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Show AARY GfWIWA BONNER. I COM lJ OH IT 11 It" PlttfW UNION OLD FATHER ATLAS David had met the famous Father Atlas where he lived in the mountains moun-tains named after him in Africa. "Not only will you see me, but youll meet a lot of your friends here, as well as make some new ones," Father Atlas told him. "Equator is so anxious that you should come to call on him. Then you're going to meet Torrid Zone. He has a grand time around Africa. The Trade Winds sent word that they were sorry they were busy blowing away from this continent toward the new world and so they couldn't come to see you. "You know how Trade Winds are they're not so very busy and it seems to keep them from getting around much. That's often the way with creatures who aren't so busy never have the time for anything." "I'll be glad to see Equator again," David said, ."and it is fun to meet you once more. You were just wandering about before." "That's because I'm Father Atlas and so my name gives me that permission. per-mission. My mountains can't move. David Had Met the Famous Father Atlas. Can't move my home about you know." "Do you like your home?" David asked. "Did you choose It for yourself?" your-self?" A frown came over the face of Atlas. At-las. "Maybe you know, or maybe you don't know about some of the old Greek myths. I was supposed to have supported the heavens In another place, about which they're all uncertain, un-certain, before I came here. If they don't know where it was I'm not going go-ing to tell them. It was a punishment punish-ment making me hold up the sky, and turning me into a mountain, too, and if they are confused about it I'm not going to set them straight. I hope it will be forgotten. "I don't want to talk about my punishments. pun-ishments. It's no sort of a pleasant conversation. The accounts of why I was punished vary greatly, too." "I won't speak of it again," David assured Father Atlas. Atlas smiled. "Oh, I must tell you how the rain acts here," he said, as though to change the subject at once. "Part of It creeps underground to the edge of the great desert and feeds springs so that date trees grow. "The rain loves to feed the springs in this way and the little springs Just love It They're young, you know, and It's such a treat to them. It's always al-ways nice to be treated." "I like to be treated to ice cream sodas," David said. "The springs don't ask for anything as fancy as that," Atlas grinned, "but they do like a little water. "It's partly because of those Trade Winds that the Sahara desert can't get rain from the Atlantic. And the east winds which reach Sahara must come over the deserts of southwest Africa. So you can see for yourself how much chance Sahara has of getting get-ting much water." "Does Sahara care?" "Not much! As we often say to him: "'Sandy (that's our name for him), Sandy, old boy. you are more contented con-tented with nothing than anything or anyone we've ever seen.' "But I mustn't stop you any longer. long-er. Sandy Sahara Is expecting you. Just go south. Y'ou can't miss your host. I hope to see you when I'm attending at-tending to map duties away from home some other time, Just as I met you before." "That would be great," David answered an-swered enthusiastically. He had always al-ways liked Father Atlas. |