instaking in his researches. Finally he was able to tell
the king's whereabouts on every day of his career, except for two weeks
in 1538.

Then friends assured him that he had done his best. In all probability
nothing of importance happened during those days. But the historian
believed in being thorough to the end. So he delayed publication. For
fifteen years he sought news of the missing fortnight. Finally, and
reluctantly, when he was seventy-five years old, he published the book.

At length an American woman, studying in the archives of Spain, having
learned of the lost days, resolved to find them. Among musty documents,
in many libraries, she toiled. Then, by a woman's intuition, she was led
to look for documents of a sort the Spanish historian had never thought
of. And she found where the king was on some of those days. The news was
sent to the historian, just in time for him to make additions to his
inaugural address to be delivered on taking his seat in the Academy of
History. In this address he rejoiced to give full credit for the
discovery to the American.

But the woman was not satisfied; there was still a gap to be filled. She
made further trials, and failed. Again intuition led her to documentary
sources that had hardly been touched since they were filed away nearly
three hundred years before. She succeeded, and now that bit of history
is complete.

A well known writer for young people was also persistent in tracing a
story to its source. When he came to America from his native Holland he
heard for the first time the story of the Dutch hero who stopped the
hole in the dike, a story unknown in Holland. He resolved to prove or
disprove this. The record of his long search was published later. Not
only did he prove the existence of the boy, but he proved that the boy's
sister was a partner in the heroic deed. Thus the helpful story has been
saved for future generations.

These incidents make interesting reading. But do they not do more?
Surely it is unnecessary to urge the lesson of persistence in a task
seriously undertaken. Often there is temptation to slight some
worth-while task, after one has worked on it painstakingly for a time.
"Why pay so much attention to detail?" is asked. "Surely no real harm
will be done if I give less time to some of these things that seemed so
important at the beginning!"

Fortunately there are multitudes of workers who are constitutionally
unable to slight a task. The proo