfih trembling fln
He was not by natnre a hart
man; his marriage had proved that
But he had made his choice for oate
and for all. He looked toward the
i teat tube on the table. The golden
j liquid was slowly cooling into brown.
And he knew that that lay betweea
them as surely as though each gleam
ing bubble on It were miser's gold.
His past should never rise up *jo dis
turb him now. it was to as*ua?e his
grief and disappointment at first that
he had turned toward hla researches.
Now the hobby had become a tyrant,
and he had sold his sotfPlnto its keep
ing. His choice was matfe. He tore
the paper, into twenty strips and flung
them Into the blazing store. He had
but glanced at the address, and al
ready It had vanished from his mind
Now there was no turning back,
thbugh his daughter's words scorched
his soul as the paper was scorching in
the fire.
He turned to his work again. But
he could work no longer. Phantom*
of his past rose up to reproach him.
There was his wife, Minna, looking at
him with her steady eyes; he had
never refused her anything, and he
knew that, were s^e alive, he could
not have treated her daughter as he
had done. And the liquid In the tube
was brown, burned out gold that hsd
lost Its power to charm him. He
stopped and listened. Somewhere up
the street the Christmas bells were
calling worshipers to church. So they
had called him once, long ago, In Ger
many. when he was a lad with the'
world before him and filled with the
zest of life. The remembrances of his
early days surged over him like a lava
flood. He could stay no longer In that
big. empty room, and, clapping on his
hat over his gray locks, he rushed
wildly down the stairs and out Into the
street.
A steady stream of persons was
traveling In one dtrectlon, and he fell
in with them perforce because he did
not want to battle his way along the
curb against them. Presently the
stream began to pour Into a church,
carrying him with It Herr Mayo did
not know what denomination of
church It was, and he might not have
known had his wlta been alert, so
long it w^s since he had been Inside
one. But as he sat among the worship
ers, hearing the organ peal and the
words of eternal hope and mercy,
something seemed to burst Inside his
shriveled old heart and the warm tides
of pity and love leaped througn the
barriers that he had upreared against
them. In that moment he knew that
he was the worst of sinners; he had
| set tip his pride, a cruel Idol In hie
heart, ai^d pulled down the Christ;
ind the Idol waa broken and only the
tragical figure of the Son of God re
mained. . - -
Children's voices were singing, up
raised In sweet, clear carols of praise
He raised his head, the miserable old
man, and listened. Why, that was ft
hymn that he had learned In Prussia
when he was a boy. And the old faitr
remained for each generation, here
too, across the wide Atlantic, and onlj
he wjb shut nft
munion. He thought of Minna; her
heart had been always his, and she
had been quite true to him, Jin spite of
the stories people told about her pasi
and they had stood before the minister
* In just such a church,-, with ruin be
fore them, and knew only the Joy ir
Jielr own souls. Then suddenly
through the gloom, and right -acrosi
-
I the church, he u? Minna a gtln. H?f
| face was aa it had been on that day
i of their marriage, iurroubded with a
! halo of yellow hair; botwhen h?
I rose, staring, and law the #Jnan stir,
he knew that it was not flflnna, but
his daughter Ida.
In that moment be wanted nothing
so much as to enfold her In his arms,
to lay hlfli gray head upon her bosom
| "You Are Looking for Somebody, SlrP*
He priced.
and sob out hit w'rot chednps* there.
Minna lived In her again, tor mother
| hood bad wrought a miracle ot> the
pale, listless girl, who had cringed be
j (ore hit anger (our years before and at
? last gone sullenly from hla home, pen
j nlless, Into the darkness.
But she had not seen him, nor would
? she. Mayo saw now the cause ot that
maternal light in her eyes, bright
: with the lore that he had denied her.
They were bent upon a tittle, yellow
haired boy who ^t restless beside her,
Odgettlng, aa boys will fidget In
church. And the boy, In turn, waa a
replica ot Ida's Infancy.
He must take her home. They
would be all to one another, the three
of them. His heart yearned oyer these
two generations of his own flesh and
blood. And when the service ended,
he rose eagerly to cross to where they
were seated. But the people, moving
out ot their pews Into the aisle, ob
structed his ps.ssage, and he was com
pelled to makti a circuitous detour In
order to reach hla objective. He saw
her, lost her; and at last, when he
reached the pew where she had sat.
Ida wan gone ? Ha hnnied frantically
hither and thither. The church was
empty now; an d yet it seemed Incredi
ble that he had lost her (or ever.
Somebody touc bed him on the arm. A
clergyman in a long black gown waa
speaking to hlra
"You are looking (or aomebody,
sir?" he asked kindly.
"My daughter, " the old man mum
? bled. -
"She must t ave gone home. KB
doubt you wfll find her at home
i There la no bod) here."
J The old man turMd and ftecar
Santa Claus Was Good To Her
ktumbllnf homeward through th? thin
nine street crowda. Once he b?d
gained the atreet- which led to hla
house he began running like a mad
man. Truly It mutt be as the clergy
man had aaJd. Ida *a? at home, o I
course, with her little boy. She had
never left him; all that had been a
bad dream from which he would
awake when he entered. He let him
self In and switched on Ike electric
light. The room waa empty and al
most bare, and It had neTer looked ao
forlorn and mlaerable before.
He realised that she waa loet to
hUn forever. She would accept Me
alienee aa final; she would never write
to him again. And her address had
vanished from hie memory utterly.
He had barely glanced at it once and
purposely refrained from looking at
It again before he tore the letter Into
fragments and flung them Into the
atove. He had choaea his mlaer'a gold,
and It lay like a dead weight upon hla
I heart. _
hu "Cr*P ?f p*lwr on "aw caught
hl" ?>:?' He picked it up; It <u a
91 the envelope and bore his
nam. JuUus M.ro ,n(J ^ flrit n,.
? ? of the ?ou,e number. Perhaps
om , ?v?ra^* "nU?ht taT? fluttered
whioh ,fr*~Perh*M ,n?t Ue on*
which would rive him Ue clue to his
daughters address. Instantly he was
kn6e* and r?kln*
"nong the dyfng embers, Ural,, OTer
the coals, begriming his hands with
Uie clinker ash. Another scrap re
warded his efforts. This waa the up
per corner of the envelope. bearing .
^kOD , 0,8 c"c*le<5 stamp, with
the 'benign features of Washington.
There waa no more; he could not And
TheCoM** * ,ta,U Charred foment
at hu ilw" "" ,l0'"^ ?nd stared
" ,hl? whlte In the UtUe glass
that hung above the mantel. His eyea
were feverish and his gray hair hung
In a disordered mass oyer his fore
head. He remembered the old Ger
man legend that on one day in the
.year the souls In hell were permitted
to stand outside the gates of Paradise
"d to '">?* In- This waa Ma day:
T w,hrl,tm" Et<s- the annlver
""7. of Minna's death, the one dar
M. ,T8<^L0n Whlch h# mlKb? uve
th?~ . prlde ana were
hv 7L' ? T. dom,n*ted for the present
y 'ho Influence of his mood; If he
gave rein to. them again he would be
lost irretrievably. And the mood
P*8" he could aot find
the letter. Tomorrow, he knew, his
work would absorb him again, his
heart would harden, as old men's
stoJJrt* d?' Th" ,lte" of Paradise
stood open wide for him ? and he had
lost the key.
n,H* ?*Jk?d slowly across the room.
His mtad was mads up; he would de
stroy all the frulu of his experiments
batter down tfcat Idol which he had
?f? "l-lj u*** "" tTOm *"? owa
?e railed his arm to sweep ??err
thing to the floor ? test tubes, bottles,
,pha?e/V H? hesitated. Could he let
the fruits of all those years of experi
ment got He might at least save the
formuU*. Or waa that satrtfloe necee
*mt If he waa to sare his soul from
neiiT ,
JS"-* "? roving eyea rested
_5S?nJhe_tesi^tube which he had left
on the Uble.
He shouted alojid with Joy. The
mood had Passed; the idol had reared
Itselfyagalii. Ida waa forgotten.
Somethlhthad happened during his
absence tliat he had never menaced to
The liquid in the
tube tad passed from gold to brown,
and from brown to a streaky flaky
mass of creamy. Jelly-like fluid. It
was almost artificial rubber.
Ha waa upon the track at last His
composition. In cooling, had coagulat
ed as rubber coagulates. This waa
not rubber, but It was not far from
It It waa a compound which con
tained all the elements of rubber.
But somewhere. In the building of It.
two or three molecules had gone
?r*y, or faatened themselves to the
wrong elements. Just aa one may put
* wn'? together and not
quite lit th* petiern. He waa very
close now; he must try the next form
?1,\*Dd 0,8 n?t, and the next; It
might be only a matter of a few days
oerore success crowne^ his efforts.
He sought feverishly for the paper
with the microscopic handwriting, the
re?ult of years of research work and
endless experimentation. It waa not
to Its accustomed place, and he"e?n
turning his notes over, hunting forit
It must be on the other table, then?
foIded ,hMt nnder the
blotting aheet. He reached for It and
picked up ? hla daughter's letter
,ttred ?t It without under
; ow bad thu ??!?"?? which
he had torn up and thrown Into the
??!?* bMk h,mT At 1??
the it-Wring truth burat In upon
him. He had destroyed the formula
In place of the letter, and all the work
or years had gone fbr nothing. He
CCTild never begin all own- again
Even if he had the
Upon the scent.
He sank back into his chair. All
his Ufa was ruined now and the last
lllusfog had oome toppling down. He
Eumn tu m? twi ana raiflM Into his
bedroom. From its case he extracted
his razor. He would end everything
with one -swift, merciful sweep.
As he atood before the mirror with
the open razor In his hand ha heard
a soft tapping at hla door. He
frowned impatiently. Why could aot
the foola leave him at thla JunotureT
He stode across the room and turned
the key. Outalde A ere waa a whim
pering ? a child's whimpering. Impa
tiently he turned the key again,
opened thei door, and found himself
looking down at a little child of (Our
or five yeara. with flaxen curls, and
the look of Ida upon his face.
The uhHd screwed Its grimy fists
Into Its eyes and the tear# flowed
* '
"Who are you?" demanded ROT
Mayo with sudden tenderneaa.
'Tit Julius," sobbed the child. "1
wast my (rand pa."
"Who la your grandpa?" asked the
old mas, stooping and raising the boy
In his arma.
"My grandpa Urea bar* as' Jinhi
my granJpa. Mamma aaw you la
ofcurch an' I ? I followed you. but you
went so quick I lost yon and By
mamma, too. But I knew you 11 rod
hero, 'cause mamma often showed mo
when we used to pass." A
Herr Julias Mayo carried the ohlld
Into the room. He put back tho rasor
in Its case. Then he went Into his
laboratory and began pitching the
tubes and bottles Into the stove. Tho
crashing glass alarmed the llttlo boy.
"What are you doing, grandpa?" he
asked.
"Just tearing down an Idol, 'sonny,"
answered the old man. "When yoo
are grown up, maybe, you will
? ?v?
"Who Are Your* Demanded Herr
Mayo With Sudifsn Tandtmeu.
member this, and tear down roar old
Idols, too. Come, sonny, we're going
home to mamma."
He picked him up again and carried
him downstairs with Infinite tender
ness. At the street door he stepped
and Imprinted a kiss upon Ufa nod
ding head that rested on his shoul
der. And outside the clocks ware
striking midnight
Bethlehem
Star
HIS old jobMof world
of oun if one year
"M" ?'"H ft WM
when the last Chrij?
mas carol was chant
ed. It haa had an
other twelvemonth
of experiments and
of experienca, of ad
vancement on many
llnaa of human r?
?earch and arqnlrt
tion. Bat It haa not
outgrown Jesus Christ. For Him H
has discovered do substitute. The
?tar of Bethlehem U the only etar
that never seta. Jesus Christ alone
cab satisfy all h times necessities and
the loftiest of hnman inspirations.
Christianity is the only universal re
ligion, the only one 'adapted to all
ages of life, to all hnman conditions,
to all races and all nationalities.
Other lights have arisen, waned and
vanished forever. The Greek' myth
ology is as utterly shaken to ruin aa
its own splendid Parthenon. The
chief religions of Asia ? Brahman
ical, Buddhist and Moslem ? are all
limited and local; they are all mori
bund. While they make no inroad*
on Christianity, the religion of Beth
lehem and Calvary makes constant
inroads upon them. The systems of
error which Paul and Peter fought
have vanished out of sight, and the
whole East is catching glimpses of
the star that first dawned over Jn
des's sky. In Spiritual dynamics
blood tells, and God has trusted His
gospel of salvation to the most pow
erful raees on the globe.
A Gaj Hobday Design
Th* living-room
table *r? Included
Of thli decoration.
mirror, lamp
In Ui* rriiniinMlw