The Silent Readers Part 25

I am more deadly than bullets, and I have wrecked more homes than the mightiest of siege guns.

I steal in the United States alone over $300,000,000 each year.

I spare no one, and find my victims among the rich and poor alike, the young and old, the strong and the weak; widows and orphans know me.

I ma.s.sacre thousands upon thousands of wage-earners in a year.

I lurk in unseen places, and do most of my work silently. You are warned against me, but you heed not.

I am relentless. I am everywhere; in the home, on the street, in the factory, at railroad crossings, and on the sea.

I bring sickness, degradation and death, and yet few seek to avoid me.

I destroy, crush and maim; I give nothing, but take all.

I am your worst enemy.

I AM CARELESSNESS.

If a foreign army should land upon our sh.o.r.es, it could not wreak more destruction than this. If such an army should come and any American were found to be giving it aid, he would be called a traitor to his country. Every patriot would rise against such a foe.

The spirit of carelessness in the United States is really a greater enemy than any foreign invader, and it is found in millions of little unconscious acts of carelessness. Whenever you, yourself, commit such an act, therefore, you really range yourself as an enemy of your country, but if you begin earnestly to watch your actions and to form new habits of carefulness, you will be helping our great nation to become safer, healthier, happier, and more useful to humanity. This is the spirit of true patriotism.

If, then, you are determined to try with all your might to form these new habits of carefulness, the first great step toward preventing fire will have been taken.

--_National Board of Fire Underwriters._

QUESTIONS

When you have finished reading, write the answers to these questions. If you can not answer immediately, find the answer somewhere in the story, but do not read it all again; read only enough to get the correct answer.

1. What two reasons can you find to account for the greater loss by fire in the United States than in Europe?

2. Which of these two reasons can be the more quickly removed?

Which one can you help to remove?

3. What other bad results besides fires come from our great national sin?

4. Do you think it is fair to call a careless person unpatriotic?

Why?

A MEMORY TEST

Can you memorize by one careful reading these five lines which tell of the great result of a small piece of carelessness?

For want of a nail the shoe was lost; For want of a shoe the horse was lost; For want of the horse the rider was lost; For want of the rider the battle was lost; For want of the battle a kingdom was lost.

CALIPH FOR ONE DAY

This story, "Caliph for One Day," is a tale from "The Arabian Nights". If you have never read this story, you will find it very interesting. Of course you have heard of Ali Baba, and of Aladdin with his wonderful lamp, and of the Old Man of the Sea.

Your teacher would like to know which of you have read any of the "Arabian Nights" tales and which of these tales you have read.

You ought to try to read such stories as this rapidly. To some extent the rapidity with which you read is a habit. Every one forms his own habits; and if you will try hard you can form habits that will be useful to you as long as you live. One of these habits is that of reading rapidly.

The sun was just setting, and its last rays gilded the roofs and towers of the City of Bagdad, on the river Tigris; and far away, also, on the ripples of the river fell the evening light, and the numerous boats and s.h.i.+ps which moved about on the surface of the water seemed to plough through melted gold. On the railing of a high bridge which led over the Tigris leaned a young man, who now turned his face towards the sparkling water, now towards the people pa.s.sing over the bridge. His attention, however, appeared to be given less to the inhabitants of the city than to those who might be taken for strangers through their appearance and behavior. The eyes of many a pa.s.ser-by were turned also upon him, and it seemed many times as if one or another of them wished to approach him. But a stern, repelling glance from the young man had the effect, each time of making them go on their way after a slight hesitation, shaking the head.

Suddenly two men drew near. The first of them seemed, judging from his clothing, to be a rich business man from the city of Mussal; the second, who followed him at some distance, was apparently his servant.

When the man waiting upon the bridge saw them come up to him, he straightened up and went to meet them. Greeting respectfully the man who was apparently a merchant, he said: "Sir, if, as I a.s.sume, you are a stranger in this city, I beg you to come home with me and sleep in my house."

As the stranger seemed rather taken by surprise, he continued: "I am called 'Queer Abu Ha.s.san', and live in my own house. I have made it my duty for some time to take a stranger home with me every evening as my guest, and entertain him there as well as I can until the following morning. You would do me a great honor if you would accept my invitation."

The stranger was no one else than the Caliph Harun Alras.h.i.+d, who was thus caught on one of his favorite wanderings through the city accompanied by one of his slaves.

After a few kindly words he agreed, called his servant to him, and both joined Abu Ha.s.san, who soon brought them to his house not far away. Here he bade them lie down and make themselves at home. Soon a servant appeared and brought their supper. It consisted of several well prepared dishes, and seemed to please both strangers very well. All kinds of fruit were placed upon the table for dessert, and after the meal was finished they had a lively conversation, in which Abu Ha.s.san's mother took part when she came in to greet the guests. Although neither she nor her son had any idea of the lofty position of their guest, they bustled around him so pleasantly and kindly that Harun stretched himself out comfortably on a divan and took his share in the talk with real enjoyment. At last the Caliph requested Abu Ha.s.san to tell him his history. And so the host of the evening began as follows:

"I am the son of a very rich merchant, who died only too young, and I had a good education as a boy. But if my father made any mistake at that time, it was that he gave me very little money, and so prevented my learning how to spend more wisely, which must really be learned in order to be done properly. So, after his death, I devoted myself to this occupation with a number of other young fellows, and enjoyed myself at such a rate that I soon had got rid of a great part of my property. Fortunately I saw soon enough the abyss into which my way of living must lead me. For this reason I drew back, but first decided to test my friends and see whether they were true or not. I told them that I had gone through all my money, and asked them to help me. Not one of them gave me a rea.s.suring answer. Furthermore, they avoided me, and acted on the street as if they had never known me. This contemptible behavior hurt me so deeply, that I came near to hating the whole human race. But after I had lived a long time in melancholy loneliness, I pulled myself together again, and decided to go out among people once more. I promised myself, however, never again to invite a friend, but only strangers, and never to keep one longer than one night in my house, and if I ever saw them again to act as if I had never seen them. So this evening, just before I saw you, I turned away from several persons who had been my guests before, and who were about to speak to me."

The Caliph laughed, and said: "No one can blame you under such circ.u.mstances, and because of your extraordinary experience."

After Abu Ha.s.san's mother had retired the young man brought out a bottle of his best wine, and presented a gla.s.s of it to the Caliph, after first politely tasting it. The Caliph drank to him, and asked Abu if he could not do him a favor in return for his kind hospitality. But Abu answered with a smile: "You understand, sir, that I do not count upon recognition, and to-morrow morning will not know you any more."

"That's so," laughed Harun; "but I had forgotten it. You can, however, pay no further attention to me if you wish, and yet if it is distasteful to you to ask a favor for yourself, request a helping hand to be given to somebody else."

"Sir," cried Abu Ha.s.san, "my friends were not of the quality that I would want to do anything for them, nor will I harm them, either. So I would not know what wish I could make. But wait!" he broke out suddenly. "There is one wish which I have often thought of and will tell you of, although you cannot fulfil it, and perhaps will find it extremely ridiculous. But you will at least understand why people call me 'Queer Abu Ha.s.san'."

"Let's hear it," said the Caliph.

Abu Ha.s.san sighed, and announced: "Just for one day I would like to be Caliph."

"And what influences you to this wish?" asked Harun. "Would you carry out some important law in the State? Or look out for yourself immediately?"

"Neither one nor the other," answered Queer Abu Ha.s.san. "I would just like to have some scamps among my neighbors thoroughly beaten."

"And you would like to be caliph merely for this purpose?" laughed Harun Alras.h.i.+d.

"Certainly, sir," replied Abu Ha.s.san, "because I cannot get a suitable punishment measured out to them in any other way. Since they are rascals, they would easily get away from the judge to whom I might denounce them."

"Do you think so?" asked the Caliph.