The Nevada journal., 1858-04-09

ordinary adventure than what | have
now to relate 1t happened to myself;
l do not therefore ask Or expect you to
believe it, nor can the feelings with
which l was affected be imagined with
out experiencing the impressions of the
same awful circumstances.
had been for some time i'll of a low
and lingering fever. My strength grad
ual'y wasted but the sense of life seem
ed to become more and more acute as
my corporeal powers became weaker l
could see by the looks Of the doctor that
he despaired of my recovery; and the
low whispering of my friends taught me
that l had nothing to hope.
One day, tow ards the evening, the
crisis took place. / was seized with
strange and indescribable quivering-a
rushing sound was in my ears-l saw
around my couch innumerable strange
faces; they were bright and visionary,
and without bodies. There was light
and solemnity, and tried to move, but
could not. For short time a terrible
confusion overwhelmed NE, and when it
passed off, all my recollection returned
with the most perfect distinctness, but
the power of motion had departed. l
heard the sound of weeping at my pill
low, and the voice of the nurse say she
is dead" | cannot describe what felt
at these words. l exerted my utmost
powers of volition to stir myself, but l
could not move even an eyelid. After a
short pause, my friend drew near; and
sobbing and convulsed with grief, drew
his hand over my face, and closed my
eyes. The world was then darkened,
but could still hear, feel and suffer.
When my eyes were closed, l he ard
by my attendants, that my friends had
left the room, and | soon after found
that the undertakers were preparing to
habit me in the garments of the grave.
Their thoughtlessness was more awful
than the grief of my friends. They
laughed at one another as they turned
me from side to side, and treated what
they believed corpse, with the most
appalling ribaldry.
When they had laid me out, these
wretches retired, and the degrading for
mality of affected mourning commenced.
For three days number of friends call
ed to see me heard them, in low ac-
cents, speak of what | was, and more
than one touched me with his fingers
On the third, some of them talked Of the
smell of corruption in the room.
The coffin was procured-1 was lifted
and laid in-my friend placed my head
on what was deemed its last pillow, and
| felt his tears drop ON my face.
When all who had any peculiar inter
est in me, had for short time looked at
me in the coffin, heard them retire and
the undertaker's man placed the lid on
the coffin, and screwed it down. There
were two of them present; one of them
had occasion to go away before the task
was done. heard the fellow who was
left begin to whistle as he turned the
screwnails; but he checked himself, and
completed his work in silence.
! l was then left alone-every one
Stunned the room. | knew, however,
that | was not yet buried; and though
darkened and motionless, had still hope,
but this was not permitted long. The
day of interment arrived-I felt the cof-
fin lifted and borne away-I heard and
felt it placed in the hearse. There was
a crowd of people around some of them
spoke sorrowfully of me- The hearse
began to novel knew that it carried
me to the grave. 1t halted and the cof-
fin was taken out felt myself carried
on the shoulders of men, by the inequal-
ity of the motion-a pause ensue IL
heard the cords of the coffin novel
felt it swing as depended by them; it
was lowered and rested on the bottom of
the grave-the cords were dropped upon
the ld-I heard them fall-dreadful was
the effort then made to exert the pow
er of motion, but my whole frame was
immoveable.
Soon after, few handfuls of earth
were thrown upon the coffin. Then there
was another pause, after which the shov
ell was used, and the sound of the rat
tling mould, as it covered me, was far
more tremendous than thunder. But |
could make no effort. The sound grad
ually became less and less, and by a
surging reverberation in the coffin, l
knew that the grave was filled up, and
the sexton was treading in the earth and
slapping the grave with the fiat of his
spade. This, too, ceased, and all was
silent.
| had no means of knowing the lapse
of time, and the silence continued. This
is death, thought |, and | am doomed to
remain in the earth till the resurrection
Presently the body will fall into corrup-
ton, and the epicurean worm, that is
only satisfied with the flesh of man, will
come to partake of the banquet that has
been prepared for HIM with so much So
licitude and care. In the contemplation
of this hideous thought, heard low
and undersound in the earth above me,
and | fancied that the worms and rep
tiles of death were eoming-that the
mole and the rat of the grave would soon
be put upon me. The sound continued
to grow louder and nearer. Can it be
possible, l thought, that my friends sus-
pect they have buried me too soon
Il. l. 1 I