Montgomery County sentinel. [volume] (Rockville, Md.) 1855-1974, 1855-12-08


and dependency; now calling up feelings
of anger and threatening, now filling me
with terrible apprehensions, and now
overwhelming me with horror In vain
| strove to give vent to my feelings; in
vain strove to shrek aloud; the angry
strife of conflicting passions choked my
utterance. | wept, it is true but tho
tears fell no farther than my eyelashes,
where they CONCEALED, and deprived me
entirely of sight.
Terrible and torturing as was this
state of fearful agitation, the intervalc of
reflection, brief though they were, visited
me with far more excruciating anguish.
| thought of home, of friends, of those
linked to my heart by the dearest, the
closest ties of affinity and affection, of
her to whom / had plighted my truth at
the altar, her unbounded tenderness, her
consistency, her love of the sweet pledges
of our union, their happy looks, their
engaging prattle, their artless smiles of
the anxiety with which all these beloved
ones were awaiting my return; then came
the most agonizing pang of all, the dread
that we were separated forever, without
having been permitted the one last en-
brace, or to utter one mournful farewell
Oh! the bitterness, the intense agony of
that one thought is beyond the power of
description.
Every moment, as it Jagged on its
leaden footsteps, seemed an age. A thou
sand wild vagaries thronged my magma
ton. | fancied that my body was i'm
movably fixed on that dreary and desc
late spot, and changed into marble pri-
son, in which my spirit was doomed to
remain pent up until the end of all things
should come; and | cursed the cruelty Of
fate which had entailed on me so barbar-
Gus destiny-nay, more, | even dared
to call in question the justice of the de-
creos of heaven, and once, horrid thought
in the height of my frenzied desperation
| was on the point of imprecating its
wrath; but there was monitor within
me spoke not in the still small accents O
gentle reproof, but in voice of thunder
that shook my inmost soul, it cried, For.
, bear ?
| Again my restless Imagination con
jured up fresh objects of terror. | fan
. cied that the last days had arrived, tina
: The end Of time was at hand; that thu
: spirit Of darkness, let loose upon TIL
, earth, were lowering around me; forms
too hideous for description; thousan'
. times blacker than the darkness whici
7 clouded my bodily vision, were fitting
t before me, exulting in my sufferings, AM
making a cruel mockery of my woe; AM
that from this state of misery there wa
: no hope of escaping, until the great las
! confagration, when / should share tn
? terrible fate that awaits the whole crea
ton. Oh, how | wished that that hou
. was come!
: At length the fury of the storm aba
ted, the snow ceased to fall, the howlin,
S of the wind was silenced. / felt the ic
e which had closed up my eyes begin t
y melt, and in a few minutes more m
4 sight was again restored.
c The sudden change, from the dSrI
n forebodings of despair to the animatin
y influence of hope, was like an electri
y shock to my frame. | felt my blood
h which till now seemed CONCEALED, rushing
S with new vigor through every vein, AM
= restoring to my half-frozen limbs thei
y lost animation.
: Reused to exertion by The prospect {
# deliyerance, ! endeovored to put my hors
e in motion; but oh what pain, what ag
Y ony, did that first effort cost me
il Had been stretched upon the rack
it could not have experienced more excru
: eating suffering; but the hope of preser
! walton enabled me to perseyore, and 9
y length succeeded in urging my steed int
n motion.
1T The clouds, which heretofore veile
d the face of heaven, bad vanished, and til
d dim trembling rays of the few of its my
d Rad lamps which were visible, enlight
i encd the dreariness Of the scene, and
i combined with the light emitted from tn
d snow, which covered the surface of tn
savage wilderness, enabled me onccm
e to look around me.
i Although ] was wholly at loss j
G which direction ought to proceed, / dc
r termined to keep moving onward, in til
|, hope that l should shortly find my wa
d back to the high road. had not lon
b acted upon this resolution ere ] perceive
h at some distance before me, light
o which, from It's seeming to be stationary
|, | judged to proceed from the habitatio
!, Of some human being.
y My horse, too, seemed TO be aware {
y our near approach to the abode Of hu
y manity, as he voluntarily increased hi
speed as we approached nearer the spot
! on which / kept my eyes fixed under
G a painful sensation Of mingled hope an
0 anxiety.
It a few minutes more brought me 10 th
: object aimed at, which, TO my infinite JOY
c | found it to bea small public house, an
e the light which had served 10 conduct m
a thitber. proceeded from the windows.
# hallooed az loud as / was able, an
d presently rough-looking countrymo
d appeared at the door / inquired il
y could have shelter for myself and hors
e during the night; and, having receive
an answer in the affirmative, dismountc
/ with great difficulty; and after awatin
g till the latter was properly put up in
b shed which served for n stable, with III
d assistance Of mine host | managed +
e walk, or rather roll, into the house
where round n LARGE blaziug. fire. wer