The Rhode-Island Republican. [volume] (Newport, R.I.) 1809-1841, 1836-09-21

ed around me--every object was familiar to
me. Through the half-closed windowcur-
tain there s,reamed long line of red sun
Light felt it WIS evening. There was
no one in the room, and, as endeavOured
to recall my thoughts sufficiently to find
out why ! was thus, there came an oppress-
i've weakness over mel closed my eyes,
and tried to sleep. l was reused by some
one entering the room-it was my friend
DR.. c.; he walked stealthily towards
my bed, and looked at me ixedIy for sever
al minutes. | watched him closely, and
saw that his countenance changed as he
looked on me; l felt his hand trembIe
slightly as he placed it on my wrist, aud
heard him multer To himself, in "A low tone
NV God how altered heard now a
voice at the door, saving in soft whisper
may | come in. The doctor made no
reply, and my wife elided gently into the
apartment. She looked dcalhy pale and
appeared to have been weeping. She lean
ed over me, and felt the warm tears fall
one by one upon my forehead. She took
my hand within both of hers, and putting
her lips to my ear, said Do YOU know me,
Williaml' There was long pause.
tried to speak, but could not-I endeav-
oured to make some sign of recognition,
and stared her fully in the face but heard
her say in n broken voice, he does not
know me now ) and then ] felt it was in
vain. The doctor came over, and, taking
my wife's hand, endeavorcd to lead her
from the room. j heard her say, not now
not now ) and sank back into heavy un-
consciousness.
awoke from what appeaEed to have
been long and deep sleep. | was, how
lever, unrefreshed and unrestcd. My eyes
were dinmed and clouded-and I in vain
tried to ascertain if there was any one in
the room with me. The acute sensation of
fever had subsidized, and left behind the most
lowering and depressing debility. As by
degrees came to myself, found that the
doctor was sitting beside my bed-he bent
over me and said" Are you better, Will
liam" Never till now had my inability to
reply given me and pain or uneosiness-now
however, the abortye struggle to speak was
torture. thought and felt that my senses
were gradually yielding beGeatl me, aud II
cold shuddering nt my heart told me that
the hand of death was upon me. The ex-
erton now made to repel the fatal Iethargy,
must have been great-ior n cold, clammy
pcrspiration broke proiusely over my body,
and rushing sound, as if water filled my
cars--a succession of short conyuIsye
spasms, as if given 10y an electric machine,
shook my limbs. / grasped the doctors
hand firmly IN mine, and starting to the
sitting posture, | looked wildly about me.
My breathing became shorter and shorter;
my grasp relaxed: and fell back heavily
in the bed the last recollection of that mo-
ment was the muttered expression of my
poor friend O., saying-'lt is over at
last
Many hours must have elapsed ere |
returned to my conciousness. My first
sensation was the cold wind across my face
which seemed to come from an open win
dow. My eyes were closed, and my lids
felt as if pressed down by n weight. Ny
arms lay along my side, and though the
position in which lay was constrained and
unpleasant, could make no effort to alter
it tried to speak, but could not.
As lay thus, the footsteps of many
persons traversing the apartment broke up
on my ear, followed by heavy dull sound,
as if some weighty body had been laid up
on the lloor-a harsh voice of one near mc
now said, rs if reading, William Ii,
aged 3S years. thought him much more
The words rushed through my brain, and
with the rapIdiiy of lightning fash, every
circumstance of my illness came before me,
and now knew well that had died, and
for my interment was intended the awful
preparations about me. Was this then
do =. L., al Al. 4
wrapt the suffering clay, passion and sense
should still suryve-and that while every
external trace of life had fled, conscious
ness still clung to the cold corpse destined
for the earth. Oh how horrible, how more
than horrible the terror of that thought.
Then thought it might be what is termed
n trance, but that poor hope deserted me,
as | brought tn mind the words of the doc
tor, who knew too well all the uncring signs
of death To be deceived by its counterfeit,
and my heart sank rs they lifted me into
the coffin, and | felt that my limbs had
stiileoed, and knew this never took place
in trance. How shall tell the heart
cutting anguish of that moment as my mind
looked forward to futurity too dreadful to
think upon; when memory should call up
many n sunny hour of existence, the loss of
friends, the triumph of exertion, and then
fall back upon the dread and consciousness
of the ever busted life the grave closed over
and then thought that perhaps sense but
fingered round that lifeless clay, as the spir-
It's ofihe dead are said to hover around the
places and homes they had loved in life,
ere they leave them for overland that soon
the lamp should expire upon the shrine,