beam to the floor of the church. (From “The Vision of Saint Simon of Blewberry” in F. O. Mann’s collection of mediaeval tales.) DEVIL-PUZZLERS BY FREDERICK BEECHER PERKINS Through Asmodeus the devil became associated with humour and gallantry. Asmodeus sharpened his wits in his conversations with the wisest of kings. It will be recalled that this demon was the familiar spirit of Solomon, whose throne, according to Jewish legend, he occupied for three years. Perhaps it was not Solomon after all but this diabolical usurper who gathered around himself a thousand wives. It is said that Asmodeus is as dangerous to women as Lilith is to men. He loves to decoy young girls in the shape of a handsome young man. His love for the beautiful Sarah is too well known to need any comment. He is a fastidious devil, and will not have the object of his passion subject to the embrace of any other mortal or immortal. Reference is made by the author to Albert Réville’s epitome of Georg Roskoff’s _Geschichte des Teufels_ (Leipzig, 1869), a standard work on the history of the devil. The review by this French Protestant first appeared in the _Revue des Deux Mondes_ for 1870, and was translated into English the following year. A second edition appeared six years later. Roskoff’s book, on the other hand, has never appeared in translation. It is not easy to grasp the scholastic subtleties of mediaeval schoolmen. Dr. Ethel Brewster suggests the following interpretations: _An chimoera bombinans in vacuo devorat secundas intentiones_. Whether a demon buzzing in the air devours our good intentions. This will correspond to our saying that hell is paved with good intentions. _An averia carrucae capta in vetito nomio sint irreplegibilia._ Whether the carriers of a [bishop’s] carriage caught in a forbidden district should be punished. We can well understand how even the devil might be puzzled by such questions. Professor Brander Matthews aptly calls this story “diabolically philosophical.” THE DEVIL’S ROUND A TALE OF FLEMISH GOLF BY CHARLES DEULIN The modern devil is an accomplished gentleman. He is the most all-round being in creation. Mynheer van Belzébuth, as he is called in this story, is indeed the greatest gambler that there is upon or under the earth. On the golf-field as at the roulette-table he is hard to beat. It was the devil who invented cards, and they are, therefore, called the Devil’s Bible, and it was also he who taught the Roman soldiers how to cast lots for the raiment of Christ (John xix, 24). Dice are also called the devil’s bones. The devil carries the souls in a sack on his back also in the legend of St. Medard. It is told that this saint, while promenading one day on the shore of the Red Sea in Egypt, saw Satan carrying a bag full of damned souls on his back. The heart of this saint was filled with compassion for the poor souls and he quickly slit the devil’s bag open, whereupon the souls scrambled for liberty: