Bloomington herald. [volume] (Bloomington, I. T. [Iowa]) 1840-1849, 1843-08-25

upon her was 10 think Of the angels in heaven
--sat beside me; we lalk'd; her voice was
| like seraph's, so sweet, so musical, she was
tuned to harmony and love; forget every
| thing--years seemed 10 have rolled away, and
| in the stream Of oblivion swallowed up all
recollections of the past. My seventeen years
of Temperance appeared like spect on the
bright escou,cheon Of the beauteous thing be.
| fore me she handed me the wine cup, filled
| il to the brim and drank! Horror! felt II
| couvsing through my veins; il seemed 10 call
up all the furies Of hell, that liquid hell from
| which had once so miraculously escaped
looked around, the scene before 90 lovely
and bright was now darkened; again raised
The wine cup and drank to the health Of all
II was lost !-Once more was to become q
| thing of guilt aud shame felt all the pangs
Of a confirmed inebriate-I was going back.
back to that horrid gulf from which l had
been wrested, as If by superhuman power. !
| si,uddered. Where was my long treasured
resolution! Gone-gone. was now be-
Jog to be despised, lost in my own estimation
and that Of others! Who would trust me now!
| left the room-the house; the wild laugh,
the gay song, and strains Of sweet mnsic, rang
! in my ears! | Sunderland hurried on.
could not 60 home. How could ] gaze up
on that little sanctum! How act in that room
| which for seventeen years had received me
sober man! ] was now a drunkard! A pub
lie house stood before me--one glass more
cried, and memory will be crushed! tasted
that cup-it refreshed the memory Of the
stomach, but could not, would not, drown rec
J objection. That insatiate nav, iickled with
the excite liquid, cried out for more" feed
| me-feed me- it seemed to say, "or I'll
madden YOU" l INDUCED it. Yes, glass
after glass disappeared, and became beastiy.
The landlord elected me from his house,
! staggered into the street and jostled stran-
ge:-a quarrel ensued-he struck me; rem.
| dered desperate, drew my knife, and rushed
upon him like demon. For moment he
manfully resisted-but stabbed him; and
the blood from the gaping wound gushed
fea1fully up into my face! fssaggered back
--there he lay upon the pavement, seeming
" a livid corpse; the moonlight rested upon
! his face and i,s ghastly appearance shocked
mel fed the spot; in my hand held the
knife reeking with his blood. now heard
| the cry Of murder !; it came on the winds Of the
night, like messenger from hell to drag me
down. On-on went-footsteps followed
close, and could hear the hot breath Of my
pursuezs Kissing In mine ears my foot struck
a stone--l fa'tered, and fell PROSTATE on the
pavement.
The brigh. sun arose and found me
a prisoner, closely confined in narrow CELL
and for what! The horrid truth flashed upon
mel had committed murder! The inn
age Of my victim appeared before me; the
deep wound, the CHASTITY look, the quivering
frame. presented themselves to my sight, and
almost maddened me. The tormen:s Of that
hour can never forget; ages Of misery were
crowded into seconds had leisure to reflec, !;
alas what were my reflections! In one mo.
ment, one unguarded moment, had been de-
| coyed, betrayed, lost! What followed -
Horror-horror! There are no dreams, no
| visions Of the night, half 90 dreadful as the
stern realities Of life. Here was prisoner,
| one whose career had been honorable, and
whose endeavors were to do good, and set a
| bright example TO others,-now murderer!
murder committed under the influence Of
liquor. The curse-the dark spot upon the
mirror Ut creation, whose power over mortals
is almost omnipotent. Fatal, fatal hour, in
which left the quiet Of my own house. to
mingle with the gay, the foolish, and the ine-
briate. Yes, the inebriate--for, soften it as
you will, all are so who make liquor the
means Of gratifying foolish desire to be con-
sidered fashionable. Oh! that custom would
| denounee il, and females frown it down forev.
er! heard the grating Of the iron door, it O.
opens, and the keeper entered with two gen.
| tlemen. The features Of ono Of them weie IA
miliar. shuddersd as gazed, it seemed as
il the grave had yielded up its dead. The
keeper spoke, Rise, young man. and behold
the man whom you last night wounded
"Not dead !" exclaimed, starting to my
feet. mot dead ha ha am no murderer, ha
"a d,su !" '"o eAsoSy es s~y jny embraced
him. appeared that the wound was slight,
! out the blow was severe and ha6 felIed him 10
The ground and in my wild, delirous state, as
| gazed upon him PROSTATE, had imagined
me worst. Noble, generous man, he had
sepPeo FORWARD, and vindicated me stating
| 'nat the, (Which he afterward assured me was
a laG') had struck the first blow, and so efIec.
| !ua''y did he plead for me, that was libera.
'ed, by entering bail for my future good bella.
.'of' Future good behavior! will not look
into the future, but guard against the evils Of
to-day! But now AN in nv vn little room
again. 1t looks Just as it did when left il.
But o! what agony had endured in onlv one
nights absence from it! But won friend
ne who SO miraculously escaped the deadlv
blow is now beside ma, There he sits. mr..
ing the old copy Of Davenant, 10 which
a'Ius'on- has been made. He laughs, O how
pIeases me to hear his gay laugh, and lis
ten to his remarks. elected from those grim
looking old books, and. to know how that
possess the means Of rendering him, what +
believe he is in reality-my tfpe friend.
Philadelphia, July 10, l643.
zen. Jacksonville. Marshall, ofKen.
lucky thus speaks of Gen. Jackson :" He
| has never been THROUGH life w;,Lo..