It took longer than expected for all the monks, and some of their guests to make their way back to the monastery after Abbot Napp's funeral service. But eventually Mendel found himself introducing the engineer Waldschmidt to his closest friends and to the Prior.

Devastated by the loss of the Abbot, overwhelmed by the preparations for the just completed service, and now suddenly thrust into a leadership position in the Monastery, the Prior was in no position to refuse Brother Gregory a few days in the Cejl district helping their very generous patron, Herr Grunewald. With only a minor, "Do you think it wise?", he gave the mission his blessing.

In an uncomfortable way, Mendel was disappointed by the Prior's easy permission, he had been hoping that the Prior would refuse to let him go, particularly at a time like this. But the Prior had always been more interested in matters spiritual than matter corporal, and was only too glad to have fewer monks around giving him advice. Even as they spoke, Brother Timothy knocked on the door of the Prior's room, bringing with him the latest documents that needed attention. However, seeing the guests, bowed himself out of the picture until the Prior was again free.

"Very pleased to meet you," Brother Matthew said, on being introduced to Waldschmidt moments later. "Do you know anything about America?" That was his standard question of all Monastery guests these days. Klacel had become fixated on that developing country and all that went on in it.

"Sorry, no. I never went to America, but I understand that it is a very wild place and full of dangerous animals," Waldschmidt said. "Not a very civilized place either, I've been told, and it is still recovering from a long and painful internal war between the northern lands and the southern lands, which has left many places in ruins. I don't know that I would like to go there just now".

Klacel just grunted at this advice, but then was polite enough to suggest a warming bottle of red wine before lunch, and went off to find one in the kitchen. Although it was very much against the rules of the Monastery to eat or drink outside of the formal rectory meals, enough had happened recently to weaken the rule, at least for the next few days.

After the appropriate condolences had been given and received, Brother Joseph had his own questions about England and the English, which Waldschmidt was glad to answer while they waited for the wine. But when Klacel rejoined the group, the engineer gently brought the conversation around to the subject of chemistry once more.

"I'm not sure that we will be able to help you," Brother Matthew told him, pulling the cork from the first bottle. "For one thing no one around here knows anything about this new science of atoms and molecules. It is amazing to me that we even know they exist, never mind how to make them do our bidding and rearrange themselves into new shapes and forms".

"Well, I have this book," Waldschmidt said, pulling a slim volume from his pocket and handing it to Mendel. The title in gold lettering on the brown, cloth bound spine said GALE'S CHEMISTRY, but when he opened it he saw that it was written in English, so he handed it over to Brother Matthew, who was trying to learn that language.

"It's a book on the Elements of Chemistry, written by an American Professor called Gale," Waldschmidt said as Klacel examined the volume. "It is used in schools and academies in the United States and has more than one hundred engravings, so it should be able to tell us all we need to know".

"But it was published in 1837," snorted Brother Matthew, looking at the inside page. "It is already 30 years out of date, and probably contains nothing about the new synthetic methods". But despite it's antiquity it clearly interested Klacel, who held onto the book and started reading sections of it.

Waldschmidt continued with his story and told them something of what he had seen in Perkin's laboratories and how the English chemists were practically inventing a new science as they were going along.

"Apparently," he told them, "the whole process starts with a horrible, gooey substance called 'coal tar', which is the material left over after soft coal is heated to produce coke. About 30 liters of this nuisance are left over after a metric ton of coal is processed, and, before Herr Perkin's work, all it was good for was to put on roads, or to make naptha.

"As late as 1850, coal tar was a useless waste byproduct, but a compatriot of ours, Herr Doktor August Wilhelm von Hofmann, became interested in it as a starting material for his 'distilation' process. He'd just been made the leader of a new Royal College of Chemistry in 1845, and needed some new research projects for his assistants and students.

"One of these was William Perkin, who started working for Doktor Hofmann in 1853. While working on the synthesis of quinine, he accidentally found a blue material that would not wash out of the cloths he used to clean it up. He was smart enough to see that he had stumbled onto a brand new, artificial dye, which he called 'aniline purple' but that was too scientific sounding, so it was later called 'Tyrian purple', or simply 'mauve'.

"What every you call it, it made him rich. In partnership with his father and brother, he got a patent in 1856 and set up his first manufactory near a place in England called Harrow.

"Although he is a bright, very intelligent man, he is no Grunewald and has no head for business. Instead of concentrating on making a fortune, he began to make glycine, which they tell me is part of protein, and tartaric acid, another biological substance. He is far too interested in pure science to ever be successful.

"Just before I left England he had found out how to make the alizarin dye, which I want to work on, and had also invented a way of making unsaturated acids. There was a lot of excitement about this in London at the end of the year, and they think the reaction will be named after Perkin himself - a great honor.

"In our last meeting, he told me his next project would be an artificial perfume, called coumarin, but I never saw him do anything about it.

"It sounds as if he is a very productive scientist," Klacel admitted, pouring himself another liberal glass of wine, and topping up the glass of Mendel's guest. "It's a pity that he never finished making the alizarin dye properly".

Waldschmidt had carefully given the Prior, Brother Joseph and Brother Matthew the impression he was still working with Perkin, and was looking for a solution to the chemical problem. Mendel wriggled uncomfortably at his friend's comment, but said nothing.

"Of course we will do anything we can to help," Brother Joseph told him, "but as my friend Brother Matthew here says, we are not chemists and know nothing about the new synthetic sciences".

"I would like to start by showing you all the new weaving mills and dye works that Herr Grunewald, and others, are building outside town in the Cejl district," Waldschmidt said. "Perhaps I could persuade Brother Gregory here to stay a couple of days and talk with the dyers and technicians who are experts in the art of staining and dyeing cloth? They have been working on this problem for some weeks and might have some insights".

"I still do not see how we can help you," Mendel said, weakly, but his friends were much more enthusiastic about leaving the Monastery in this sad time, and taking a short trip to a new experience. They promptly set about helping him pack an overnight bag and get into his heavy coat.

"But what about the election for the new Abbot?" Mendel wanted to know, searching desperately for a reason not to leave the monastery.

"Hummm," Klacel admitted, "it is important we are all here for that vote, but the Prior has already said that he does not intend to hold a conclave for at least six weeks, so we should have plenty of time to help solve an atomic mystery".

"Who do you think will be your next Abbot?" Waldschmidt asked, helping Mendel with his things.

"No one has any idea," Brother Joseph said. He was the one who collected the Monastery gossip. "But they say that Brother Anselm has a good chance".

"Never!" shouted Brother Matthew, "he is a Czech, and all the Germans consider him a Hussite. He'll never be allowed to be elected".

The outburst embarrassed Brother Gregory quite a bit, as he himself was considered one of the 'German minority' in Moravia who were trying to hang onto positions of power against the rising tide of Czech nationalism. Klacel, however, clearly had not included his friend in the category of 'a German'.

"It must be someone young," Brother Joseph said thoughtfully, "the Monastery is always heavily taxed every time we change Abbots, so the next man to hold that position must be young enough to hold it for a long time".

All three friends nodded wisely at this observation. Taxes and various dues still owed by the Monastery were a constant source of friction between the monks and the higher church authorities.

"Either way," Klacel grinned, "our friend Brother Timothy will lose a lot of his influence around here. I don't know why the good Abbot Napp liked that man so much, but now he is gone, so has a lot of Brother Timothy's power. Perhaps we will not need to watch our backs so much in the future".

If only they could have heard a different conversation, and a different set of conclusions taking place high on the Brno hill, the three friends and their guest would not have set out on their journey with as light a heart.