Gallipolis journal. [volume] (Gallipolis, Ohio) 1837-1919, 1874-11-19

eyes. and he can never get rid of il
!, Thus, when Botoif saw Aasta, she n,
longer appeared to him as she hat
upon the mountain slope so short /:
time before, but she seemed to be s
little innocent girl-in fact, to bC
Agnes. Even the. picture he retained
of her figure while she was sinking
down the steep was that of Agnes,
with her little hands uplifted. In
whatever direction he turned his
thoughts and remembrances of the
suffering woman whom he had 50
suspected, they were met by this in
nocent child whom he had just heard
repeating the Lords Prayer. In ev
cry eneef his life with Aasta-from
the night of the shipwreck to this
Sunday morning-the child's faceap-
peared. The thought OF this mys-
terious transformation so proved upon
him, in both mind and body, that in
the course of few days he became
unable to take his necessary food, and
little while after was compelled to
keep his bed.
Soon every one could see he WAS
approaching death. lie whose mind
is burdened by some great life-enigma
acquires Il peculiar manner, through
which he himself becomes an enigma
to others. Even from the day BOtolf
and Aasta first came te.live in that
parish, his gloomy taciturnity, her
beauty, and the loneliness of the life
of both, had been the subject of fire.
qnent gossip among the neighbors;
and now, when Aasta all ut once dis
appeared. the talk increased until the
most Incredible things SAID were the
best believed. Nobody could throw
any light upon the matter; for none
of all those who lived upon the noun
tain ridge, or the shore beneath. or
who were accustomed to 90 there,
had happened to be looking toward
the steep just when Aasta flung her
self over Neither did her corpse
drift to land itself, to give evidence
Even while Botolf was vet alive,
no end of strange spiritual
istic stories were told about him.
He became dreadful 10 see, as he lay
there with long, sunken face, red
beard, and unkempt red hair, grow
ing tangled together, and large eyes
looking up like some dark tarn in
deep mountain hollow. He seemed |
to have no wish either to live or to
die: and so the folks said there was
a fight for his soul going on between
God and the devil. Some said they
had even seen the evil one, surround |
ed by flames, climb up to the win
lows of the dying man' chamber, to /
call TO him. They had seen the evil
one, too, they said, in the form of a
black dog, go shifting ronndE the I
house. Others who had rowed past,
had seen the whole place on fire;
while others again had heard q whole |
Of devils, shouting, barking
and laughing, come up from the sea,
toward the house, enter through the
closed doors, rush fnriOusly through
all the rooms and then get down
once more beneath the waves. with
he same awful row rs they made in
'Oming out. BOtolf's servants--men
Is well rs wOmen--lell immediately,
md told all these tales to everybody.
Hardly any one dared 90 near the
,lace: and if an old peasant and his
wife, to whom the sick man had
hown some kindness, had not taken
are Of him, he would have lain ut ;
erlv unattended. Even this old wo-
nan herself was in terror when she
vas with him. and she used to burn
traw under his bed to keep off the
vii one; but, though the sick man
vas nearly scorched up, he still kept
live
He lay in terrible suffering. and the
Id woman thought at last he must
'e waiting to see some one. So she
sked him whether she should send
Or the clergyman. He shook his
cad. Was there any one else he {
rould like to see? To that he made I
% answer. The next day, while he !
ras lying as usual, he distinctly pro- '
ounced the name Agnes. Ger t
ainly, this was not in reply to the old {
roman question Of the day before; I
mt she fancied it was, and she rose '
ladly, went out to her husband, and 5
ade him harness the horse with all 9
peed, and drive over to the parson- '
&c to fetch Agnes. c
When he reached there everybody |
hOught there must be some mistake, 4
nd that it was the clergyman who s
-as sent for; but the old man insist t
Il il was the little girl. She herself 1
as indoors and heard the message, v
-hich frightened her greatly; for '
he among the rest, had heard the {
lies about the devil, and about the 4
ompany of devils rushing up out of |
ne sea. But she had also heard.that
lere was some one whom the sick
ian was waiting to see, and must see
efore he could die; and she did not /
mink it anywise strange that that one \
hOuld he herself, whom his wife had G
D often fetched over to the house be- C
IRE. AgDes's sisters told her, too I
nat one must always try to do what u
wing folks wish; and that if she Il
rayed nicely to God, nothing colIiu S,
o her any harm. She believed thls' t,
nd let them dress her to go. O
II was a cold, clear evening, where 10
, she could see long, dark shadows f.
blowing. and hear echoes OF the o.
arness-bells sounding far off in the a a
crest. On the whole, she felt it was Il
,tber dreadful, and she sat saying
er prayers, with her hands folded
,oether inside her mufi. She did :.
1t see the devil anywhere, neither i,
id she hear any company of devils u
lshing up out of the sea while she u
de along the shore; but she saw u
any stars above her, and light shin u
4. Al I IN