Western Reserve chronicle and weekly transcript of the times. [volume] (Warren, Ohio) 1854-1855, 1855-03-14

one walking heavily, or dragging heavy
weight across the floor. sat Petriicd
by fear. A nameless agony was upon
me that deprived me of all power of ac.
ton. | thought of Harry and thought
of Ellen, in an inextricable cypher OF
misery and agony; but could not have
defined line in my own mind; |
could not have explained what it was l
feared. | only knew that it was sorrow
that was TO come, and sin. | listened,
but all was still again; once only |
thought | heard low moan and once a
mutlering voice-which know now to
have been my husbands speaking pass
ionately to himself
And then his voice swept stormily
through the house crying wildly, "Mary,
Maryi Quick here Your sister, Ellen !"
| ran up stairs. 1t seems to me now
that almost flew. | found Ellen lying
on the floor Of her own room, Just inside
the door; her feet towards the door of
my husbands study, which was immedi-
ately opposite her room. She was faint
ing at least 1 thought so then. We
raised her up between US; my husband
trembling more than | /; and | unfaStened
her gown, and threw water on her face,
and pushed back her hair; but she did
not revive. told Harry TO go for doc
tor. A horrid thought was stealing over
me; but he fingered as l fancied, unac-
countably and cruelty, though | twice
asked him to 90. Then thought that
perhaps he was too much overcome so
went 10 him and kissed him, and said,
/" She will soon be better, Harry" cheer
fully, to cheer him. But | felt in my
heart that she was no more.
At last, after many urgent entreaties,
and afer the servants had come up, clus-
tering in frightened way ronnd the bed
but he sent them away again immedi-
a,ely-he put on his hat and went out,
soon returning with a strange man; not
our own doctor. This man was rude and
coarse, and ordered me aside, as l stood
bathing my sisters face, and pulled her
arm and hand roughly, to see how dead
they fell, and stopped down close to her
lips-I thought he touched them even
all in a violent and insolent way, that
shocked me and bewildered me. My
husband stood in the shadow, ghastly pale,
but not interfering.
1t was too true, what that strange man
had said so coarsely. She was dead.
Yes; the creature that had an hour ago
been so full of life, so beautiful, so reso-
lutte, and young, was now a stiffening
corpse, inanimate and dead, without life
and without hope. Oh that word had
set my brain on fire. Dead here in my
house, under my roof-dead SO mysteri-
ouSly, so sirangely-why! How ? 1t
was fearful dream, it was no truth that
lay there. was in a nightmare | was
not sane; and thinking how ghastly it all
was, tainted softly on the bed, no one
knowing, till some time after that had
fallen, and was not praying. When |
recovered l was in my own room, alone.
Crawling feebly to my sisters door, |
found that she had been washed and
dressed. II struck me that all had been
done in strange haste; Harry telling me
the servants had done it while | tainted,
| knew afterwards that he had told them
it was l, and that l would have no. help.
The mystery Of it was soon to be unrav-
elled.
One thing decided Onto watch by
my sister this night. Ii was in vain that
my husband opposed me; in vain that he
coaxed me by his caresses, or tried 10
terrify me with angry threats. Something
of my sisters nature seemed TO have
passed into me; and unless he had posi-
lively prevented me by force, no other
means would have had any effect. He
gave way to me at last-angrily-and
the night came on and found me sitting
by the bedside watching my dear sister.
How beautiful she looked Her face,
still with the gentle mark of sorrow on it
that it had in life, looked so grand She
was so great, so pure; she was like god
dess sleeping; she was not like a mere
woman of this earth. She did not seem
to be dead; there was life about her yet,
for there was still the look of power and
OF human sympathy that she used TO have
when alive. The soul was there still,
and love and knowledge.
By degrees strange feeling of her
living presence in the room came over
me. Alone IN the still mldD ght, with nc
person near me, it seemed as if l had
leisure and power to pass into the world
beyond the grave. 1 felt my sister near
me felt The passing of her life about
me, as when one sleeps, but is sill con-
sciouS that another life is weaving in with
ours. 1t seemed as if her breath fell
warm on my face; as if her shadowy
arms held me in their clasp; as if her
eyes were looking through the darkness
at me; as if | held her hands in mine,
aud her long hair fioated round my fore
heal And then to shake off these fan
cies, and convince myself that she was
really dead, looked again and again at
her lying there; . marble corpse, ice