Ashtabula weekly telegraph. [volume] (Ashtabula, Ohio) 1853-1873, 1869-11-27
WHOLE NUMBER 1899.

but beginning when he tried 10 exnIoin
the whole thing clearly TO Mary. The
torture Of putting it into words was so
'n'ense mat all before was nothing COM
pared WIN 1t. When at length she com.
pretended, and when she asked him II
nc wished her TO leave him, even that
agony seemed slight contrnsted with
%9st he endured in telling her that he
believed she ought TO do So
Loving az she was, she could not com.
prehcnd the sacrifice 10 duty whicI, Ast.
iey was striving TO make. and her thor.
| nugh ignorance Of the world rendered !,
/ Impossible TO make her understand what
her position would be il she remained
"here he was. And yet this was a case
so Astley tried TO persuade himself
so extraordinary, so different from any
thlhg tbat he had ever seen in the world
before, that no law, human or divine
could apply to it. But above all the
thought rose dominant, that bv what.
ever mystery Of unconsciousness depriyed
vi memory, she was still Hollis wife and
not ms, and with this thought piercing
MN like sharp sword, he said that he
oetieNed she ought 10 leave him.
0he rose mp, cold and proud in q mo-
'nent; and would have left him then, but
at the threshold her spirit failed, and she
turned again TO throw herself at his feet
with tears and sobs
Night has veiled many sights of woe.
The clouds Of night have MANY times
been pierced by cries Of anguish. bitter
cries Tor faith and patience, going up
I ABOVE the stars right to the feet Of God.
put night never shrouded deeper woe
| than this, bitterer cries never pierced
the shuddering darkness.
When morning dawned they were both
very calm and still Their tears were
shed, and their eyes were dry. He had
decided for the right. though his heart
was broken in the conflict; and she, wo-
man like, had accepted the right, not be-
ranse 1t was SO, but because he said it
was so.
81 shall die" she said in voice from
which all passion had departed. 81 can
bear no more and live, but 1 can bear
even this and dies
Who can describe that parting? When
the sun set it was upon Astley. broken.
hearted and alone. Holt had taken away
his wife.
Seven days passed, and Ashley never
left his desolate home. He made no dis
tinction of day or night, but lay down
to slrep-if the stupor which from time
TO time rendered him unconscious could
he 81 oalled-at any hour that sleep came
to him.
AT the close OF the seventh dav he
tried for the first time to look his fate
boldly in the face. Il am not dead" he
said, "therefore it is clear that this grief
will not kill me-" That night he un-
dressed and went to bed.
The night six years ago, when the
sheeted figure lay upon the table, and
he dreamed fantastic dreams of terror
connected with it, came to mind more
distinctly than it had ever done before.
His sleep vas broken and feverish, and
haunted by wild dreams. Twice he
awoke feeling certain that he heard a
Knocking at the door. And twice he
slept again when he found that all was
silent. But awoke a third time in the
gray dawn and heard the sound again,
feeble knocking at the outer door, which
ceased suddenly. He rose, determined
to ascertain the cause; he unbarred and
opened the door, and there fell forward
across the threshold the dead BODY of
! Mary.