that time all the nobles of the Court wore
powdered wigs, and the quick-witted iron-master said to himself: 'I
will get some of this clay, sift it very fine, do it up in packages,
and sell it for powdering the hair; thus I will make my fortune.'
Accordingly his servants dug some of the clay, and after it had been
carefully sifted through cloth, he put it upon the market as a new
wig-powder. Now in those days the more well-to-do persons had several
wigs or at least two, in order that while the one was being worn the
other might be sent away to the hair-dresser's to be curled and
powdered. Therefore, in the course of time it chanced that Boettger's
servant, like others, sent away his master's wig to have it freshened
up. When it came back it was beautifully dressed and was powdered with
some of the iron-master's new powder. It looked very fine indeed, and
Boettger had no fault to find with it until he took it up to put it on
his head; then he observed that it was strangely heavy. 'What's this!'
he cried to his servant. 'What have you been doing to my wig, rascal?'
Terror-stricken the servant protested that he had done nothing.
Boettger carried the wig into his laboratory that he might examine it
more carefully, and he soon came to the conclusion that the weight of
the article lay in the powder. He therefore shook it off and set to
work to analyze it. What was his surprise to find the powder a white
mineral substance of which he knew nothing. You may be sure he was not
long in tracking down the hair-dresser and learning from him where he
got his new powder. Next he went to the Saxon iron-master and bought
from him a great quantity of the stuff, after which the chemist shut
himself up in his laboratory to try out the new material. Think how
excited he must have been! And think how much more excited he was when
he found that this mysterious white clay was the substance for which
he had so long been searching!"

[Illustration: "HIS SERVANTS DUG SOME OF THE CLAY"]

"Kaolin?" gasped Theo.

"Kaolin!"

The room was very still; then Theo stammered hurriedly:

"And what happened next?"

"Well, you can imagine the joy the discovery brought; but it was a
carefully stifled joy, for with all his delight Boettger was far too
discreet to allow his wonderful discovery to travel outside the
confines of his laboratory. When the Elector Augustus was told the
news at his Dresden palace near by he was wild with delight, and
immediatel