The Sierra citizen., 1854-09-23
EveatfA Nights Of Aug. 20 and 81.

SSh0aSSD WfSaV III IlSiS oA
purrorting to be revelations made by a
dying man both before and after death,
the latter rather made by the inanimate
hand of corpse, moved by that unknown
power which, according to the belief OF
spiritualists, exists between the material
and immaterial world. Perhaps no article
from the San Francisco press has attracted
more attention, alike puzzling the credu-
lous and the infidel, to determine whether
the..writer intended the "Eventful Nights
as fancy sketch, or whether he had lnedi-
tated on this brain-crazing subject until
he imagined that discontented soul had
returned to its clay tenement, and at
tempted to re-start the fountain that had
been broken up by Death; or that there
existed sort Of magnetic telegraph from
ours to the spirit world, at which an un-
seen and incorporeal operator works.
Heaven or He'll being one terminus and
the decaying body the other. This how
ever is too repulsivc for belief, and we
conclude that Mr.. Ever was only amusing
himself by writing strange, startling
story for the edifeation of the supersti-
tious.
BE this as it may the "Eventful Night"
is work Of genius; he has accomplished
in a single article, what others have been
writing for for months, aud what he HIM
self might not otherwise have obtained
distinction. The undertaking was bold
one-names, dates and witnesses given,
and the words purporting to be penned
by dead mans hand! 'TiS a strange
tale, like Poe'S Raven, which one would
not care to read in the aisle Of an old
church at midnight, where the dead Of
three generations were mouldering in the
vaults. 1t is passing strange that the
strong minded, mighty reasoner, who
writes volumes in support Of his theory,
that there is neither Heaven nor He'll,
Judgment nor Resurrection, stops short,
and dips his pen in the ink-horn obviously,
when he would fan write there is no
death. But the yellow leaf of autum
circling down from the maple tree, the
tremor which creeps over him when the
physician tells him that he has an incura-
bic disease, the bowling Of a dog at
midnight, or the ticking of the death watch
in the wall, upsets all his reasoning, and
he is afraid to die.
The author Of the Eventual Nights was
aware of this. and he has written the arti-
Gle with an earnestness and power which
awakes interest in the minds of the inlet
tered-the best test Of any literary pro-
duction.
tits to be regretted thatany one thought
worth while to avow that the story was
read to second person fourteen days pre-
vious to the eventful nights of the 10th
and 2lst. The information was uncalled
for and will do no good, but will in a mea-
sure destroy the effects of the story. Why
did not some one dispute the identity of
Ceopers Leatherstoeking Or of Hannah
Moore's Coelebs in search of a wife?
There is only one part of the story that
we wish were true-the part relating to
the patient, sweet little Jane, who, ex-
hausted with watching, has laid her head
in my lap and sunk. at last, into slumber.
He besought me with tears in his eyes to
watch over her when he was gone, and see
that she did not suffer- He did not care
about her being poor. He expected she
would have to work He did not wish
her to be burden to me- But oh he
prayed that l would guide her footsteps
away from sin and its influences; that I
would instil into her love of purity, and
so guard her. that she would grow to wo-
manhood, an honor to herself and bless
ing to those around her. | drew little
Jane to me, kissed her, and satisfied the
dying man by promising solemnly that l
would do my utmost to comply with his
last wish"
lfthere be such helpless, fatherless
child as little Jane, and if the writer of
the article keeps his promise who would
detract from the merits of this strange
story! But whether it be real or imagi-
nary, how many are there who would be
glad to have written it!
Justices Court.
REF0RE CypIrc U .,rr,r -