The mirror. (Stillwater, Minn.) 1894-1925, 1904-01-07
The King and
the Beggar Maid.
part L.

(PART l..
EMILE reader, I offer you the
correct and duly authenti-
Gated version of the old story
s-S@. of the King and the Beggar
Maid, and hope You will like it. But
whether you like it or not, I am ready
to make affidavit, and so is the learned
gentleman employed by me to dig up
ancient manuscripts, ETC., that the story
as now given, has never appeared in
print before. But before l begin to
relate the story, feel it my duty to
make few explanations. This is
rather a long story, but don't let that
worry you. If at any time while read
ing this story feeling of drowslness
or wearisomeness comes creeping over
you; or if impatience moves you to
hnrI imprecations at kings, beggar
maids, arch8ologists, Egypt, or any
other person or thing herein mentioned,
Iwould advise you to leave off reading
Immediately. Your loss will be in
fipitesimal. The writer takes certain
amount of pride in stating that he con-
siders it a point of duty to write only
such stuff as will not cause the reader
to mourn overmuch if through ne
eessity or inclination he discontinue
the perusal of any of the writer's articles
or stories. There are heartless men and
women who write such fascinating
stories that the reader feels annoyed ii
compelled to lay down the book or
paper before it has been read to the
end. / don't. 1 haven't, the Heart to
do it. And this is not that kind of a
story.
AS you are no doubt aware, many
countries boast of having had king
who loved a beggar maid. These may
not be idle boasts. Kings have been
known to do stranger things than that
But the stories, the poems and the plays
founded upon this periodic eccentricity
Of kings are at best but garbled versions
sffthe true history of the first and only
king that ever loved and wooed anc
married beggar maid. About fifteeI
years ago oiled mythinking apparatus
preparatory to. long run of uphill
thought, and considered the possibility
Of sending an expedition, under thu
leadership Of some competent arch@ol
'sgist, to Egypt, the land of wonders, t
discover the original manuscript of TIN
poem or story from which are zderivet
all the distorted and contradiction.
accounts Of the love. of king for
beggar maid. I had convinced mysel
that Egypt is the proper place to iisti
-sute search for anything tendingst Z
sopffrna, or. to sconfute, amp theory Q
belief, whatsoever, entertained BY an
one, wheresoever. Yon can. find any
shing in Egypt If you dig deep enough
Right here will throw out q sugges
aspa that will prove invaluable TO tn
million or more inventors Nho are try
Mg TO construct Tying machines ths
will fly. Why not 60 to Egypt and fin
Snt how to do it? We know there al
pyramids in Egypt, batwe do not kno'
bow the Egyptians managed. TO bun
such gigantic structures. Modern er
,gineers agree to disagree about tn
snginery employed in the constructio
of these stupendous piles. We kno'
shat the huge blocks of stone used i
the construction of the pyramids an
temples OF the Nile valley were brougl
from quarries hundreds of miles distar
from the river, but by what means the
we're transported to their final place I
usefulness we know not. It has lor
been my belief that the ancieI
Egyptians were the inventors of ever
thing that is either good, bad. {
Indifferent, dirigible airships include
They did not hitch their wagons =
stars; but they did the next best thin
and hitched their massive blocks
porphyry to an airship, and sailed ]
steamed in q bee line to the buildil
where the blocks were to be use
dropped them gently In the. prop
place and hurried back for aaeth
3aAd Don't tell me .theZEgyptia
were not clever sn9lgh for this. ;;s&:s<,
/ remember well, some twenty