The star of Pascagoula. [volume] (Pascagoula, Miss.) 1873-1878, 1877-01-05

] lelt the boy's lits kiss my band, and
his young clear voicc came upagaip, with
n tremble In 10
"Aye, Father hat ! WILL Ny fathers
mare is In the stable, and this very hour
! will start and take no rest till I 6nd
Roger Vaoe and put your ring in hi'
hand, 0od helping me"
y y
II lay by The grated window all the
rest Of the long, slow afternoon, al
through the open twilight, and waited
for Martin My blood was hot with
fever, and there was madness IL my brain
! almost believed "a ! crouched there,
that all these tales were true, and that
devils had crept into every pulse that
beat In my hot head, and whispered
In my ears "a ! clenched my hand
over IL. At last | heard my name called,
in a voice that was human, and yet was
kinda pitiful voice sounding under my
grating.
Esther 4! Esther!
81 sprang up and answered him. |
pressed my face to the bars, and in the
growing starlight / saw him standing
there--Martin-all alone. | could not
speak his name, and all other sounds
died in my dry, parched throat.
al have done your errand, Estherp
"'You have seen-you have seen
Roger Vanev
al have seen him.
"'And the ring | gasped out.
"He seemed to hang his head lower
| and lower, as if he feared to meet my
eyes.
'"'I put it into his hand, Esther, as
you babe me-
"'And he said--what did he say?
Are you dumb Martin Brown | cried,
stamping my foot wildly. why can
| not you answer meT
''Because-because ! shall break your
heart the boy cried out, breaking into
| tears. Esther, he will not come to you
he is cruel and false, and deserves not
| one sigh that you have spent for him !
He is to be married tomorrow; he can
not break away from his bride at Gov.
Winthrop's grand hOuse, to keep a tryst
at Salem JAIL m
"That was all that | heard. The
| place whirled round and round with me,
and the roar of the great waters was in
nv ears and | fell on the stone floor,
senseless while yet alive. But that was
| the bitterness of death, what cared | for
the rest? Tomorrow came, and the
April sunshine glinted far over the
earth, and shone on the BRIDE IN the
streets of Boston town, and on the witch.
| girl climbing the cursed hill to die.
| heard the shouts and jeers and hooting'
of the rabble irving the tender spring
air, and ! saw, as II in a dream, the
sea of faces upturned to me, and the
black gallows drawn against the sweet
blue, sunny sky and / felt the hangman.
hand touch me and turn cold the blood
in nv veins. and | flung out my las
breath IN a curse that should cling-tha'
has c~lunr--to all women born OF tina
woman, down through unnumberet
generations--down to you, who trac'
YOUR lineage through Mabel Daniels ant
Roger Vane! In that curse my sou
wavered and futtered out-sprang Tree
and left, swinging between the blaci
earth and sky, on witch's hill, the fai
form that crept close into a lovers arm
in the greenwood long ago"
She stood over me-thls ghost o
Esther Chillingworth-and tore the Col
of black hair from her neck, and in tn
faint, misty moonlight, | saw a dreadful
c%ircling mark around the fair, whit
throat. Nv blood curdled with tn
horror of it, and as | hid my eyes COVER
ing away in the pillows, she hung owe
me with a long, moaning sob, like tn
las, breath of the dying. think tina
terror made me insensible as | lay there
heard no more, nor saw my strange Wis
Itant vanish with the glimpse OF tn
moon; but when / opened my eyes agar
the o was light again, n l was quit
alone, withholding more CHASTITY than
dull old family portrait to watch me be
tween the parted curtains. A dream,
thought, shuddcring, as | rubbed m
hands across my eyes.
Esther Chillingworth's ring was gon
from my finger.