A Mean Advantage

"I don 't know that tbat is a true story, "said the woman iii gray, "but it was told to me as such. It happened a great many years ago when the ways and íneans of acquiring useful knowl8dge were not so easy as they are today. ín geography, for insta uce, the maps were all oue color, the different conn tries being simply defined by their boundary liues. There was a yonng girl, an artist, who bethought her of a clever way to change this. She digested her idea for sorue days and then worked it ouc in what she feit. sare was a successfnl manner. ïhen, armed with her bundle of sample work, she made her way towhat was then the largest schoolbook publishing fiím in the country. "She succeeded in getting an interview with one of the firm's representatives. Thus far and no farther, however, was she destined to go. 'We uever bny work frorn outsiders, : said the representative promptly, 'and of course we coujdn't thiuk of making an exception inyonrcase. I'm very sorry. No doubt you have soma clever ideas there, but it wouldn't be the least worth while to show them to me, for they wouldn't be of the slightest use to us. Good day. ' And the young girl found herself once more in the cold, bleak world, with what she was surewas an excellent idea still unsold. "What became of her history fails to tell us. With her idea it was different. It so happened that when the young woman had started to undo her buudle the representative had caught sight of the colored inaps within. Brief as the glance was he had recognized the valué of the idea.as he had also recognized that it was one that rnight be appropriated by any one. He therefore went at once to the head of the firm and stated the case. The firm seized upon the idea with avidity, had it caref ully patented and proceeded to sow colored inaps broadcast thronghout the educational world. Of course they simply rainted ruoney frorn the scheme, and for many years did it continue to be a source of incorue. Pretty good, wasn't it, for an idea that 'couldn't possibly be of auy use to tham?' "