_Father:_ Bring forth the best robe and put it on him; and put a ring on his hand, and shoes on his feet; and bring hither the fatted calf, and kill it, and let us eat and be merry, for this my son was dead and is alive again; he was lost and is found! SCENE II PLACE: In the field, near the father's house. CHARACTERS: Elder Son, Servant, the Father. [_The_ ELDER SON _is hoeing in the field. A servant comes out. The_ ELDER SON _calls to him._] _Elder Son:_ I hear music and dancing in the house; what do these things mean? _Servant:_ Thy brother is come; thy father hath killed the fatted calf, because he hath received him safe and sound. Thy father sendeth for thee to come in. [_The_ ELDER BROTHER _shows anger._] _Elder Brother:_ I will not go in. Why should he make merry over my brother who has wasted his living? [_The_ FATHER _comes out._] _Father:_ My son, wilt thou come unto the feast? Thy lost brother hath returned! _Elder Son:_ Lo, these many years do I serve thee; neither have I at any time disobeyed thee, yet thou never gavest me a kid that I might make merry with my friends. But as soon as thy son was come, which hath wasted thy living, thou hast killed for him the fatted calf. _Father:_ Son, thou art ever with me, and all that I have is thine. It was meet that we should make merry and be glad, for this thy brother was dead and is alive again; he was lost and is found. Come thou in to greet thy brother! [_They both go in._] END CHAPTER XI THE DRAMATIC QUALITIES IN A GOOD STORY The stories in the Bible, if taken just as they are given, present a body of material which is complicated by a historical background and a religious symbolism that is remote from the young child's experience. They embody the historical incidents as well as the myths and folklore of ancient Hebrew life, and for the most part they express the highest idealism of the Hebrew people. There is no reason, however, why good stories and appropriate incidents may not be given to children from this body of material through selecting from and simplifying the biblical version. A great deal of what is in the Bible should not be used, but there is much that is highly dramatic and becomes valuable for dramatization. It is possible to adapt an incident by simplifying, and in a measure reorganizing, the parts, and yet to keep the dignity and integrity of the story as it is given in the Bible. The attitude of the children, created by contact with this type of story, should be one of reverence and dignity, coupled with a consciousness of the high ideals of the people they are impersonating.