The New Orleans crescent. [volume] (New Orleans, La.) 1866-1869, 1869-04-18
A Frightful War Picture.
THE HORRORS OF BEING INSTANTLY KILLED.

Count Tolsboi's "Sevastopol in May in course
Of publication in Hours at Home. gives very re-
msrksble description Of the death OF man who
is instantly kled-as the living say, " instantly
killed "--by piece Of shell which strikes him.
But to him, the dying man, his death seems diff.
ferent affair. This surely is extremely pc werful
writing:
Michailof looked behind him. The shining
point of the bomb seemed to stand at the zenith
In that position where il 10 impossible to tell its
bomb came quicker and quicker, nearer and
nearer. SO that you could see the sparks from the
tube and hear the fatal whistng, aud directed its
course straight TO the middle Of the battalion.
Lie down." cried voice.
Michsilof and Praskukin lay down on the
ground. Prsskukin, tightly closing his eyes,
heard only how the bomb fell heavily somewhere
very near on the hard ground. A second passed
il seemed an hour-and the bomb did not burst.
Praskukin began TO be afraid that he had done a
cowardly act without any reason, that perhaps
the bomb had fallen far away and that he only
thought be heard the fuZe fixing. he opened his
eyes and saw with satisfaction that Michsilof lay
inmovable on the ground near his legs. But his
eyes at that moment met the sparkling fuze of the
whrlipg bomb not yard from him. horror
cold horror excluding oil other thoughts and
feelinge-took pos essiOn or him. He covered his
face with his hands.
Another second passed. second In which
whole world of feelings, thoughts. hopes and
recollectioDs passed through his mind.
Whom will 1t kill me or Michaiiof? or both
togetheri II 1t hits me, where will It hit. In the
head then its ell over il 1t hits my leg they will
cut II off and shall AJAX them to do il by sill means
with chloroform and can still get through alive.
But perhaps II viii only kill Michailof-then can
tell how we were walking together, and he was
killed and l was spat.ered with blood. No, it's
nearer to melt will kill me! !"
Then he recolected the twelve rubles that he
owed Michalof; he recollected also another debt
at Petersburg that he ought to have paid long ago
-, o,~ hat hal oI In 4ho mo
into his head; the girl whom he loved appeared to
his imagination in a cap with lilac ribbons; he re-
membered man whom he had insulted years be-
fore and who had never paid ii back, although at
the same time with these and thousand other re-
membranes the feeling of his present ciroum-
stsnces-tbe expectation of death-never for q
moment Quilted him. " However. perhaps 1t will
not burst" he thought, and with desparing decis.
ion wanted to open his eyes. But at that instant,
through the still shut lids he saw a red FIRE. and
with horrible noise something hit him in the
middle Of the breast.
"Thank God / am only bruised" was hiszfrst
thought, and be wanted to feel Of his breast, but
his hands seemed to be bound down, and weight
to keep down his head. The soldiers shone in his
eyes, and he unconsciously counted them: lone,
two, three soldiers, and that one whose overcoat
had slipped down Is en- officer he thought Then
be saw flashes, and he thought, "what are they
firing from, mortars or cannon! Probably can
non. They are firing again, and there are more
soldiers five, six, seven soldiers, and they all 60
past" He all at once became afraid that they
would leave him there. He wanted to cry out
that he was wounded, but bis mouth was 30 dry
that his tongue stuck to his palate and terrible
thirst tormented him. He felt how wet he was
about the breast. "Really, fell into some blood
when lay down" he thought; and, yielding more
and more to the fear that the soldiers who were
going past would leave him there he collected sill
his forces and tried to cry out, Take me along !"
but instead of that. he groaned so audiby that IT
was awful 70 hear his own voice. Then some red
fires danced in his eyes, and il seemed to him that
the soldiers were laying stones on him; the fires
danced quicker and quicker, the stones which
they laid on him oppressed him more and more.
He made an effort to throw of the stones, stretch
ed out, and then neither saw nor heard nor
thought nor felt. He was killed on the spot by q
fragment OF she'll in the middle of his breast.