THIS is a request that comes to every mother’s ear. Who has not longed to be able to answer this plea? Is it a reasonable request? What prompts it? Why does the child make it? It is the natural craving for food on the part of the developing mind. All children, young and old, black and white, alike enjoy a story. Do we ever outgrow this appetite for entertainment? Then surely it is worth while to study this art; for it is an art that contributes long and, it may be, effectively to the entertainment and education of the human family in all its various stages of development. There are many stories in the Bible, and it is an accomplishment worthy of the best efforts of any parent to discover these stories and translate them into the language of childhood. At the Bible Conference in Washington, D. C., last winter, Mr. Frank N. Palmer, of Winona Lake, Ind., told us there are fifty-three stories in Genesis, and six chapters of stories in Daniel. Many psalms have a story background. The seventeenth chapter of First Samuel is a “story in a story in a story.” Mr. Palmer thinks this story is the finest in the Bible. He has been working on it for ten years, and its interest is not exhausted yet. There are several characteristics of the Bible stories that make them peculiarly effective. They are real. They have not been written out of the imagination, but out of real experience. Children often say, “Is it a true story?” They want the truth. “Truth is stranger than fiction.” The Bible story has a touch of the marvelous; for where God is manifest, wondrous things happen, and the events of the story touch life and influence it. It is said that Bishop MacDowell had a good illustration of the power of a Bible story as he read one to his little daughter. He was reading to her the story of Esther, and as he came to the part where the queen was deciding whether or not to risk her life for her people by going into the king’s presence unbidden, the daughter cried out, “I hope she’ll do it!” Mr. Palmer continued by saying: “Use objects. In telling the story of David and Goliath, get a pole six cubits and a span long. Get a piece of iron equal in weight to a spear head. Use a blackboard, however little your skill may be. If you draw too well, attention may be called to the drawing instead of the12story. By the use of a long blackboard, one may almost make a moving picture of the story. ‘He who makes the eyes and ears makes the best teacher.’ Children who see are the children who remember. Objects attract and hold attention.” “Parents should learn to tell Bible stories in the home. Get down on the floor, if it may be, and use paper for lakes and tents. Use something for people. Use objects conveniently at hand. It isn’t necessary to buy expensive material. Do not keep the lessons till you come to the end of the story, but insert them apparently carelessly as the story progresses.” I hope a number of parents will try Mr. Palmer’s suggestions, and tell us their experience in Our Homes department.