Show t L THE QUARREL One night when the house was very still tho the ink alii and anil I tho tim bottle began gan to talk h Tho The blotter said ld tho the Ink thinks It Is IB very wise when whoa really all aU It knows It gets from inc me That Is true said Mid tho the bottlo boUlo What hat would It do If we did lid not put on paper the things things' M ho lie absorbs You my d dear ar bottle said s-ild tho the Ink what hat do you have havo to do with the things I 1 put on p pcr All you have havo to todo todo do 10 Is to hold inc you do not have any knowledge kno of tho great at thoughts that I put You me mo taking great groat liberties lib 1 hib- hib trues with m my friendship for or you Your friendship for mc me laughed tho the bottlo Rather I should say m my m friendship for fOI you Where hero would you rou roub b bo If Ir I did not hold you ou Why you would run alt all over the tho d' d desk and bomo bo- bo mo nothing but a n big spot What nr arc aro you ou two quarreling quarrel about 1 asked the pen Neither of or you OU could do a thing without me mc 1 I put pul down Iown tho the wise things on paper The Ink of or course e. e helps help hut but th bottlo hot hot- tic has hns nothing to do lb with it It 11 and ami If It It held paint I 1 could put down my thoughts thought Just justs as s well with that I am the thc ono who Is master masler hero and the theone theone theone one one to be looked upon Ullon as us being great groat Is that so said s the tho penholder Who ho holds you ou so y you ou can put you great reat thoughts on paper I should like to o know Little use tiso you yoli OU would be llo If IC Ivert I wore vert not hero here to guide you ou and I should think all of you could eMIl easily see sec that I am tho the one of greatest Importance Im- Im on this desk What Is all alt this talk tolk about naked asked the ho writing paper Who h holds sway here If It not I 1 Little use all nil of you would be If It I Wore not nol here Who Vho shows up tip your our thoughts and carries earris them out Into the world I should like to o know h Why I am ani older than titan an any of you and of or much more Importance it I Is I who am ani to he ho looked upon as greatest among you OU You arc are a conceited old thing tiling re replied replied replied re- re plied the pen and If it I could get gd at you I would scratch cratch you HO so no one Olle n would ho able ablo to read lead anything you had put on your our white surface s Tho The very Idea of saying saving you are arc more moro Important Im Im- than thai I am ant Than we are arc you jou ou mean my dear said tho the penholder lienholder No I do 10 not said aId the pen I 1 mean that 1 I am nm greatest test here Trove Prove It then said salti tho the holder hohler dropping the pen and rolling off oi the desk on to the tho main floor The pen lay on Its back blek be beside the paper P who now saw gaw that tho ho pen was unable to be bo of oC use uKe a. a as a- ait It was also and began to 10 Kf pe that Its It surface would be lie blank without the help of ot tho ho penI pen heIr that i iam I l guess uess you ou all will wll soon see nm am nm the one r all aU said let the tho Ink I Ican Icat i iam am cat make myself seen without the aid of or tho the paper or the thc pen I 1 am SUI SURe suns e i could COUll get on without either of you You mean that wo wn could do 10 great things said bald thu bottle You will iii alas al always iii- iii ways as need mo roe mo my dear you OU know to hold you OU but we can get et on without the paper or the pen pern I mean nothing of tho sort sorl said R. the Ink you add nothing to m my mi greatness greatness great great- n ness ss a and 1111 I wish you OU would not speak to mo nm's again toR W We will see seo O about that said the Iho bottle snapping with anger and outran out outran ran the he Ink all over the thc desk leek and the tho writ writing In paper There the they all lay perfectly useless tho the bottle broken the Ink wasted tho the paper spoiled and tho the pen broken The blotter about which all tho the trouble began hgan had said not a word and quietly lIsten listened r to lo all that was said und when It was ended absorbed all the time Ink It could and In lay with the others oth nih- ers ers useless Whon When tho ho maid came In the tho morning morningto to put pul tho the desk In order she sho ho picked up th thc lbs holder threw throw awn awa tho the old pen pel and ald put In itt a n new one Thon Then she he threw away th time the broken ink bottle awl and pul pUI fresh Ink In another bottle The paper was thrown Into tho the wastebasket waste wastebasket basket and amid even oven th the blotter who hut had nothing to do 10 with nil all tho the quarrel went Into the basket ket also If lf the thc they hail had alt all been willing to do their work and not wanted to ho I thought of or greater reater Importance Orlan than I they he really were all would have V gone ona I w well wail ll and each would have ha been equally equal equal- I ly Important In Its own t way Rut But their quarrel for supremacy mac not only overthrew th themselves but hut the Ito In Innocent Innocent innocent In- In blotter r. r who had not a n word ord to toI I say I all through tho the quarrel Copyright 1915 1913 h by the tIme McClure News paper r S Syndicate Now New t City |