The Ebensburg Alleghanian. [volume] (Ebensburg, Pa.) 1865-1871, 1866-05-10

tOu0Q mySelI SAub up III SOue HdIIo"
place that scarcely allowed of any move
ment whatever. How did l get there?
What did it mean
Suddenly, my old lifelong fear return
ed upon ME with new terror that no
language can express. Perhaps the dread
horror of years had come, and [ had been
buried alive at last The thought was so
appalling that for some moments l re-
mained paralyzed. Then seemed gath
cred into one great agony, which sent
forth the most wild and piercing shrieks
of despair that ever issued from mortal
lips.
Yes, it was truth My foreboding
had ended IN a reality, and | was now the
tenant of a coffin, if not grave With
another shrek, | turned in my narrow
house, gathered in my strength, as it were,
and threw it out from me with what
seemed the bursting power of giant
There came sharp crack my prison
seemed slightly to expand, and fancied
| felt change of air. rested moment,
prayed God to help me, and repeated the
effort with even greater power. There
was no resisting this The coffin lid was
burst asuuder with crash, and my limbs
and body were free in the awful darkness
which enyeioped me-the rayless dark
ness of tomb!
In considering this wonderful feat, it
should be borne in mind that none OF my
strength had been exhausted by sickness,
ard that, besides being naturally very
strong, powerful man, my physical powers
were perhaps doubled or trebled by my
fear and despair.
L was free now to breathe the damp,
deleterious air of what believed to be
a vault or tomb; but confess my terror
was scarcely lessened at the thought OF
having thus extended the limits of my
prison, for after all, might not be able
\to escape from this horrible place, and if
not, it would only be prolongation of the
aSonies of lie aud death. Fortunately, [
had been coffued in my own garments,
and it was season of the year when |
could not suffer from cold, so that the
question of lie without escape was reduced
to two points -suffocation from foul air:
or starvation. If could escape the first,
[ knew there were several days Of life yet
before me, and perhaps the time would be
long enough, with unremittiDg toll, for
NE TO dig my way out, like convict from
his prison
The first important thing for me TO as
certain was the dimensions of my sepul-
chre. Whether it was day or night, l
could not then tell, for / could see nothing
whatever-not even my hand when held
is up close before my eyes. Everything
must be done by feeling; and though
shuddering with horror az the thought of
what might discover, | knew that delay
could avail me nothing, and | resolved to
set about the work before me. [ rose up
in my coffin and stretched my hands above
my head but they came in contact with
nothing. | felt out on either side, but
touched no object. | put them down
below the coffin, and found it rested on
slab that was supported some distance
above the ground, | could not tell how
much. [ got out of the coffin carefully,
stretched down my feet till they touched
a solid basis, and then slowly and eau
tiously began to grope around the vault
I soon touched the wall on one side, and
carefully felt of the stones. / found
them, as I feared l should, large, solid,
hewn, and evidently put together with
cement. There seemed little hope of my
ever finding my way through them. [
followed the wall along till | came 20
pile of collins, one upon the other, reach
ing up as high as my head. They had
evidently been there long time and
fancied, from the Shiny feel, they were
mildewed aud decayed. After passing
these, came to another portion of the
wall, and then to another pile of coffins,
not so high as the first, but even more
decayed. In turning from these, my feet
slipped, tell against them, and the up
per one came down with crash, burst
open, and the bones rolled out with
phOsphorescent glare, lighting up the
darkness, and looking like so many orbs
of FIRE. | staggered back with an invol-
untary yell of horror the thing was so
sudden and the spectacle SO awful!
Ny reason returned in mOment; and
though my nervous system had received
shock that for a long time kept me
weak and trembling, yet | saw at once
how much l was the gamer by the acci-
dent, since by this means I now had a dim
view of the charnel-house which had be-
come my prison, if rot my grave. The
vault was net large, but contained quite
number Of cofhns, not one of which was
new save my own, which led ne to be-
lieve it had seldom been used of late
years, except perhaps as a place of tenn
porary deposit. 1t was strange light to
see by the phosph horescence of dead mems
bones; and when take everything into
consideration return to conscious
ness, the horrible suspicious, certainties,
aud discoveries. which followed in appal-
ling order-I am even now compelled to
wonder how it was possible for me to keep
my senses, and continue my efforts to es-
cape with the GOODNESS I did,
r soon fo1Ipd the door of the vanIt Tt