The Washington herald., 1915-01-10

Z ltll Nb4 OllCt lOl dilr Sdl4 lt' Allil
am in the deepest, the keenest, the most
/ ignobIe poverty. But that is only one
reason why must die. will spare my.
| self the revelation of my untold suffer
ines which are beyond the power of hu,
man language to express. I ask neither
succor nor consolation"
! "Eh, eh,'' cried the old man. making
sound like the cry of a hawk. without
/ giving YOU a centime l will make you
richer than monarchs; more powerful
more respected than any constitutional
king can ever be. Turn around and be.
hold the Magic Skin"
The Magic Skin.
Valentine turned and saw hanging
against the wall piece of shagreen the
dimensions of which did not exceed those
of the skin of a small fox. BY some in
explicable phenomenon it threw a vivid
light into the gloom of the gallery.
Raphael went up to the pretended tails
man inwardly scoffing at it. Neverthe-
less, moved by a natural curiosity, he
carefully examined the piece of skin and
found that the black grains of the leather
were so highly polished. its many stripes
were so clearly defined that its granu-
lated roughness presented a thousand
little faces which vividly reflected the
rays of light.
Then turning the skin he exclaimed:
10 iS oF
Orientals call Solomon's seal" AS you
are evidently an orientahst, perhaps you
can read this inscription" said the old
man, bringing the lamp nearer.
Valentine read. inscribed on the skin
in Arabic, the following: IF thou pos
sessest me thou would possess ALL But
thy life would be my possession. Wish
and thou shalt obtain thy wishes. But
measure thy wishes by thy life. 1t is
here. At every wish of thine I shall
shrink like thy days. Dost thou de-
sire me? Take me-"
Noting the deep interest taken in the
Magic Skin by Raphael, the old man said
with cold irony: "Ah. he thinks no more
about dying! is it a mystery-or a
joke" asked Raphael.
I cannot tell was the slow reply.
Il have offered that skin to many,
but none would take it. I have never
tested it myself I have been poor. like
you; I have begged my bread. Never
theless 1 have attained the age of 1O2
years and am millionaire Misfortune
gave me wealth, ignorance taught me.
VIII and Action.
'No-I have never tested the skin
will reveal to you, in a few words, the
great mystery of human life Man ex-
haUsts himself by two instructive acts,
which dry up the sources of his exist
ence. Two verbs express all forms in
which these causes of death appear, Will
and Action.
Here, in this Magic Skin, are Will and
Action combined; here are your social
ideas. your incorporate desires. your
joys that kill. your sufferings that make
life too vivid-for it may he that pain
is only violent pleasure-who shall de-
termine the point where pleasure becomes
evil and where evil is still a joy? The
word Wisdom is synonymous with
Knowledge. and what is folly II not the
exCesses of Desire or Will?
Yes, hut I choose to live in such ex-
cesses.'' cried Valentine, snatching the
Magic Skin from its nail. Come, let us
see will to have a royal dinner, a ban
quet that shall outrival anything of its
kind seen before. I will that my fellow
guests be young and witty and joyous
to excess. That the night shall be adorn-
ed with ardent women! I will to have a
drunken saturnalia, the echoes of which
shall sound through Paris"
The old man laughed. do you think
to see my floors open and bring up a
table sumptuously served by beings of
another world?" said he. mo, rash
youth, you have signed the compact; you
be gratified. but-at the cost of your life!
The circle of your days wifi be measured
by this skin. which will shrink according
to the number and strength of your de-
sires, from the least to the greatest.
After all you wish to die, do you not?
Your suicide is only postponed"
Valentine thought the old man was jest
ing with him and said: Il will take the
skin and see If. by the time reach the
bridge my luck changes. II I find you
have not been jesting at the expense Of
a miserable man, shall revenge myself
on you by wishing that you fall madly in
love with a ballet girl" So saying he
thrust the skin-which showed marvellous
fexibilities-into his pocket. and left the
place.
Three Callow Youths.
AS Valentine rushed from the door Of
the shop he ran violently against three
young men who were passing along arm
in arm. They proved to be young men
whom he had known while he was play