Year: 1879

| more. In que Clme Sno saw the WALL


of the palace in the distance. Ihey


had risen with marvellous quickness


under the hands of the workmen, anG


now, on the outside and inside, mel


skilled in all curious workmanship


were busily engaged. And long before


the palace was finished everybody wa.


talking about it. q, ~; - .s--


This was by no means unpleasant tc
Adam Crook, for he suddenly found


himself both admired and envied by
many; but he took the greatest delight


in thinking how soon the palace and it:


beautiful surroundings would be con


cealed from all the world by the high


wall and locked gates. No one dreamed


that ere long all that wealth of beauty


was to be hidden from sight. No one


suspected Adam Crooks plan. And sc


the lovers of beauty were almost wild


over the ponds and fountains and


groves and birds and flowers.


"Adam Crook is not only blessing


himself" they said, "but all, others


for the rich and the poor-all of them


who have taste for beauty-will be


satisfied. and it will cost them nothing


To delight their souls they will only


have to go on the hill and walk around


the palace, and they will have as much


joy in it as if it were their own. Many


time, no doubt, they will have the
free range of the grounds and of the


palace, too, for now that Adam has
grown SO generous to himself he will


be generous to others. But even those
who never pass the gates will be bathed
in beauty, for the trees and the birds
OF rich and varied plumage that sit in
ho h~o~ahae L. -
hue and odor, and the ponds where
the snowy swans float, all will be spread
out before them. Blessed be Adam
Crook for what he has done for man.
kind" ......-..,


The lovers of beauty were the first to
be disappointed, but they were more
puzzled than disappointed as the walls
rose higher and higher. For some
time after Adam Crook moved into his
palace the town was all alive with talk
about him, but as neither he nor his
palace could be seen any more, people
ceased by and by to trouble themselves
even to think about him. r...-,1.


After year or two, however, his wife
began to trouble herself with most
anxious thought, for the rolls of fat that
had enwrapped his bones were fast dis
appearing. In short, he was as thin as
a ghost. ..........-...


At first he closed his eyes to it, as if
determined not to see the great change;
but his wife saw it. Every day she OBJ
served some new loss of flesh and won
dered what the end would be. He was
still firm in his decision to have moth
ing to do with mankind. But physi-
clans were sent for, and they came
from far and near, and the heavy iron
gates were unlocked to let them in.
Then each one looked as wise as he
could and examined Adam Crook g
tongue and felt of his pulse. And then
they all resolved themselves into q kind
of council to consider and decide upon
the facts of his case. They soon came
to the unanimous conclusion that he
was-uery thin! Of that they were sure,
but they were not quite so sure what to
do for him. And yet it was necessary
to do something. ~ l'-'' -


s"We must prescribe for him." they
said to each other. So they opened
their saddle-bags and their well-stuffed
morocco cases and prepared bitter and
sweet compounds, hoping that some
one of the remedies would reach Adam
Crooks case. Having done the best
they could, they informed their patient
that he would either grow thinner or
fatter very soon. and left.


Poor Adam Crook did not grow fat
ter; he grew thinner, and Miriam was
greatly distressed for him. Flesh and
fowl and fruit. soups and broths, and
all nourishing things were set before
him and he partook freely of all, but
they put no fat on his bones. r2E


L
to herself. "His staring bones will
soon come through his flesh. He looks
even now like q manikin. He has
everything that money can buy and yet
one would think he was dying of star
vation." r-.-e -af


The sight of his own emaciated body
at last began to affect Adam Crooks
spirits. He grew very melancholy,
and although he lived in little world
of beauty and abundance-a world
built with his own money-he lost all
power even to smile, and his wife and
children lived in the shadow that his
presence made. - -F=z,'.-.i


After awhile it was rumored outside
of the palace walls, and in the city
where Adam lived before he separated
himself from his race, that he had
grown very singular and even frightful
in his appearance. This made every
body very anxious to see him. And
several of the most daring urchins in
town took it into their heads that they
would be the first to get glimpse Of
the strengthening man. But that
wall was in the way, and they
knew that whole army of men could
not batter it down or climb to the top.
1t occurred to them, however, that they
could make ladder long enough TO
reach at least very nearly to the top of
the wall; so they set themselves to work
to construct one; but when it was fin
ished it proved to be only thirty feet
long, and as the wall was sixty feet
high the ladder was failure. But,
one after another, they climbed the
ladder to test its soundness and
and when they could go no
further, what was their surprise to find
suddenly caught up, as if
by a whirlwiRd, and carried to the very
top of the wall. There fairy sudden
ly appeared to them.


IL am the fairy Benevolent" she
said. 81 brought you up here. and
now look yonder, under that tree, and
you will see how Adam Crook enjoys
himself" sr1..L


The eager eyes of the boys were at
once directed to the tree, and there,
under its broad-spreading branches,
sat, in moody silence. the man they
had SO longed to see. But he was hard
ly the semblance of man, for the
cheeks, once plump and round, now
hung down like empty bags, as did the
clothes he had on, and his sunken eyes
were fixed on the ground, while he
moved restlessly under some hidden