Coeur d'Alene evening press. (Coeur d'Alene, Idaho) 1907-1929, 1908-01-07
A SHADOW.

shutter. How difficult 1t was to get at
closing it! The alT was COOL the city
still. Below in the narrow. billy street
came a muleteer astride, STOPPING for
! ward over the back Of the ass, whose
little hoofs clicked and slipped on the
! big, smooth stones. He sang a monoto-
nous song I'm the customary plaintlve,
drawing, nasal tones of the easterner,
and as he passed along the sound Of
his voice reminded one Of the bagpipe.
On the window sill lay a manu-
script dissertation, and so clear and
brilliant was the February moonlight
that Hans could read the fine writing
without difficulty. It was a defense Of
the established order of things, of
standstlll conservatism, admitting of
no exception. And as he stood there
IN the city where the idea of humane
brotherhood was born and had gone
| forth over the earth as he glanced
I over the pages of the document he said
: to himself: mo. no; we young people
are natural foes TO conservatism. We
are the ones who now In all ages have
! broken ground for the truths which
have proceeded from this city" As he
! spoke he made an unconscious move
/ ment with his hand. At the same time
| his glance fell upon his own shadow
1 on the wall outlined by the moon.
! He could not restrain his laughter.
I Was not that the shadow of an actor,
/ the head thrown back, the hand ex-
tended as IL he were declalmlng some
stirring passage?
! A feeling Of shame swept over him
as he considered for the first time
that among the ideas transmitted from
| that city to the western world as a
cargo Of precious jewels was tiny
pearl humanity.
/ He closed his eyes and pressed his
/ hands over his face, and q thousand
I little stars seemed to Cash before his
sight To he sure. It was merely the
pulsations Of HIS own blood which pro.
: duced this sensation. and vet, little by
little, those tiny lights ceased to re-
volve and looked for all the world like
the pale stars which he had just been
watching In the armament At length,
aroused by voices In the street he
looked out
Between the houses opposite there
extended Il wall On the ground in
front was a bright fire, and by that
fire stood Christ surrounded by a few
disciples md friends. Just behind him
his shadow was clearly defined upon
the wall.
John, the disciple whom he loved.
mechanically picked up a blackened
coal and with 1t outlined the shadow
until he had delineated the entire fig
ure of the Master upon the wall. Then
he dropped the coal and entered into
conversation with the rest
Next morning when Hans Aienus
again stood at his open window and
saw the people pass there were many
who stopped and looked with curiosity
at the drawing ON the wall.
"That represents a shoemaker. His
back is bowed" said the shoemaker.
"You talk nonsense" returned the
fruiterer. THAT STOPPING posture
proves that he is fruit vender. They
forgot to draw the basket on his back
but that half open mouth shows clear
~ that he was crying: 'Pomegranates!
Come and buy! Come and buyv"
| A high official of the sanhedrin who
passed and who of course did not mix
bis voice with the gable of the trades
people thought to HIMSELF at is per-
fectly plain that that represents a
learned man and thinker One might
almost take 1t to be a portrait of me.
Positively 1t Is me; not bad. either.
Probably some of the tradespeople
drew 1t, OF course they all know me
more or less"
Meanwhile one of the spectators had
silently approached the carbon draw
Ing He had n simple demeanor and
kind, patient face Nothing great
was known Of him; no chronicle has
preserved his name, for he led a re-
tired life away from the noise of the
world. With hands crossed over the
knob of his walking stick he contem-
plated the drawing.
What noble foreheadw he
thought What lofty humanity that
bent figure suggests! Oh, IL only one
could be like that But why wish for
the impossible"
AS he stood there, silent and hum
BILE, the likeness to the drawing was
SO striking that everybody fell back,
pointing to him In whispers.
Startled and ashamed, he slipped
away, unable to understand why they
should stare at him.
In his conscious humility he had re-
ssmbled the Christ shadow.
Had he known this, and. proud In
that consciousness, stood erect the
ltkaness would have vanished-St.
Louis Globe Democrat.
Antiquity of Umbrellas,