The Brattleboro daily reformer. (Brattleboro, Vt.) 1913-1955, 1913-03-10
InLeague With
the Devil
By F. A. Mitchell

some TOUR OF I'VE uuuuFeu years ago
student in the University of Bonn
had the misfortune to lose an eye. He
was devoted to alchemy, an obsolete
branch and forerunner of the science
we now call chemistry. While bend
ing over a crucible containing a COM
pound it exploded and, striking him
In the left eye, burned it so badly that
he was obliged to have it removed.
His face and his other eye were saved
from injury, being protected by an iron
mask, for he was working upon a mix
ture to produce gunpowder and pro-
tected himself against an explosion all
except one eye.
The name of this young man was
BerthoId Schwartz. The loss of his
eye was the greater misfortune to him
because he was in love with Gretchen
Becker, whose father, already preju-
diced against him, had now the more
+ cause to refuse him his daughter.
/ That was an age before glass eyes
were made, so Berthold Schwartz in
selecting a substance for an artificial
/ eye chose gold. Gretchen did not de-
sert him on this account. Indeed, she
/ was all the more drawn to him on &C
count of his misfortune. But she said
nothing about the loss of his eye to
her father, shrinking from giving him
this additional lever against her lover.
One day old Becker met Schwartz on
the street and noticed his golden eye. Z.
What means this. Berthold?" he
said, astonished. Are you turning to
gold? / have been aware of your ex-
periments in alchemy and fancied that
you, like the rest of your craft. were
hunting for process for producing the
precious metals, but 1 did not suppose
you would work upon your own per
SON."
THAT was accidental" replied
Schwartz
Accidental! Have you really discov-
cred a process by which you can turn
flesh into gold?"
MY inventions are a secret an
swered the chemist, wishing to evade
a direct reply, and to avoid being fur
Their questioned he passed on.
When Becker went home he said ex-
citedly to his wife and daughter: Colt
in himmeI, Berthold Schwartz has dis
covered the secret of turning objects
into the precious metals. But he has
been unlucky, for accidentally he turn
ed one of his eyes into gold"
How was that?' asked his wife,
throwing up her hands in astonish-
ment.
81 don't know. l suppose that any
object exposed to his process is turned
to gold, and l don't understand it."
That evening Gretchen heard her
father and mother discussing whether
since Berthold had discovered this Sc
cret that so many at that period were
hunting for, they had not better give
him their daughter after all. The re
suit Of their conference was that they
would wait and see if he really hat
made such q discovery. The next day
=, the girl went to her lover and reported
:, what had occurred. Berthold laughed
but, clasping Gretchen in his arms
= said to her:
You may go back and tell your par
:, ents. and that with truth, that ! hav,
:, discovered q method by which l car
= turn base materials into gold. for 1 cal
: produce a mixture that will explode
, with great force and am experimenting
- how to use it,
. Gretchen told her mother that it wa
= indeed true that Berthold had discover
ed the art Of turning objects into gold
- and there was another conference be
20 tween Becker and his wife, afte
- which Gretchen was told that If Bel
9 thOld would turn some ordinary objec
=. into gold before them they would Civ
- her to him to wife. When Gretche
o. bore the message to her lover he bad
N her say that his secret was his ow
20 and he would not give it to any on
e else. But he suggested that she sa
n to her parents that if he chose he coul
y turn their eyes into gold as he ha
=. done his own.
q. When Gretchen spoke Of this to ht
"a parents they turned pale. Suppos
. Schwartz should turn the eyes of G
Their one or both of them into golC
w they would be stone blind. They di
st not believe that any one could do S
q. wonderful a thing without the aid (
a the devil. and they shrank from givin
. their daughter to such a person. S
they concluded to charge Berthold wat
RI witchcraft
he Unfortunately for this plan, Gretche
f. overheard it and went at once with
~ to Bertho1d, who told her that he ha
av conceived the idea of putting his ni
ed ture into an iron tube closed at OIL
e end and lump of metal against Il
,r mixture. By heating the closed end
to could send the lump with such force
ne to kill a man. The inventor was e
to ing to show this implement to the XII
ve and asked Gretchen to marry him al
ST. go with him. She consented, and t
ne two departed without a goodby to o
% Becker and his wife