The morning star and Catholic messenger. [volume] (New Orleans [La.]) 1868-1881, 1875-11-21

care for six weary months, was oxtIDguished.
stars blazing in the frmanens. The majestic
silence of the night lowered over the unchang-
ed immensity.
The old man was seized with an indefinable
terror. He understood that he was punished
for his pride, aud he had presen timeat that
the sudden failure of the labor and research of
so many years was but the beginning OF bis
punishment. It seemed to him that In the
midst of the thick darkness the living God had
looked into the depths of bis guilty soul and
had stretched out his all powerful hand to
smite him. Suddenly. ss II by n revelation,
there came to him knowledge Of the point
where God was about TO strike him.
'My child my childP' cried he, in voice
broken by terror and remorse.
He ran to the chamber of his daughter.
The old man opened the door gently, taking,
| in spite of his terror, thousand paternal pre-
cautions not to awaken the sleeper. The
trembling light of O small alabaster lamp cast
it's faint rays about the apartment. Gently
he drew back the curtains of the bed and gszed
fondiy upon bis child.
Rachel slept profoundly. her breathing was
as peaceful as innocence. Ben-Hs-Zelsh look
ed upon the sweet, calm face with q transport
of delight, The tranquility of this peaceful
and for a moment stilled the agitation of his
soul.
He leaned fendly over the sleeping form {;
listened joyfully to the calm breathing of bis
darling child, to the regular beating of her
heart I; then STOPPING, imprinted kiss Of
fatherly love IN he beautiful brow.
Rachel remained mmovable, aud her sleep
was unbroken; 1t is strange she has not
awakened" said the old man to himself, look
Ing az her gain. .'Sleep is so like death"
As lie allowed this thought to take form
vague terror took possession OF him.
Bah she sleeps. hear her breath!ng,@
said be aloud.
The secret iudefiuable fear which lie could
not Danish, and for (which he could not ac-
tain himself.
Rachel" cried he in lond voice. The
young girl slept on.
Rachel! my childp he cried again, at the
same time shaking her gently by the arm.
Still the calm sleep was unbroken, and the
peaceful breathing which at first had delighted
the fond father nov seemed like fatal spell.
| He took her in bis arms he placed her on a
couch he tried to make her walk and in
vain essayed with his trembling fingers to
| open the sealed eyelids.
! The young girl slept on her respiration as
calm, and the rhythm of her heart still pre-
served its frightful monotone. All the efforts
! of the despairipg father were vain Day
| dawned, night came, the next day, and weeks
and months, and Rachel awoke not.
| The distracted father, remembering that he
! was physicians sought in medical science a
remedy for this strange malady. He tried every
nothing could break the fearful sleep. He no
| longer went to the palace of the caliph, but
| his days and nights were passed in his labora-
TORY as bney Q8u formerly DeSu at IOEQOF4 /;
his researches, however, were no longer to feed
his pride. Sorrow concentrated his mighty
| genius on one thought-to discover q remedy
for his idolized child. Bitterly did he expiate
i.perplexities of this new sorrow.
More than six months passed Thus. last
aud desperate. remedy to which he had re-
course, had, like all the others, failed; Ben-Ha-
Zslah on q night like that which this
weight of sorrow had come upon him, was in
his laboratory bending as ever over his re-
experiment that genius, quickened by affection,
could suggest, and had failed in all. Rachel
still slept. Then the broken-hearted old man,
convinced of his own Importance, let fall his
arms at his sidesSRnd burst into tears.
at that moment he heard voice which
seemed to come at orce from the depths of i'm
mensity, AID from the inmost recesses of his
| own heart. 3
- All thy efforts are yaip," said the voice.
"Thou wilt cure thy child, only by passing
about her neck pearl necklace, not the pearls
%hiGn S9nnsfa nature ba1 giyes and Gsd makes
| Thou tboughtest thyself the equal of God, the
| equal of Him who created the world; and he
punishes thee, by condemning thee to create
| only few pearls, and he is willing to lend
| thee all the riches and treasures of his beauti-
full world. Go and seek! And when thou has t
made enough of these pearls to Eli the box be-
| side thee, make a necklace of them. Pat it on
| the neck of thy child, and she will awake y =
| 1t was not an illusion. The old man had
seen no one, but the box was there beside him
| III was . llttie Dox, OF WOOD unknown to him
which exhaled delicious odor. On the lid
inscribed in letters of gold, was Hebrew word
meaning " Treasure of God"
Ben-Ha-Zslah re-kindled the fires of his
furnaces and again applied himself to explore
the arcana of alchemy. He took from hil
cofers all the pearls he possessed, and aftel
having analysed them, tried in vain to form
them again; but the secret of omnipotenct
, which he attempted to grasp, fed from him
He decomposed precious stones and succeeded
only in making gross calcareous substance
Again and again he flattered himself, he haG
. penetrated the mystery of the Creator; but al
his hopes ended in nothingness. Nature
which he had once attempted to conquer tc
satisfy his pride as a ssvant, he now wooed il
vain to still the passionate yearnings of hi
fatherly heart.
One day he said to himself: "My knowledg
Is very littlei aud with the very little know
| shall never succeed in solving this prob1em
and nevertheless it is posssble"
The voice which spoke to me is voic
. which does not deceive.
Then an inspiration came to him which
lighted with pale ray of hope, the sorrowfu
face long unused to happiness. The idea oc
cUrred to him. that if he ahould 90 and atud