The Barre daily times. (Barre, Vt.) 1897-1959, 1909-08-07
A WISE DEDUCTION.
BY T. a. MITcHEL.


80 the conclusion that all the trouble
IN the world came from woman's van
ity. Kalaidiien about the time he
made this discovery was presented by
his wife with daughter. He gave
orders that the child should be brought
mp with limited number Of compan.
ions and attendants, none Of whom
should ever refer 10 her personal ap.
pearance and on no account should she
ever be allowed to look upon her face
IN mirror.
Moira-that was the child's name
grew up to be 4 very beautiful won
an. BY and by young man came
counting her. or rather asked for her
from her father. To the request the
latter replied
Years Of study, Tatios"-that was
the suitors name--"have convinced me
that the source Of evil Is III woman's
vanity. For that reason have guarded
my daughter that this fendIsh spirit
should not be permitted to enter into
her. No one has ever told her that
she is beautiful. nor has she ever seen
her face reflected She shall be your
wife on your promise to carry out this
policy which | have begun
The lover consented, and the couple
were married. The brides mother at
the time Of the wedding secretly pre-
scented her daughter with mirror: but
hoping to avert the consequences
against which Kalaidjien had so long
guarded. she told MORA that whenever
she looked into It she would see her
mothers face as it would appear in
heaven. Shortly after the wedding the
mother died. and the daughter found
the mirror an inestimable treasure.
The mother, IN order to insure the Sc
cret OF its possession being kept, had
told her that IL she revealed 1t she (the
motherl would grow old and ugly N
heaven and be cast out into hell. Moira.
greatly dreading such a consequence,
carefully hid the mirror in a secret
drawer IN her cabinet, only opened by
u key which she kept on her person.
Once a month her husband was
obliged to 80 to a distant city on bust.
ness. and then MORA would take out
her mirror and reverently feast her
eyes upon her mother in paradise.
Meanwhile Tatios kept up the sur.
VIGILANCE over his wife that her father
had instituted. In western countries
this would have been impossible, but
not SO 10 the east where evergA man Is
master OF bis own household. Under
the influence Of a beautiful face which
looked out at her from the mirror ar
fectionateIy MORA every year grew
spiritually more and more beautiful.
fAough physically she passed her
prime, like other women, and her phys I
zeal beauty began to wane. But she
saw only IN her reflected face the splr.
itual and did not recognize the decay
Of the physical.
When Tatios was about to 20 on one
Of bis journeys be decided 10 take his I
wife with him. Mora. fearing for the
safety Of her treasure, locked it in a 4
box and. taking it to a temple, gave it
in charge Of priest to keep till her
return. It happened that Tatios saw
her go out and being suspicious, fol.
lowed herFana watched her carry the
box intafthe temple He said nothing
at lie time, but brooded over the Sc
cpeE which his wife had apart from
him and on her return to his home
went to the temple and demanded the
box. The priest would give it to no
one but her who had left 1t, so Tatios
demanded that she go to the temple /
and open the box before him.
MORA was In agony that her mother
could look at her no longer and be- /
coming ugly. would be cast out Of
heaven. She told her husband her
secret and, as be was unmovable, went
with him to the temple and gave him
the box with the key, and. opening il,
he took out tue mirror. Knowing that
all the care he had for many years
exercised had been aborted, he was In
great anger
woman" be said, "you have been
looking at your own face. When you
arst saw it it was young and beaut-
full. Now it is old and faded, Look,
undeceived by your fancy, and see
that what / tell you IS true"
MORA, convinced that she was look-9
ing at her own reflection, ceased to see
IN it n spiritual beauty, viewing only
the image Of an old woman. Angered
with her husband that be should have
spoiled the charm. she cursed him.
At this point the priest said to the
husband:
aOh. Tatios. you have been acting
on the assumption that evil has its
source in the vanity OF woman. Look
rather within thyself believing that
her good mother looked down upon her
from heaven, your wife has been kept
pure in the contemplation Of her own
image. It is the use made Of beauty,
not beauty itself, that brings good
81 evil and mans mastery Of it, for
mans selfish desires must always bring
evil. You have destroyed source Of
good within your wife, and she has
cursed you"
The husband, seeing what be had
done. bowed his head and begged for
giveness of his wife, She forgave him
through the influence Of her past con-
temptation Of the good as seen through
the beautiful But the spell had been
broken. The wife, no longer sustained
bv the mother who had so long looked
at her from heaven. at times gave way
to the peeyishness of age. and her hus
band saw that the inestimable treasure
Z, ..,s =, woe r,nk - - 70