Finally the results spoke for themselves. Using long sticks and a lot of care, the monks and their chemist took samples of woven cotton from the makeshift dyeing vats and dropped them one by one into the sink for a final rinse. But even in the dim light of the basement, the outcome was obvious and not in doubt. They had succeeded!

As expected because of its origins, the special alizarin dye that Mendel and Dabrowska had prepared by sulfonating the less useful Madder Red, was itself colorless. "It is a mordant dye," Waldschmidt had told them a long time ago, "and mordant colors possess very poor dyeing properties on their own. You will have to test it with several different mordants and several different approaches," he had said.

It had taken some research by Brother Joseph, and several visits to the dyeworks to learn that mordants are separate chemicals which act as intermediates between the dye molecules and the cloth. Certain dyes, particularly those extracted from leaves, bark, berries and flowers do not normally attach to the woven fibers in cotton or silk unless some sort of metallic oxide is used as a binding agent.

Together, the dye, the cloth and the mordant-chemical form insoluble colored precipitates in and on the molecules of the fibers. This is a valuable property as it makes the dye fast and difficult to remove by either light or washing with soap. However, Mendel and his team faced two problems; finding the right mordant among the many that were used, and finding how to produce the right color, as different mordants produce different colors when used with exactly the same dye!

Naturally the logical monk approached the problem logically, and set up a long line of small beakers with different combinations of dye, mordant and treatment regimen. The first thing they discovered was that their dye, which they were now calling Alizarin Red S, stained small samples of cotton a blackish purple when an iron mordant was used, but even worse, the color was not even and the dyeing clearly not uniform.

the formulae of Alizarin

This result brought on yet another visit to the weaving and dyeworks by Brother Joseph, and the conclusion that the cotton they had been given was not properly prepared. He brought back with him several more samples. "The dyers told me that there are a lot of natural impurities in cotton, waxes, fatty acids and even some gooey substance no one knows much about," he said, unpacking his latest batch of cotton.

"This cotton is bleached to remove those impurities, hot rolled to singe off any loose fibers on the surface, and then treated with very dilute sulfuric acid to remove the sizing materials used in the weaving. It has also been 'mercerised'" This was a term he had to explain.

"Apparently this is a fancy way of preparing cotton that was discovered in England by John Mercer, hence its name". Klacel groaned at this latest example of British inventiveness. "Mercerised cotton has a wonderful and permanent silky luster and, when we get it to work, much more affinity for the dye. They would not tell me how they do this process as it is still a secret and the British try to guard their secrets, but somehow Herr Grunewald got hold of it".

It was Mendel's turn to inwardly groan, but he put aside his scruples and repeated his tests using the new cloth. This time the dye produced a much more even and uniform color, but once again it was purple, not red.

Gradually, however, he began to get a 'feel' for the process and the behavior of the chemical participants. Much of science is based on hunches, and good scientists learn how to follow them. Mendel was a great scientist and his hunches were better than most.

Next he tried oxalate of tin, and with an acid, starch paste he produced a beautiful orange that Grete liked better than any of the other colors they produced that day. He also found that the best colors were produced by heating or steaming the cloth for at least an hour; two hours were even better.

Even with the most logical approach, however, time passes very quickly and it was several days before chrome mordants were ruled out (they produced a blue color), and finally, in desperation, Mendel visited Herr Karl Theimer, the pharmacist, to obtain some other metallic oxides. He got more than he bargained for.

"I have this one, it's new from America," Theimer told him, and handed him a packet that was marked 'Nitrate of Alumina'. "Be careful, though, you may need some acetate of lime to help it along".

As Mendel was packing up his latest supplies, the pharmacist seemed curiously reluctant to let him leave. "How is my daughter doing?" he wanted to know. "She says that she is enjoying working with you very much, and I've never seen her look so happy, since her husband died. But she tells me strange stories about what is going on in the monastery at the moment. Why cannot you get yourself a new Abbot?"

"Well," Brother Gregory said, trying to piece the story together, "I think we will probably elect Brother Timothy in the next election. My popularity seems to be slipping, and since Abbot Napp's letter was discovered Brother Timothy has taken over as the favorite. I think he could make a good Abbot, given time, but Brother Matthew is set against him, and still wants me to try harder to get elected. He is still afraid the police are after him, but nothing has happened in weeks, so he could be worrying about nothing".

"I'm not so sure," Theimer said, thoughtfully. "I had a strange visit from that horrid little man Pech the other day. His tooth is better and the pain has gone, but he is still spying for the Staat Polizei, and he had an interesting final piece of information. It appears that there is a bit of a conspiracy by the Bishop's Palace, and by Darmstaedter, to get Brother Timothy elected as the next Abbot.

"They have some ulterior motives, no doubt, and they are not above using underhanded methods. He did not know exactly what they are doing, but he mentioned a letter that was of great importance in the election, and the fact that they called it 'their letter'. He did not know what that meant, but they were very happy about its results".

Brother Gregory was clearly confused. "Why would they have any interest in who becomes the next Abbot?" he wanted to know.

"Mendel, Mendel," Theimer said sadly, "you really don't understand these things, do you? The next Abbot of St. Thomas will be an important person in Brno, and possibly quite powerful, if he wants to be. Naturally the Bishop and the Staat Polizei would have a very strong interest in who becomes the next Abbot, and would greatly prefer one of their own in that position if it were at all possible. And they seem to be trying to make it possible, if this man Pech is to be believed".

Mendel left the pharmacy a sadder and wiser man, and also took with him a final word of warning from Karl Theimer. "Pech would not give me any of the details, but he was convinced that Brother Matthew was in even greater danger than last time, if that is possible. He strongly hinted that Klacel did not have long before the chains were slapped upon his wrists, so you had better warn him".