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KN ' JLy \ ' r v \ ,HE reign of Herod had nearly ended when the Magi arrived in Jerusa­ lem and asked: "Where la he that ia born king of the Jews? For we have seen his Btar in the east, and are come to worship him." The news that a true "king of the Jews," a possible rival, was born, and that his birth had been herald­ ed by celestial phenomena, caused Herod much concern. He summoned to him the scribes and learned men. When they were questioned where the king was to' be born they answered: "In Bethlehem of Judea; for thus it Is written by the prophet, And thou, Bethlehem, in the land of Juda, art not the least among the princes of Juda; for out of thee shall come a governor, that shall rule my people Israel." According to the authorized version It is then stated in the New Testament that "Herod, when he had privily called the wise men, inquired of them diligently what time the star appeared. And he sent them to Bethlehejp, and said, Go and search diligently for the young child; and when we have found him, bring me word again, that I may come and worship him also. When they had heard the king, they da parted; and lo, the star, which they saw in the east, went before them, til l i t came and stood over where the young child was. When they saw the star, they rejoiced with exceeding great joy." That Is the whole story of the Star of Bethle­ hem as It is simply and directly told In the sec­ ond chapter of the gospel according to 8t. Mat­ thew. It was a cloister fancy of the dark ages, hand­ ed down through centuries, that led the Chris- tlon world to regard the Star of the East as a miraculous luminary, akin to the pillar of fire that guided the children of Israel In the wilder­ ness--a luminary especially created for the Bole purpose of leading the Magi to the birthplace of Christ. The modern Christian 1b more apt to regard the star as a natural phenomenon and DEALERS ARE WILLING TO HAN­ DLE THE PRISON MADE TWINE. WVLDEî AP BREWER IS NAMED PRESIDENT Ripon Man Is Elected to Head the Wisconsin Association at Final Session of Meeting Held in Milwaukee. Madison.--A. D. Brewer, Ripon, was ; elected president of the Wisconsin Re- | tail Implement and Vehicle Dealers ' association at the final session at its annual convention in the Auditorium, Milwaukee. Other officers are: Vice-president, J . B. WatBon, Fond du Lac; secretary and treasurer, F. R. Sebenthall , Eau Claire. The directors are E B. Rob- bins, Eau Claire, and J. H Waite, Sey­ mour, ^nd the freight auditing com­ mittee is composed of R. L. Nash, Grand Rapids; Walter Miller, Stanley, and F. R. Sebenthall , Eau Claire. The association voted to hold its next annual convention in Milwaukee the second week in December of next year. The association indorsed the propo­ sition of the Manufacturers ' National association offering assistance to the Wisconsin organization in organizing clubs of retailers in every county, and the National Retail Implement Deal­ ers ' association. It recommended a law providing for penny postage. It also advised members to take policies in the Minnesota Retail Implement Dealers ' Fire Insurance association. The retailers have always been op posed to the prison twine industry, but now that the state has engaged in it they are willing to handle the product providing they are permitted to make a fair profit . Ralph E. Smith, presi­ dent of the board of control, explained the plan of the state, and the presi­ dent was authorized to appoint a com­ mittee of three to meet the board In January, *o discuss plans of marketing the product ! Heavy Mortality Record. Every day of the year averages 141 births in Wisconsin, and every day 15 babies under one die, according to a report of the state board of health, submitted to the governor. In the year ending June 30 the board issued approximately 220,000 birth, death and marriage certificates. In a lit t le over two years 288 have been treated for rabies at the Pasteur institute. Five cases were caused by bites by human beings, one by a pet coyote, and 2n6 by dogs. In 1911 contagious diseases reported In the state numbered: Diphtheria, 2,- 286; typhoid, 1,039; measlfes, 4 ,678; smallpox, 527, and tuberculosis, 928. The report blames physicians for neg­ lect in reporting cases of tuberculosis and points to the fact that Milwaukee county reported only 641 cases while the mortality report shows 599 deaths. Based on the usual mortality rate of 20 per cent. , the board says, at least 12,000 cases of tuberculosis should have been reported from Milwaukee. j&y?- &&&- 7V VtXWP to seek a scientific explanation of i ts sudden appearance, not for the purpose of casting doubt upon the narrative of Matthew, but of giv­ ing it astronomical support. Who were those wise men, these Magi, of whom St. Matthew speaks? They came from the east, they said. and the east, according to the geo­ graphical knowledge of Matthew's day, was Chaldea, Persia, and that Arabian des­ ert where the sons of Ishmael roamefl/ In that east of which they spoke, star-gazing was to some nations a religious observation, to others a mystical traditional rite. The pseudo-science of astrology out of which our modern science of astronomy was slowly evolved was thus engen­ dered. Exegetes of the New Testament narra­ tive hold these Magi to have been astrologers, members of that strange, non-national, privi­ leged priesthood whose office i t was to watch the sky each day and each night, to note the position and apparent motion of the sun from dawn to dark, and to predict those changes In planetary positions which. In that day of as­ trological Buperstlt ion, were supposed to shape and revoai the destinies of kings and nations. In them science came an early worshipper at the feet of Christ. To ancient as well as mediaeval astrologers, certain groupings of the stars and planetB had a fixed prophetic significance. The planets were named In accordance with their supposed Influence. Mercury, always lurking near the sun, furtively gleaming in the morning or eve­ ning. was the patron of tricksters, knaves, and thieves. Mars, flaming in red, was the symbol of war. the guardian of heroes and warriors. If the Magi were astrologers who believed in stellar Influences, the apparition of the Star of Bethlehem must have been an astronomical phenomenon. But no ordinary astronomical phenomenon could have enticed these practiced •tar-gazers from their temples. We must, there­ fore, And some celestial event sufficiently extra­ ordinary to warrant a Journey from Chaldea or Persia to Bethlehem. " When the Magi arrived in Jerusalem, Herod was within a few weeks of his death. The mas­ sacre of the babes of Bethlehem was one of his last cruel deeds When he inquired diligently what time the star appeared, the reply was evi­ dently such that he felt i t necessary to kill all male infants "from two years old and under." ft Is probable, therefore, that the Magi first 6aw the star two years before their arrival In Jeru­ salem. Herod died In B. C. 4. Hence the Star of Bethlehem must have appeared about two years before that date. We must discover, If we can, an exceptional stellar event near B. C. 6 with which it may be identified. Johann Kepler, in his peculiar genius (for he showed that the births of Enoch, Moses, Cyrus. Caesar, Charlemagne, and Luther were preceded by important astrological events), led the way In calling attention to the astronomical phenomena that preceded the birth of Christ. He pointed out that there must have been a conjunction of the planets Jupiter and Saturn at about the time of Christ 's birth, and even made a few pre­ liminary calculations to prove his case. The con- Junction occurred in the sign PlsceB. from time immemorial Identified with the destinies of Israel. A conjunction In that sign always signi­ fied the rising of Bome mighty master of the Jewish race. Such a conjunction of Jupiter and Saturn occurs once In about 800 years. It was, therefore, sufficiently extraordinary in Kepler s eyes to herald the birth of a Messiah. Not until 1826 was Kepler 's suggestion seri­ ously considered by astronomers. In that year Professor Ideler, of Berlin, computed the posi­ t ions of Jupiter and Saturn and proved that they were actually In conjunction in 7 B. C His <al culatlons showed that they at no time over­ lapped to form a single star, but that they were separated by a distance equal to the apparent diameter of the ntoon. Accordingly, Ideler had the temerity to suppose that the wise men saw the two planets as one star, because they wt-r« miraculously near-sighted. In justice to Ideler. ! t must be stated that he abandoned his theory when Encke, in 1831. repeated the calculations and found that the actual distance between Jui> 1 - ter and Saturn, wheAnearest each other In B C. 7. was more than thA apparent diameter of the moon. Apart from the fact that Jupiter a n d S a t u r n were never sufficiently near each other to b»« s een a s one body , two p l ane t s i n c o n j u n c t i o n can hardly be called a star. Nor is it l ikely that experienced Chaldean astrologers would so re­ gard it . Moreover, there were other planetary conjunctions at about the same time. Professor Stockwell has demonstrated that a conjunction of Venus and Mars occurred on May 8th, B C. 6. about fifty days less than two years before Herod's death. Because the mandate for the <2r/z£*z>(2& slaughter of the Infants was Issued some time before Herod's death. Pro­ fessor Stockwell advances the suppo­ sition that this conjunction was the Star of Bethlehem. Since conjunc­ tions occurred so frequently, i t is difficult to understand why more of them did not call forth Chaldean or Persian deputations Because of these fatal objections to any theory which regarded the Star of Bethlehem merely as a con­ junction of two planets, the late Prof. R. A. Proctor cast about for other celestial phenomena and final­ ly decided that the wise men might have been guided by a comet. There is much to be said in favor of the supposition. Comets are discovered nowadays at the rate of two or three r year. Not all of them are particu­ larly brill iant; but It is not incon­ ceivable that In Biblical t imes com­ ets occasionally appeared that were brill iant enough to strike terror into superstit ious hearts. Indeed, before Edmund llalley proved that the law of gravitation applied to the comet which bears his name and which has revisited the earth at intervals of seventy-one and one-half to sev­ enty-nine years, comets were regard­ ed as divine messengers, as omens of good or evil , and particularly as harbingers of pestilence and war. To a poetic eastern peo­ ple who revered the stars as symbols especially set In the heavens for the guidance of men, comets were undoubtedly awesome visitors. The Chaldeans. Persians and Jews were astronomic­ ally no more enlightened than the mediaeval Christians, and if at the fall of Constantinople in 1453 all Christendom was alarmed at the ap­ pearance of a comet (a comet which we now know to have been Halleys), i t is highly prob­ able that the Orient was no less impressed by these sudden visitations. Comprising, as it does, a nucleus, a "coma' ' or envelope surrounding 'he nucleus and measuring from twenty thousand to one million miles in diameter, and a long tail which streams behind the nucleus for sixty to a hundred million miles or more, a comet is one of the most mysteriously beautiful celestial ap­ paritions that ever meets the eye. But whether or not the Star of Bethlehem really was such an apparition no one can affirm with certainty. An astronomer can merely state that the idea Is not untenable and that it is less objectionable than the conjunction hypothesis. Lastly, the theory has been proposed that the Star of Bethlehem was what is called a " new" star or "nova," a star which suddenly flares up in the heavens and fades away again to its former magnitude after the lapse of weoks or months. Such new Btars are not altogether rare. ; Ten appeared between B C. 134 and the end of i the fifteenth century. Since the fifteenth cen- j tury no less than sixteen have been recorded. In our own time they are discovered with fair frequency. Even before the invention of the telescope such new stars were studied by astronomers. Apart from the astronomical evidence in favor of the theory that the Star of Bethlehem was • nova, poetically, at least, i t seems singularly fit t ing that a matchless orb blazing forth In sud­ den magnificence should have marked not only th" birth of a Messiah whose destiny It was to save mankind by his own suffering and to make this a new world by purging it of evil , but also the birth of a new sun with embryonic planets wheeling about it in shining clouds of gas and stellar dust. Would Reorganize Board of Control. Reorganization of the state board of control, with advisory commissions. In order to improve the condition of the wards of the state, was urged by Rev. Walter F. Greeman, pastor of the South Side Community club in Milwau­ kee. "Experts in the administration of the wards of the state recognize two requirements of any proposed system ---efficiency and broad education," he said. "To handle the work efficiently involves humane care, economy to tax- payers and farsighted policy of social progress. The community must be ed­ ucated In the matter of existing condi­ tions and the best means of working toward the abolition of poverty, crime, preventable disease and insanity. * "The present board consists of five citizens, including one woman. Its members are from various walks of life, in no conspicuous way related to most of the services they are required to perform. They receive a salary of $2,500 annually. The board's duties include almost four times as much work as they can do as it should be done." After enumerate/, ' important duties of the board the speaker said that the state pays $12,500 to five persons and gives them permission to execute a job well worth $33,000. "The board should consist of five members, holding office during good behavior. One should he an expert in lunacy, one in penology, one in charity and one in finance, besides one named as president. The salary of each should be at least $4,000." Suggests Merger of State's Funds. The merger of at least seven funds into the state s general fund, a predic­ tion that tax remissions wiH be possi­ ble in 1913, a renewal of his recom­ mendation for the budget system of appropriations, a plea for a law re­ quiring appropriation bil ls to be sub­ mitted to the auditing department be­ fore passage in order to make them conform with present methods of state accounting, and a statement of the large increase in printing bills owing to the lailure to secure competitive bids are contained in the biennial re­ port of Secretary of State James A. Erear, submitted to the governor. Secretary Frear notes the fact that over $10,000,000 of state disburse­ ments are now audited by this depart­ ment annually, a duty devolving upon a state auditor in most other states. The total book disbursements for the fiscal year 1912 were $13,299,720.54. This amount has been incorrectly accepted by the uninformed as the actual expense of state government," says the secretary. "However, $1,931,. 519.69 of the total disbursements is for transfers or duplicate payments. Every appropriation from the general fund to another fund necessarily ap­ pears as a book disbursement. When this identical money is disbursed from the fund to which it was transferred, it again appears on the records as a disbursement." These items deducted from the total leaves the actual state expense at $8,060,224. Automobile license money, which is not retained for state pur­ poses; capitol construction funds and similar i tems should rightfully be de­ ducted also, maintains Secretary Prear. "Where comparisons can be made with states having similar laws in this particular," he continues, "it will be found that the administration of state affairs in Wisconsin is conducted as economically and efficiently as. in any other state of l ike population." The funds which Secretary Frear would havp merged with the general fund include the oil Inspection, state highway, fire marshal, forest reserve, grain and warehouse commission, for estry Investment, and the revolving fund. SELLS HER BLOOD Want More Highway Funds. ! The state highway commission will i ask the legislature to increase the an- j nual appropriation for state aid from I $350,000 per year to $800,000 for the , coming year and an additional appro- j priation thereafter of $1,000,000. For the coming year counties have I petitioned for state aid approximating | $900,000 and the funds available will 1 be lit t le more than one-third of that • amount. The commission feel that this deficiency should be met In the in- terest of the good roads movement. 'I t was also decided to ask the co-opera- ' t ion of the board of control in an ex­ perimental plan for the employment of prison labor In road building. I President Ralph Smith of the con­ trol board met with the commission j and said that the board would object i to any plan that involved employment of prisoners under armed guard, but that if an honor system might be de- J veloped he had lit t le doubt that the j plan could be made. The highway commission will hold a road school in Madison in February, to which all county road commission­ ers of the state will be invited for in­ formation and conference. National Guard May Receive Pay. The eyes of the Wisconsin National Guard are turned on Washington, for while the news dispatches have not conveyed the information that the militia pay bill Is to come up at the present session of congress. It never­ theless will , having been reported out of the committee favorably at the last session. National Guard officers throughout the country see the need of the bill to keep up the organization More work is being put on the guard every year and no compensation is "received except when the troops are in camp. Officers are required to attend drill , conduct company schools, keep up in correspondence school six months a year, take charge of range work, have the responsibility of thousands of dollars ' worth of property, have the burden of armory debts and must sup­ ply their own uniforms, meaning an outlay of at least $150, all without compensation. LIKE HAWAII AS STRONGHOLD Experts Satisfied That Outpost May Be Relied Upon to Hold Its Own In Conflict. After five weeks spent la testing the big guns of the various forts and posts on the island of Honolulu, the ord­ nance experts are pleased, and are declaring among themselves that as an outpost of the nation Hawaii is r^Uy bee inning to merit the title of "the Gibraltar of the, Pacific." Thp tests were' conducted byithe most Hm- portant board of experts ever as-, sembled to consider the military fenses of the islands, a letter to Jiie New York Sun says. It has been ascertained that the big guns so far in place are not only su­ perbly situated for purposes of defense against all naval attacks, and particu­ larly with reference to the great dry docks and naval station at Pearl harbor, now the greatest of i ts kind in all the Pacific, but the city of Honolulu. From all sea directions ithese important points are covered from attack. But it Is found that other guns and mortars mast be Implanted to secure these places against successful at­ tack from the land side in the doubt ful event of an enemy in any consider able numbers being able to effect a landing upon the coast outside the range of the big seven, eight and ten- Inch guns, and recommendation for and Increase in the number of bat­ teries will be made. The board of experts was composed of the following officers: Brig. Gen. M. M. Macomb. Lieut. Col. Joh:> F. Morrison. MaJ George Blakeson and MaJ. W. P. Wooten. "Genuine Antiques" Scarce. Buyers of antique furniture are ad vised by House and Garden that It ia now almost Impossible to "pick up'" genuine antiques in this country. State Dairymen Name Heads. ? The Wisconsin Dairymen's cbpven- tion, held at Ashland, Included ad­ dressed by Professors Ocock, Otis and Delwiche of the college of agriculture, also a lecture on co-operation among farmers by Senator Sanborn. A ban­ quet was given for the visitors and farmers from the surrounding coun­ try. At the election of officers E. C. Ja­ cobs, Elkmound, was elected presi­ dent; A. J. Glover, Fort Atkinson, sec­ retary; H. K. Loo mis, treasurer. Wilson's Lead Is 33,623. WToodrow Wilson, Democratic can­ didate for president, carried Wiscon­ sin by 33,623 votes over his nearest competitor, W. H. Taft. He carried It by 101,768 votes over Theodore Roosevelt. These figures were shown In the official returns on the presiden­ tial election completed at the office of the secretary of state. The total vote was: Wilson, 164,228; Taft, 130.605; Roosevelt, 62,460; Debs (Socialist), 88,481; Chapln (Prohibition), 2,586. Denied Right to Compensation. Inmates of penal institutions in this state are not entitled to com­ pensation when injured while at work because they are not "under any ap­ pointment, or contract of hire, ex­ press or implied." This was the decision made by the industrial commission following the application of Martin Hanlon, whose hand was cut off While he was work­ ing In the chair factory at the Mil­ waukee house of correction. "Was the applicant In this case an employe' within the meaning of that term as used In the compensation act." questioned the commission. "We think not. He was not in the service of the county under a con­ tract of hire, express or implied. His was Involuntary servitude--a service based on no express or im­ plied agreement, but upon the Judg­ ment of a court following conviction for jyr offense againBt a city ordi­ nance " New Wisconsin Corporations. Articles of incorporation filed: Van Arnam-Webster Art and Devel­ opment company, Madison; capital. $20,000; incorporators. Jane D Van Arnam, George H. WTebster, Adelia M. Webster. C Engel & 8ons, Mayvllle; capital, $20,000; Incorporators, Carl Engle, Sr.; John Engle, Frank Engle, Carl Engle, Jr. American Equipment company Mil­ waukee; capital, .>$20,000; incorpora­ tors, Valentine Bingenheimer Stephen R. Bradshaw, Oscar Marshall . William C. Wilson company Burl­ ington; capital, $125,000; Incorpora­ tors. H. C. Wilson, J H Wilson. W. S. Wilson. Henry C. Volkman company, Mil­ waukee; capital. $10,000; incorpora­ tors. H. C Volkman, Rose Volkman. Mabel Milbr&th. The Four Wheel Drive Aqto com­ pany of Clintonville filed an amend­ ment increasing its capital from $110,000 to $250,000. The Faust Lumber company, Antigo; capital. $100,000; incorporators, Cas­ per Faust, Edward P. Fault and J. H. Worden. Story of Mother's Heroism Comes Out When Hus­ band Arrested. WAS WITHOUT MONEY Deserted Wife In Destitute Circum­ stances Submits to Transfusion Operation In Order to Procure Food for Her Little Ones. Baltimore, Md--President-elect Wil­ son the other day signed requisition papers for a Baltimore detective to arrest Charles Leroy Brown, a glass blower, at Vineland, N. J^^ charged with desertiDg his wife and children in this city, and he became deeply In­ terested in the case when the de­ tective told him how, deserted by her husband, with no support for herself and seven-year-old boy twins and she ill In a hospital, the mother had given a quantity of her blood to obtain money for the twins' support. The story of the mother 's sacrifice became public when Detective Thomas Quirk returned from Vineland with Brown, who had been indicted by the grand jury for deserting his family. According to the detective. Brown disappeared in March and until three months ago the mother worked to provide for herself and children. Then she had to go to Johns Hopkins hos­ pital to become the mother of another During her illness her small savings dwindled until she had but a few pen­ nies left, and recently, while she was a patient, she sold a quantity of her blood for $25 to pay the board of her other children, who were being looked after by friends. Learning one day that a patient in another Institution was in a serious condition and that the only hope of the Burgeons was in transfusing Bome healthy blood into his body, Mrs. Brown offered to sell her blood. The surgeons made an examination, found her blood healthy and a vein in her left wrist was opened and the blood taken. Mrs. Brown stood the oper* tion well in a few weeks was able to leave the institution. In the meanwhile the ' case of the mother and children was brought tc the attention of the state 's attorney's office and the husband was located in Vineland. The authorities there re- fused to arrest the man, i t is said, and after*extradition papers had been pre- 1 A Vein Was Opened and the Blood Taken. pared Detective Quirk went to Bridge ton, N. J., where he swore out a war rant for Brown, went to Vineland, ar rested his man j,nd locked him up ta the Bridgeton Jail . He then went tc Princeton to have the papers honored by Governor Wilson. When asked if she would sell more of her blood for her children's sake Mrs. Brown said: "I love my children like all trut mothers should. I would sell more o my blood and would even sacrifice mj life if i t would keep them from suffer lng. My husband deserted me and ! was without money. I sold my blood, as that was the only way I could earc money to pay their board " Mrs. Brown Is a sweet-faced lit t le woman and while she talked she af fectionately patted her twin sons. Sh« is of slight build and weighs about 12( pounds. About five feet two lnchei tall , she has a gentle manner and is a favorite In her neighborhood None there knew of her plight, as she al ways smiled when she nu't them, as If she did not have a care In the world. Jests a# Surgeons Carve. Beaver Falls. Pa--While surgeons carved and sewed his feet during an operation at the Providence hospital J T Mecklin of Ell wood City lay on the tabi ' and jested with those around h::n For some time Mecklin had been afflicted with a disease of the veins in his feet, and the ailment 1 had become so serious that an oper- j ation was decided on. ^ hen the sur* geons were ready to begin the opera- J tion Mecklin refused to take an anesthetic of any kind a°d declared that they might proceed with their work, as he was not greatly concern ed over the pain He never whim pered during the operation, although the surgeons say it was of a very painful nature. Seeks Solace for Dead Cat. New Y o r k -- Disconsolate at the loe« of a pet cat, Miss Constance Ben tie j of Woodlaiul, Wellington, Somerset England, ^rrlved here tor a short tour in ?|fe I'nlted States. Miss Bentley is a lover of anlmali and has many pets in her estate. Hei favorite animal was a big Maltese cat Billy, who was 14 years old A fe« weeks ago Billy got 111 and deeptte the efforts oX veterinary surgeon#, died The loss of her pet so disturbed Miss Bentley that she decided to tafc* a change of ncene.