The Shasta courier., 1862-10-25
Touching Relic of Pompeii.

In digging the ruins of Pompeii, every
turn of the spade brings up some relic of an
cient life, some witness of imperial luxury
For far the greater part, the relics have only
curious interest they belong to archeolo-
gy, and find appropriate resting places in
historical museums.
But there are some exceptions. Here, tor
instance, the excavator drops, an unlimited
guest, upon a banquet there he unexpect-
edly obtrudes himself into tomb. In one
place he finds miser covering on his heap !;
another shows him the bones of dancing
girls and broken instruments lying on the
-marbM floor. In u midst,of the p1inted
chambers, baths, halls, columns, fountains,
among the splendid evidences of material
wealth, he sometimes stumbles on a simple
incident-a touching human story-such as
strikes the imagination and suggests mourn.
full interest of the great disaster as the sud-
den sight of wounded soldier conjures up
the horrors of the field of battle.
Such to our minds is the latest discovery
of the excavators in this melancholy field
1t is group of skeletons in the act of flight,
accompanied by dog. There are three hu-
man beings, one of them young girl, with
a gold ring and jewels still on her fingers
The fugitives had bag of gold and silver
with them, snatched up no doubt in haste
and darkness. But the fiery flood was on
their track. and vain their wealth, their
hight--the age of one, the youth OF the other.
The burning lava rolled above and beyond.
and the faithful dog turned back to share the
fortune of his mistress. dying at her feet.
Seen by the light of such an incident, how
wildly that night of horrors looms upon the
senses Does not Imagination picture the
little group in their own house. by the side of
their evening fountain, languidly chattering
the days events, unusual heat? Does it not
hear with them the troubled swell of the wa
ters in the bay? See with them how the
light comes down in sudden strangeness. .how
the sky opens over head, and ths flames
break ont, while corra sand and moulton
rocks come down. What movements, what
emotions, surprise! The scene grows dark
er every instant the hollsw monotony of the
bay is lifted into yells and shrieks, the air
grows thick and hot with flames, aud at the
mountains foot is heard the roll of liquid
lava. Jewels, household gods, gold and sill
yer coins. are snatched up on the instant
No time to say farewe |; darkness in front
and fire behind. they rush into the streets
streets choked with falling houses and fly
ing citizens. How to find a way through
passages that have no longer any outlets p
Confusion. danger. Carkness. uproar, every
where the shouts of parted friends, the ag-
ony of men struck down by the falling col
umns fear, madness and despair unclaimed /;
here penury clutching gold it cannot keep
there, gluttony feeding on its final meal !;
and phrenzy striking in this dark to fore.
stall death. Through all. fancy hears the
the you girls screams the frs is on her
ieweled hand No time for thought-no
pau e-the fl BOD rolls on. and wisdom, beau
ty, age and youth, with all the stories of
their love, their hopes, their rank, wealth
and greatness-all the once affiuent life, are
gone forever.
When unearthed after many years, the
nameless group has no other importanc to
mankind than as it may :' serve to point a
moral or adorn tale"