The workingman's advocate. [volume] (Chicago [Ill.]) 1864-1877, 1870-01-29
TALES OF THE BORDERS.
THE gUI0IDE.
THE SURGE EoN's STORY.
Ut ALExARDKR LEIoHroS.

s lcoNTnULD
| he now sank his face in the bedclothes,
(which he graspcd with spasmodic hand,
and grOaned so deep and loud that the
sounds might have reached the passage.
again beard noise from that quarter, as il
of stitied sighs and hysterical sobs. / was
placed between the groans of father bent
against his own judgment on self destruction
and the terrors and griefs of d lighter lis
,tening to the horrible recital of her parent
designs against his life. The loneliness of
;the house, and the solitude Of the unhappy
lpair-with no one to aid the Young woman,
in the event of anJ appalling extremity to
which the unnatural purpose of her father
might drive him, struck me forcibly. had
mo recollection Of ever experiencing scene
1Of grief so peculiar, with such fearful and un-
acertain issues, SO irremediable and heart
stirring The groans Ofthe one and the sobs
:of the other seemed to vie with each other in
sthe effect they produced upon me but,
sgreat as the pain Of the father was, the suf-
iferings Of the daughter, perhaps as peculiar
and touching as any that could be conceived,
engaged to the greatest extent my sympa-
lthy. 1t was my duty and wish to try to re-
move the fundamental cause Of all this. suf-
fering and / waited the end Of the parox-
ysm of the fathers sorrow in order to resume
the conversation.
"These views" said l, as he calmed,
(which , Ou take of life, and its duties and
affections, are all false and distorted 1t is
our duty to try to regulate our thoughts a.
well as our actions by some steady supp IT.
ing principle, which mankind have agreed
in considering as true, whether it be derived
from the direct Word Of God or from the
the written tablets of the heart. The taking
away Of our life-Orignially given to MS a
trust, or imposed on us by the Author of
of all good, for certain ends and purposes
which are yelled from our VIEWS un-
doubtedly in many respects, as regards God
himself, ourselves, our children, and our
neighbors, great fagrant, horrible crime
1t is against the law Of God, the law Of our
country, the organic law of our physical con-
stitution, and the moral law Of our minds
1t is indeed the only act that can be men
toned that is against all these. 1t does not
require me to tell you that suicide with other
murders, was denounced by God himself,
speaking in words that all mankind have
heard, from he thick cloud that hung
over Mount Sinai. You are, presume, a
Christian, and the Sacred Book containing
that Remuneration lies at your side; and yet
YOU have made the dreadful confession to
me, that you have dared to mediate on the
breaking, the despising. the cOntemning Of
the command Of Him who by less than a
command-ay, than even word, by the
lifting up Of his tinger-may consign you to
an eternity Of agony, in comparison of which
all the sorrow you now suffer is less than a
grain Of sand to the sand banks Of the sea. y
" 1t is true, it Is true y replied the un
happy man. ''I know, ] feel that every
word you have uttered is true, malst true
and undenable as are the sentiments O thi:
holy book" grasping again the Bible; "but
can ye-wha, by the command O. books and
education, can dive farther into the nature o
the mind Il an ane like me-explain thi:
mystery, that, when my soul is filed wi
/ luC " bOllOWg duu AOOOAAONS
purpose O self-murder whispers in my mind
treachery and war against God, thae truths
ye bae uttered, for they hae occurred to me
before, tax flight like guild angels, and leave
me to warsle wi power that subdues me
1t is then that | am in danger, and the hand
that has held up to my throat that fatal in-
strument I had under my pillow, has the
moment before been lifted up vainly in
prayer to God, to throw owre my mind the
light O. thae grand truths. What avails it
then, that there are times when | love them
and am guided by them, and thank Heaven
for the precious gift O. KNOWN, feelin, and
appreciatn them, if there are other moment:
when they fee frae me, and am left power
less in the grasp o my enemy p Pausing,
and falling again into fit Of detection, g
fear, fear the best O us are only the slaves
O some mysterious power. But''-startine
up, as if recollecting himself-"I put 8
question to you-answer me in the name 0
Heaven; for if gle mysel up to the belle
O. an all-powerful necessity, | am lost mar
and selfmurderer.
He vas now clearl approaching rock
whereon many a gallant bark has beer
shivered to atoms. Even healthy-minded
men cannot look at the question of the ne
cessity Of the will without staggering ant
reeIing and hypochOndriacs love to ge
drunk by inhaling the vapours of mysticism
that rise from it, destroying as they do al
moral responsibility, and concealing th'
vengeance Of heaven and the terrors Of hell
It was necessary to lead him from this dan
gcrous subject, which it was clear he hac
| been studying and dreaming about, with al
that love of subtlety and mysticism whicl
melancholy generates.
"No sensible man." said 1, " believes i
the absolute necessity of the will Ate
the will is fixed, the liberty is already exel
: cised, and there is indeed no 'ctH in the min
: at all until it takes the form Of an active
moving, propelling principle. But thes
are abtruse fancies, which you must fly,
YOU wish to possess healthy mind. Sol
row, or any other feeling Of pain, will extlr
ouish while it lasts the burning lights {
Drinciple or sentiment. The pain Of th
amputation Of limb prevents, while it lasti
the natural working of the mind but grtt
npav be Gverted, and the great healing seer
Of that is, that the mind must be occupies