His Mother

——

698 IMPROVEMENT ERA.

when exposed to sunlight, and give off the light when removed to a dark room. Calcium sulphide, fluorite, and certain dolomites be- — come luminous when heated the effect of heat here appearing as light. Numerous substances, when electrified, become sources of light. Doubtless there are forces operating around us the charac- teristics of which we have -not yet learned; and these unknown forces may be convertible into the commoner manifestations with which we are familiar. Is it not reasonable to infer, in the ab-

sence of definite knowledge, that radium possesses the property of absorbing energy in forms known or unknown, and of radiating or emitting such as light, heat, Becquerel rays, and the like? The discovery of the Roentgen rays made certain that' hitherto un- known forces, or hitherto unrecognized manifestations of energy, are operating, and certain bodies may be responsive to such forces, thus producing phenomena inexplicable to us because of our ignor- ance of the nature of the forces themselves.

HIS MOTHER. {For the Improvement Era.)

Her form was bent, her eyes were dim, But beamed with lustrous light on him. He held her hand within his own, Saying, "For thee I've worked alone. My mother." Her boy, —no longer boy but man, Although like boy's, his laugh still rang, Told of the strife to carve his name Within the halls of living fame, To cheer the heart of her he loved His mother.

How he had longed for this glad day. When he could go to her and say: "A man's success is ne'er so sweet. As when he lays it at the feet Of her who's been his guiding star. His mother!" —Grace Ingles Frost. Salt Lake City.