The Birmingham age-herald., 1908-12-06

shall livel'
 Margarets eyes became clear and bright. Sanely she looked about her and at Faust. Shaking her head she an- swered firmly: q will not go. I have surrendered myself to the judgment of Godr'
 with me at oncei.' demanded Mephis- topheles, Tor I will leave you to share her fate!''
 Yours am I. Father in heaven," cried Margaret, falling to her knees. Angels of God, holy angels. stand about me, gather around me, save me, save me! Faustl Faust! I dread youl''
 With an exultant voice Mephistophles proclaimed
 "She is judged"
 But he shrank almost before the words had left his lips. From high overhead there sounded a great unearthiy voice. uttering triumphantly:
 "She is saved"
 And as Mephistopheles dragged Faust away one last sweet dying cry came from the cell: Faust! FaustP'
 Far and wide flew Mephistopheles with the man whom he could not drag down to calculating sin. Despalring of turing him by the temptations of vulgar lust and fieshly pleasures. the spirit of evil turned to feed his wide ambitions.
 Faust, sleeping on a fowery meadow. was touched by Ariel and his sprites. In his sleep they silenced the bitter battle in his heart They claimed his memory of fearful recollections. Forgetfulness em- braced him; and he awolxe to feel his pulses beating fresh and calm, and to welcome the young day with hops-in- spired soul.
 Led by Mephistopheles he went to the imperial court, where, beneath the ermine and the crown, black trouble hid and grinned. The barons looked rebellious from their mountain roosts. The army clamored and, lacking pay from the Elm peror, plundered the land that it was sworn to protect. Vassals fell away each day Kings and territories refused tri- bute.
 Faust taught the Emperor and hls per- plexed Chancellor to finance the hidden resources of the empire. He unraveled the tangled motives of and nations and brought peace to the disturbed land. Plenty seemed to spring from his touch. Glory returned to the court and pomp and splendor grew maglcally where he trod
 Having made the Emperor rich again, he demanded naturally that he be amused. Mephistopheles piled sorcery trick on sorcery and still the royal feast CTS appetite grew till at last he demand ed of Faust that he call Helen of Troy from the underworld
 Mempistopheles confessed to Faust that he had no power over the ancient Hades but he gave him a key and told him how to descend into the underworld to the place of the mystic tripod. Faust made the voyage and returned to court with the symbol of power. He erected the tripod before the court and touched 1t with the magic key.
 Clouds arose, pillars and columns ap peared amid the vapors and Paris, am brosial with youth. appeared before tho enchanted spectators. He strode to the foreground in all his supple strength and grace and lay down to sleep.
 Out of the wreaths of smoke stepped another figure-the figure of a woman. At the sight of her one great gasp of amaze ment and helpless admiration escaped from the rapt circle of the court. Trou- badours were there who had seen and sung all the famous beauties of the living world. Beauties were there whose spell had loosed the tide of war and shaken thrones But neither sight had seen nor had brain dreamed beauty such as hers who appeared in the air before their liv- ing eyes.
 Faust, shak en to his soul, forgot his part. Stepping toward the vision, he exclaimed: How empty, useless, fet- tered was the world to me till I had won my priesthood by my fearful voy age into the nothingness! Now, know I what 1t is to lovel''
 As he spoke Paris stirred, arose. sprang toward Helen and seized her to carry her away.
 Faust, no longer in control of his senses leaped at him and touched him with the key. A vast explosion stunned the air. Faust fell unconscious, and darkness and tumult broke loose in the hall.
 Mephistopheles, lifting Faust and fleeing, grumbled: There we have iti Dealing with a fool will bring the devil himself to grief at last
 When Dr. Faust awoke he was in his old study His first utterance was demand for Helen. Mephistopheles shrugged his lean shoulders. My Kingdom is in the north." he said. T cannot lead you to the Hades of the south"
 en alcneHly cdHlc lO HE aiu' T %uol D old disciple Wagner. who had contin- ued his masters studies, had succeeded in making a Homunculus, human fn- telligence, but lacking form and body Scarcely created, the Homunculus strove to know the beginning of all things and demanded a physical ex- istence Floating out of Wagners grasp 1t shone with ethereal light and shaped it's course to Greece, with Faust and Mephi histopheles in its train.
 Restless was the flight till the Homunculus settled on the plain of Phara salus, the battle-ground of Caesars victory. It was Walpurgis Night again. Gods. heroes fauns, sphynx and cen taurs, the graces and the furies, were gathered in revelry as were the witches of the north on the Brocken, But here were beauty without blasphemy, bac- chanalian joy without degradation. fan tastic form without malignant distor- tion. Faust moved among them, bath ing his heart in the antique splen- dor of pure beauty, feeling none of the loathing that had driven him from the black and hideous Brocken.
 Carried by Chiron, wisest of the Gen. taurs, he found his way to Helen and carried her away from the lost ages into his own time, as glowing. as splendid in her young beauty as when the walls of Troy fell for her sake.
 Hemunculus, led by Proteus. descended into the sea where there lay all the be- ginning of life. There is the eternal, the fountain of all,'' sang Proteus. There has the spirit gathered form. There shall yoH grow, develop and be-"