The weekly standard. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 1869-18??, 1869-12-29
SELECTED STORY.
A Romance of Lima.

nictlcal stuueut Hauitu ASliey, went II
Lima. The love of adventure was strong
upon him, and all he met with in his owl
country was too tame to satisfy it. PROUD
of the profession for which he was studying
aud trusting to it for subsistence, strong
and healthy in body and in mind, he left
England with a bold heart and this was
the life he led, and what came of it.
AT time when the difficulty of procuring
subjects for anatomical study was great, and
when to procure them honestly was impos.
sible, and; the prejudice against dissection
was s6 Strong that inS one Was willing to
submit the body of any one connected with
him to examination, IL is well known that
there we're men, vile made it their business
to obtain, at no small risk, bodies, generally
those of the newly buried, which they sold
to surgeons, medical students, or indeed to
any one who stood in need of the ghastly
commodity A.
This class, known as body snatchers -
and resurrection men," has died out since
there is happily now little prejudice against
what has been 4triumphantly proved to be a
necessary branch of scientific study; but at
the time of our story their hideous work
vas thriving and profitable one r
Richard Ashley, in common with the rest
of the profession, availed himself of their
services, and many times in the black night
his door was opened to those who did not
knock, but who were expected and waited
for, and who, entering silently, stealthily de-
nsits dead bur len upon the table pre-
.'.1ed for its reception. Old and Young
Tn, women and children, all in time Law
ION that grim table, and Astley's skillfnl
...struments cut their way to secrets that
we're destined to benefit the living. -..i.
Though he was not hard-hearted, it was
not unnatural that in time he should grow
~ much accustomed to the sight of his
subjects" as to feel nothing but momen-
;ary pity as he put aside the clustering curls
III infancy, or uncovered the face of man
pck down in the glory of his years.
One night, as many nights before, the
s'ealthy visit was paid, and Ashley. took his
amp to examine the new subject. Il Neither
strong man nor tender child this tihe but
.,oung and beautiful; women. he dead
tace was SO lovely tbas it did dot seem
possible that the light in the closed ewes
'"uld make it loveIier. The fair hair had
l,llen back, and give no shade tosthe white
brow, and The Iddg fair Iashes Law in thick
fringe upon tlieyfiolent tinted hnderlids.
She was very tall and sleAet and her
ilands-oneo Of sghum hung ddd as she Law
i ION the tablsS were aong AN perfectly
,laped. As Asi1ty lifted the hind to Law i
~ her breast, he ouglstIhew beautiful it
AUST once have beA since o1i when there
was notthe faintestS rose1At I'd relieve the
leath pAllof of it, Rasseo exquisite. She
wore ob garment. o long flannel sbroud
very sraightly madSt thsoGgf} which scanty
II -apst2 her sfender limbs Eas distinctly
isihie, and below which hef delicate feet
werf seen, bare toahe ankle.
4stley was troubled as be bad never been
bebF The idea.of. tfeafii his beautiful
cofpse as he had done. ALI others brought to
hin In like manner was. Tgpulsive to him,
and he recoiled from it az fIbm the thought
Of sacrilege. But how could he rid himself
of the lovely iYcubus? TWAS possible that
the men who Dad broughtit might be brib.
ed to take it pack again nnd, iffhey should
refuse 3but he [was it$tpable of distinct
thought qApn the subje3 and could only
determine Mat in anS base the beautiful
thiAg before him shos5 be treated with rev. |
erence and respect. He. gently covered it |
fomihead tofopt with a long white cloth.
md locking thesdporof Communication be.
tween his bedroom safit1 the room which il |
ay, threw himself upon LIS bed without un.
iressing, for theH5ght w8 nearly gone.
But his sleep was'broksp, and his dreams
we're ,feverish, and in SOME way all connect
d with what lay in the next room. Now,it
eemed to him that it glfded in through the
ocked door, with hands folded on its breast,
nd eyes still fast closed, and stood by his
edside, and now the dream was that he had
2ened vein in one of the delicate arms.
nd that warm, living blood poured from it
lst and finally he woke with a cry of bor-
Or from CHASTITY dream that be had en-
,red the room, and found that some I'M
nown hand had anticipated him in the
ork of dissection. t.
The horror was upon him after he woke
Know 1t was dream, and opening the
Dor he looked in upon the table. No
lange there of any kind. The long sheet
figure lay in the half light of dawn as he '
I'd seen it before in the lamplipht. very .
raight and still =
1t was not until nearly noon that Ashley q
SEQ the covering to look once again upon n
; beautiful dead face, and when he did so i,
" with wonder, not unmixed with terror. 4
1T a change had come upon it. He could +,
tell, what it might be; the deathly pal Il
wasf There still, but in some way the face n
s not the same. He looked into il lo,,o =
! eHrously, Surely change had passed -
er the eyes, for though theJ were still last
ut, they looked now as though closed in 10
,ep rather than in DEATH He lifted an eve a
tenderiy with his finger; there was not n
'ath IN, the eye; Inconsistencies, trance u
ere might be, but not death. II
He waS certain now that she was not dead a
ough lie could find no life in her pulses
or hours he strove to call back the spirit.
ltil at length color returned, and warmth. 4 I
i'd life, end she lay before him sleeping tran i
lilly hike a child. He had placed her on his '
I'd, and Bow sat by her side with thrdbbing !
cart, toAwait her awakening. -. !
She slept 50 long and in the waning light
'oked 50 pale that he feared She was again
bout to fall into the strange deathly trance !
ON which he had with so much difficulty
covered her In his terror of that he cried l
ut for her to awake, and the soundof his cry I
woke heTwith start. ~, -
He had prepared speech that was to calm I
nd reassnfe her when she awoke bewildered q
find herself so strangely clothed and lodp. S
d; but she no more needed calming and re- I
ssuring than an infant. She looked round
nth wondering gaze that was almost in. 8
antile, and her eye resting upon Ashley she
at upon in bed and asked him in his own
anguage fcr food. Itwas evident that she ,
lad no recbllection as to her present posi-
ion. 2iFaEF @gFf n - Il 7
She ate the food which was brought to
er with sppetlte, and would have risen
rom the bed, apparently unconscious that !