Dodgeville chronicle. [volume] (Dodgeville, Wis.) 1862-current, 1870-07-08
Miscellaneous Reading.
THE ALARMBELL OF 47RL

BY II. W. LoNeFELLow.
Ar Atri in Abruzxss III town G.
Ofancient Roman date, But scant renown,- go
One of those little places that have run
Half up the hill,' beneath blazing sun,
And then sat own TO rest, as IL to say,
"I climb no farther upward, come what may -
The Re Giovanni now unknown to fame,
SO many monarchs since have borne the name,
Had great bell hung in the market,place
Byway OF shelter fromth spn ana ram; u "a. szs
Then rode he throuslLfhe streets with all histr@
And. with the blast Of trumpets loud and long,
Made proclamation. that whenever wrong
Was done to any man, he should but ring
The great bell in the square. and he, the king,
Would cause the Syndic to decide thereon,
Such was the proclamation OF King Ohm.
How happily the days in Atri sped,
sufce Il that, ASA A. an tkings must decayTA So
The hempen rope at length was worn away.
Unravelled at the end and strand by strand,
TI u one who duo nosed wsei1 tbs IN passing by
Mended the rope with braids of briony,
So that the leaves and tendrils of the vine
Hung like votiye garland at a shrine
By chapce 1t happened that in Atri dwelt
A knight, with spur on heel and sword in belt,
Who loved to hunt the wild boar in the woods,
Who loved his falcons with their crimson hoods,
Who loved his hounds and horses, and all sports
Loved. or had loved them for at last, grown old,
His only passion was the love of gold.
He sold'hishorsss, sold his hawks and hounds.
Rented his vineyard, ard his garden! grounds
Kept but one steed, his favorite steed of all,
To starve and shiver in naked stall,
And. day by day, sat bro0ding in his chalr,
Devising plans how best to hoard and spare.~
At length he said: &C What is the use or need
To keep at my own cost this lazy steed,
Eating his head off in my stables here,
Lett hm feed 9w 1pon thd
lwant him only for the HOLIDAYS"
SO the old steod was turned into the heat
the ai1Qnt ahQ
And wandered in suburban lanes forlorn,
Barked at by dogs, and torn by brier and thorn.
Ope afternoon, as in that sutry cline
1t is the custom in the summertime,
With boted doors. and window-shutters closed,
The inhabitants of Atri slept or dozed;
The The icas , i sls5 i e 3 & shs &ssssssg gs
Turned on his couch, and listened, and then rose
And donned his robes, and with reluctant pace,
Went psa,nting forth into the market-place,
Where the. greet bell upon its cross-beam swung,
Reiterating with persistent tongue,
In half-articulate iargon, the old song:
"Some one hath done wrong, hath done
!. wrpngi"
10 saw, or thought he saw, beneath ite shade,< y
No shape ofhuman form, ,of woman Born, ~
@ Bnt poor steed detected and forlorn,
Who with uplifted head and eager eye
was tuggiug at the vines of briony.
pSmenedd1el" Don I. cried the syndc straight
He callsfor justice, being sore dlstresseds IA
And pleads his cause as loudlyas the best" ~ A
Meanwhile from street and lane noisy crowd
Had rolled together, like summer cloud,
And told the story of the wretched beast @.
In ive-and twenty different ways at least.
With much gesticulation and appeal
TO heathen gods, in their excessive zeal.
The Knight was called and questioned; in reply
Did not confess the fact, did not deny sAszesrsa
treated the matter as pleasant jest, Wv
And set at naught the Syndic and the rest,
Maintaining. in an angry undertone,
That ne should do what pleased him with his own
And thereupon the syndic gravely read
The proclamation of the King; then said
Pride gceth forth on horseback grand and gay,
But cGmeth back on foot, and begs Its way
Ferne is the perfume of heroic deeds,
OF flowers of chivalry and not of weedsl -
These are familiar proverbs but i fear q fygRT 4
They never yet have reached your knighty ear. -
What fair renown, what horor, what repute-
scan come to you from starving this poor brute?
He who serves well and speaks not merits more
Than they who clamor loudest at the door.
Therefore the law DEGREES, that as this steed : :
y. heed.
10 comfort his old age, and to preyidSx =
Shelter instafA and food andsfeld beside.''
pThe knight Withdrew abashed the peopleall
Led home the steedin triumph to.his stall. swsw
The King heard and approved, andlaughed glee,
And cried aloud: Right well it pleaseth me "a
Church bells at best but'ring us to the door; r.
but go not into mass; fmysb bell doth. more:'
1T come eth INTO court aud pleads the CAUSE
!. or creatures dumb and unknoWn to the laws; .
and this snail make, in every Christian cline,
.The bell Of Atri famous for an time. ~ e
"a - Atlantic HD1thLl.sisz