The Lancaster ledger. [volume] (Lancaster, S.C.) 1852-1905, 1858-10-20

and kissing it, seemed to see her by me-
for could never think Of her as dead
That realization was kindly spared me by
tie fact that no new void can be felt, no
new unnaturalness, in the eternal void
| and unna:uralness OF aprison.
But one night coming from work
tourd the tress gone. Asking the turn
KEY for it, was told, prisoners are al.
lowed no useless articles From that
moment knew that she wnom loved
was dead. Like wild freshet the agony
OF the knowledge gushed in upon me-
With it came the memory Of my burning
wrongs-the scorn Of man spent upon
my innocent head-,he perfdy of my
only brother The irredeemable helpless
ness OF all things. And shut myself up
in sullen, silent madness. A most dan.
gerous madness it was. From the time
that lost the tress five years were to
eapse before | went out, and If in that
time revolt had sprung up in PRISON |
bad died fighting in its front, for | was
ripe for any crime. AS it was ] only
bode my time. Once out would wreak
condign vcngence on society-on law
ON my brother.
The five years passed-five years Of
dust and clnking in the yard of dark
ness, mutterin9, low, smothered heart.
burning in ;he cell. At last, one NOR
ming, the warden threw open my door,
and passed out with the slow lock-siep
which had been prac,icing nearly the
quarter OF lifetime. l was going to
chapel with the rest-to hear Of the
Prodigat Son and the Magdalen-lhey
the guilty. but the welcomed--I the nno-
cent, yet the thrust out. But the officer
stopped me with these three words: "You
are tree!'
did not cheer, nor wiring the mans
hand, nor even smile. One grows used
to forget these ways of the world after
fifteen years in prison.
But the revenge which. little by little,
had stretched its fbrous roots through
the soil of my heart I'll. every drop of
lifejuice went To nourish the plant, now
began 10 put forth lis blossoms, and ]
felt them bud into an ecstatic, poisonous
fragrance. My sweet, long. hoped.for
hour had come! In few moments
more the despised convict should burst
upon his motley chrysalis, and be rushing
like winged Nemesis to settle accounts
with world which had the start Of him
by fifteen years.
went TO the prison wardrobe and got
back that dress which, in The days long
gene, | had put off with the rest of my
humanity. They were clean, faslidiously,
! genteman.kc as when left them. |
seemed for a moment. at their sight, to
be waking from the terrible eternity Of
bad dream to be finding them folded
hy my bedside, where they had lain only
since the last night.
had come in with the majesty Of the
lava guard on either side. went out
a!one-no danger was apprehended Of
my escaping from thaL other prson-the
world. Leaving the high gray walls be.
hind me, struck into The road for Hart
lord. Had | come out five years before,
| might have been expressly soitened by
the long, unwonted music Of the birds
that, from trees and orchard walls, made
the air full Of their JOY. Now had lived
past the time when such things could
touch me, and walked still in the lock-
step, looking neither about nor forward,
but ever moodily on the ground. And
thus, late in the afternoon, came whilh-
er the commencement of my recital finds
me, and stood in The market.place of the
town which l had last seen fade out he
hind me as went away in scorn.
No wonder that by all the psssers
was stared at as IN oddlty
10 be suspected and shrunk from, for my
grizzled hair was of the prison cut, my
clothing had gone out Of fashion when
the fathersin tile street were children, and
not by fear but long use, looked no man
in the face. And here and there in knots
the people whispered about me, sometimes
with evident carelessness as TO how loud.
But l only nursed deeper aud more
quiet wrath.
There came along that way throng
Of children just from school. Stepping
up to one Of them, asked, "Does George
Markham still live in this places" The
little giIl turned up a sunny Spring NOR
ming face and answered, 4 am his daugh-
ter, Sir; do you want to see him o
Abolish thought suggested itself to
me. l said, Yes, you may show me the
way to his house, knew we should
take a ss-path over the fields and pass
a long reach Of lonely woods.' In the
most solitary part OF that might wreak
upon tie guilty bead Of George Markham
the most terrible vengeance which
could wipe out his most bitter wrong to
me. | would kill his child ard bring
her home to him, coniessing that did it,
and glorying in the erl Of that horrid
game Of quits on whose first throw he
had staked my heaven and lost II.
The little maiden took my hand, con-
6dipgly. That might unnerve me; 80 l
loosed il and / told her to 60 before while
! followed. She tossed back her curls
and went bounding ahead at a rate my
strides we're hardly equal to. Still kept
my eye upon her. After a while we came
into low brook. recourse between two hills,
4 A