Martinsburg gazette and public advertiser. [volume] (Martinsburg, Va. [W. Va.]) 1826-1833, 1826-06-01

health and happiness from which | had
Just ben shut out, and my mind wan
dered into busy lie again, and renewed
my schemes of future pleasure; | felt
how little the gsy and giddy realized, in
the full tide of health, how valuable a
blessing they possessed; x thought how
much higher would prize it if ever it
shouldte mine again. Darkness came
with his train OF reflections, aud lsiless
super followed nothing but bali wa
king consciousness Of unessiDes.: a fee
ling that all was not right, remained.
From this aroused at last; felt cold
but somewhat refreshed; my friends
were eound me but with sad and weep
/ ing faces, and | recognised tive form of
Il e old physician among them, was
oppressed by tairst, bu, could neither
speak nor move; one said softl "he is
spee HESS the has been so ever since
yesterday said another. There was
some whispering: iaw deep sigh and
heard-"is there no hope" None
he cannot live three hoursp-l recognl-
sed in the last The voice ofmy medical
attendant ! knew him well; his skill.
his experience, were Unique stIonable;
and he spoke OF me, ''He cannot live
three hours; there IS no hope"--fell like
a mountain OF ice upon my soul was
helpless or | would have started; voice
less or would have shrieked in the az.
opy Of my crushed hopes. The end OF
lite; the grave; the cod. and pale and
awful nothmgness of death; all Just olo-
sing upon me- Three hours! and was
space like this 10 terminate my beng in
the world? had known nothing before
of the full import OF the brief sentence
which | had often and often pondered
upon, IT is an awful thing to Diet
now appeared nujh, in sense had
never been able TO attach to that word.
Before, had speculation On Death
10 distance, as one who does not teeI
that he is to die; but now i was other
wise. On the one hand was the certain,
the Immediate approach of the grim ty-
rant; tn wasting away of physical en-
nrgy even its annihlaiIop, the en-
known paug of dissolution; and the sud-
Gen usbering in OF fall the uncomfortable
MY stories 81 another world; another
state Of being. On the otter, the utter
md of every earthly thought, and hope,
md pleasure, and pursuit; the surren-
Ter of al worldly possessions; the sepa
alton perhaps the eternal separation
rom friends and relatives: and this
nIgh'y change; ,histfemendous parting
o be met and sustained alone. There
eemed sonnet thing lnconceivably solitary !
n thet thought; something that caused
he mind to SHRINK back, in spite of the !
necessity that impeiled 1t forward, from
he last plunge, the plunge from the
unit terra iirma of life, into he dark
md deep, and immeasurable gulph Of
.ternity.
The Thousand speculative theories o.
nan in regardto the future, came rapid
y across my mind. One fingered; il
vas he dream of everlasting iorgetful-
lass in the grave, the utter end OF be-
ne. But darkness so horrible as the
bought of such death was thousand
old the most appalling. turned from
t, and surveyed as for the last time my
1wn hauds as they lay motionless on my
breast; and said, this body, these limbs,
will be cold; will perish in the buried
,ottn; tomorrow the earth will be
brown upon IT, and the spot where 1t
les will be left alone; to- morrow - to-
morrow, and where will be then? This
form viii be iorg item, the p'aces that
knew it will know it 10 more forever;
job said--"When few years are come
then | SHAH go the way whence | shall
to me in tew"aour> this was
10 he verified; and the sun would SHINE
above my ashes, and the earth be gay
and green, as il was now above his, when
| should oave slept under 1t as long; and
my name had persisted with me
AT length my mind seemed to have
worn out its energies in the tumult of
busy thought, and felt calm, there was
a noise as of dripping water in my ears;
and strange swimming of head; sen.
sation of unnatural buayancy came over
me, and felt as though was detained
IN my position by numerous cords, which
broke one after another, every moment
the cold tremour that was on me, grad
ually went of, and sickness, a strange
sickness followed; seemed
to grow lighter and lighter; and at
length my niud appeared swimming
round and round ce,ire of attraction,
until at last the spell was suddenly dis
solved, by cold touch, like the falling