Burlington free press. [volume] (Burlington, Vt.) 1827-1865, 1843-12-01

tale what shall | respond 20 you /! or wha'
have [ in my recollections which would not
be as gloomy as our owl expresses
have travelled in the sorroyful valley OF the
Mississippi, and have for yc'rs made its dis
NAL soliiudes my home, in which time l have
TO many a fearful radition-one OF
whicl, | shall now relate to you but have
a care lest the sadness Of m, thoughts fasten
themselves upon yours.
give Won this caution, Madam, knowing
that that which carries a Smile 10 The vlsage
of man frequently makes the woman weep.
I know that your cloudy days and ~starless
nights far exceed your hours Of peace and
happiness. God has placed in your scslhose
acute sensations which, give you moments OF
unspcakable bliss, but days ofsorrowtul emo
tions.
The atmosphere Of the ballroom 'ntox''
Gates you the sadness of Il traveller makes
you mourn ; a shadow gives you fear, whilst
danger itself passes unleeded. From whence
cometh this? from what source sprIngeth so
many inexplicable circumstances l am un-
able TO say ; the whole is 10 me an Insolvaole
enigma but such are the facts-my narra-
ton will prove it. i,
If at some future day you should ascend
the river, you will see along its banks the
remnants o flarge trees, blackened with t'me'
standing like fierce sentinels over the dreary
waste; in the distance you will perceive
numberIess small black hills and mounds,
formed front The fragments Of i'll shapen rocks.
Won will hear at intervals the song OF a
bird, or your gaze may perchance rest ior a
moment upon a cluster of secluded flowers,
destined to bloom and die in the solitude
But the boa, advances-,he song IS lost in the
distance, the flowers disappear before you,
and still progressing into these vast regions OF
the West, you will at length be astonished
with the aspect of a country in which you
wiIlsee realizes all the poetry OF our dreams.
1t is the territory Of Illinois.
Among its inhabitants are some of the old
est French settlers of America. You will
still meet, dispersed here and there, some
remnants of that race to wh,ci, we are linked
by so MANY endearing a0ini,ns. A large
number of persons from the banks Of lie
Rhine lave. for n long time, made this de-
lightful country their abode, and that winch
AM now about to relate 10 yOs IS IA clrcum-
stance intimately connected with one oftliese
families. . 1f fHni .ati 'iii.'
The house was bnilt but n few yards from
one of those natural subterrpnrans which are
not in those countries. The
cavern was large, and wa. at that time the
principal resort of promeiading parties du-
ring the summer 10 which they came either
to explore its mysterious depths or engrave
their names upon its roof or numberless col
umns.
They were all reunited me evening in the
parlor of the house near he cavern. The
hour was far advanced, solemn stiffness
pervaded the assembly. It was at the com
mencement Of Autumn, tint melancholy sea-
son in which weeping nature seems to exlalo
itself in pIain,ive melodies. The night was
obscure-the winds unclaimed, and the rain,
urged onward by the BIAS, ratified furlously
agains, the windows. The old Cure, who
was celebrated as a %story+eller, had just FIN
islled a tragic anecdote-his narration liat
filled the souls Of his listeners with terror s.
their tcatuics we're elongated, pale with emo.
ton, and all under Il strange l,allucination
Each was unmovable in hi. iplace, fearing
either to change his position or break the 81.
lence,-lhe young maideIs insensibly chung
TO each other,-onc single sentiment had do,
minion over the whole (: / was the scntimcn
so powerful of fear, will spirits wrapt up !,
a species of vertigo, they thought ia hear I'M
known sounds and to distinguish chimerica
objects. If by a whimsic cal caprice of tin
light the fringes of a cnrain or an angle o
the wainscoiing was reflected upon the wal
in fantastical figures, the one who first saw
these proGles draughted BY chance, b~clievin,
to distinguish magic resemblances, cried
: see ! behold y and all turned their eyes il
CONSERVATION to regard it, until a voice re
sponded : Hark it is bu. the play of shad
ows.' Ii in the midst of the silence tn
mourning wind glidcd by the window o
whislled through some ~erevice in the build
ing, he who'believed TO hear this noise dis
,ant and p~laintive raise itself in the garde
gaining little by little the house, made a sol
emu sign. saving in n low voice, sHark ls
ienn and all turned towards the door an
listened, until another voice cried,
'Parbleu il is the wind, nothing but III
Wind
II appears that these words we're spoke
in a tone of triumphant rallcry, for the CuI
replied an instant after, un't
'Ah, WE'LL | believe that no ono is abb
to mock in good faith, nor surmount wi,ho'
difficulty The gloom and fear which the.
things inspire. The rain has ceased adde
he, going TO the window ; : the wind fro
the north blows over the fields the dead leav'
of the trees; the moon, heretofore obscure
by black clouds, is now shining with increa
ed brightness, but nevertheless shall wi
, ger that there is here no person who dares {
/, and write his uame in yonder cavern
, For a time all were silent, when one raj
cd himself and said gaily,
accept the wager
He was a young man, of a nature cal
E and con,emplaiive, but whilst his sound re
son elevated HIM above those vulgar feaI
j his poetic spirit urged him to take this I,
mantle promenade. There was nothing
the brovado in his appearance, and he CO
ressed frankly that II required all his SCI
possession TO free himself from these stranI
. sentiments. He took the hand Of the Cur
and said to him smilingly. ! hold you TO 4
n ,.,oar,s aud aGoruards tnrnino IN n vouI