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LiBRARY
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BY
LLOYD C. DOUGLAS
agrº-
PUBLISHED EY
c/AMES FOSTER HOUSE OF ART
A NM. A. RBOR
THE REGISTER AT THE INN
w/%' ſº-Fe-l pºssero-ºg

, THE INN
DEC. 25

TZS 2. 2Z.
(Uhe jnn Keeper
Modestly boasting but few human virtues, August-
us had no intention of proclaiming a day of family
reunions for his Jewish subjects when he published
the edict commanding every Israelite to return, on
a specified date, to the place of his nativity for en-
rollment.
Nor was it because Augustus Caesar greatly cared
to know how many Jews there were that he had or-
dered the census. He needed money. The census
was to furnish the figures upon which a new tax-
levy could be based.
As the day drew near which was to summon thou-
sands from the remotest corners of the province to
their childhood homes, every city, town and hamlet
was a-flutter with excitement. People were either
getting ready to make the journey or shopping,
baking and putting spare rooms to rights in anticipa-
tion of guests. Aged parents were counting the
hours until their sons and daughters from afar would
appear in the doorway. Merry parties were being
arranged for the reunion of old friends who had not
met since they were little children.
Of course, to some of the pilgrims, en route, this
was only a business trip; for, in many cases, the old
family home had been dissolved and none waited to
welcome them. In some instances, the journey had
been made at serious inconvenience. This was par-
ticularly true of two Galileans, Joseph and Mary,
who arrived in Bethlehem, at dusk, after a long and
weary trip from Nazareth. Nobody met them with
affectionate embraces, at the edge of town, where so
many happy meetings were taking place.
They proceeded at once to The Inn. It was packed
to the roof. But the Inn-keeper seemed to under-
stand their great perplexity and permitted them to
lodge in his stable. Doubtless, they were thankful
enough for its shelter. That night Jesus was born.
Certain Seers from the East, who for some time
had followed the leading of a new, uncharted star,
arrived soon after The Child was born and offered
Him symbolic gifts, suitable for presentation to a
king. A little company of Shepherds on the plains
near Bethlehem, hearing celestial music and observ-
ing the peculiar star, left their flocks unguarded and
hurried to the stable where they joined the Seers in
worshiping The Child.
Nobody at The Inn went out to the stable. It
was a busy night. Perhaps, if the people stopping
at The Inn had been aware that The Child had been
born who would achieve an influence greater than
that of any temporal king and become Leader and
Lord to countless millions, they might have gone out
to see Him. Perhaps. It is not certain.
The Inn-keeper may have heard of the birth of a
baby in his stable but it was almost too much to
expect him to leave his houseful of guests to shift
for themselves while he visited The Child. Maybe,
if he had known that this event was so important
the world would begin Time all over and refer to
next morning's dawn as “the first day of Year One,”
he might have gone out to the stable. Maybe. It
is not at all sure.
+ * + * +:
Late in the afternoon of December twenty-fourth,
a Stranger invariably enters the office of The Inn,
glances over the register and takes up the pen. He
pauses. His face lights up with a smile as the joy-
ous shouts of little children echo through the house.
Happy guests are hurrying in and out, exchanging
greetings and good wishes; merrily bumping into each
other, on the stairs, with mysterious bundles under
their arms. The walls are decorated with holly
branches. A great fire is roaring up the chimney.
The spicy odors of the kitchen drift through the hall.
In an adjoining room, a jolly, little, old man, with
a snowy beard and a red coat trimmed with
white fur, is furnishing wild merriment for an ecstatic
group.
As he dips the pen, The Stranger hears The Inn-
keeper saying, “I’m so sorry, sir; but the house is
full. I should be glad to keep you. We always
have such a crowd over Christmas. I doubt if there
is a room to be had anywhere in town. But we must
find shelter for you. You can’t spend the night in
the streets. I wonder if you would seriously object
to lodging in my stable?”
“You are very kind,” replies The Stranger. “It is
a good stable and has many pleasant remembrances
for me.”
“That’s so,” cries The Inn-keeper, reminiscently.
“You customarily ask for a room Christmas Eve and,
always being crowded, we send you to the stable. I
remember now.”
So; The Stranger unprotestingly goes to the
stable. Christmas is celebrated out there, too. Not
much merriment is to be expected, for the light is
dim and the night is cold. But certain people always
go to the stable, understanding that The Stranger
will be there over Christmas, observing His Birthday.
A little group of Wise Men come. In His Pres-
ence, they forget all about the discomfort of the
place. Tattered Shepherds, who might not feel
quite so much at ease if they were to call on Him
at The Inn, leave their flocks, which never run away,
and sit at The Stranger’s feet. To these Wise Men
and Ragged Shepherds He presents rare gifts, such
as The Secret of Abiding Joy, The Blessing of the
Tranquil Heart, Eternal Hope, and The More Abun-
dant Life. He would gladly offer these gifts to the
merry guests at The Inn if there was a suitable op-
portunity. But they are all so very busy; and, be-
sides, there is no room for Him at The Inn.
In the midst of the pre-Christmas mail comes the
following letter from The Inn-keeper.


The following message is just filed for dispatch to
The Inn-keeper in reply to his letter.
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