The Wheeling daily intelligencer. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1865-1903, 1878-11-09


gradually his scattered thoughts returned,
and with them came remembrance. Yes!
he had looked once again upon the gorge.
Gus splendor OF nature! Once again his
eyes had trembled beneath their yelled
lids Of tho suns radiance, and sought re-
pose In the soft vetdure Of the olive tree
or the. gentle swell OF the undulating
waves; oh! that he were q mariner, ex-
posed upon those waves 10 the worst fury
Of storm and tempest, or u very wretch,
loathsome With disease, plague.stricken,
and his body one leprous contagion from
crown to sole, hunted forth TO gasp out the
remnant OF infectious life beneath those
yerdant trees, 50 he might Shun the destiny
upon whose edge be tottered,
| Vain thoughts like these would steal
over his mind from time to time In spite
OF himself, but they scarcely moved It
from that stupor into which 1t lad sunk,
and which kept him, during the whole
night, like one who had been drugged
with opium. He was equally insendble
to the calls Of hunger and Of thirst, though
the third day was now commencing since
even drop Of water had passed his lips.
He remained on the grounI, sometimes
sitting, sometimes lying; ut intervals
sleeping heavily, and, when not sleeping,
silently brOoding over what was to Come,
or talking aloud, in disordercd speech, OF
his wrongs, OF his friends, Of his home
and those he loved, with confused ming
ling Of all. -, i
In this pitiable condition, the sixth and
last morning dawned upon vivenzio, III
dawn Il might be called-the dim, obscure
light which family struggled through the
one SOLITARY window OF his dungeon. lie
could hardly be said to notice the mclan.
,choly token, and yet he did notice 1t; for,
as he raised his eyes and saw the pOrten-
tious sign, there was slight convulslve dis.
tortion Of his conntcnance. But what did
attract his notice, and at the sight OF which
his agitation was excessive, was the change
tho Iron bed had undergone. II was u |
bed no longer. II stood before |
him the visible semblance Of funeral
couch or bier! When he bcheld this, he
started from the ground; aud in raising
himself, suddenly struck his head against
the roof, which was now 50 low that he |
could no lonser stand upright Goods will
bclone!" was all he said ms he crouchcd his
body aud placed his hands upon the bier;
for such Il was. The iron bedstcad had
been 80 contriyed by the mechanical art
OF Ludovico Siorza, that, rs tho advancing
walls came III contact with It's head aud ,
feet, pressure was produced upon con-
ccalcd springs which, when male to play set
In motion very simple though Ingenious
~ Cnntrivel machinery that effected the
transformation, The object was, Of course,
to heighten, In the closing scene Of this
horrible drama, all the feelings Of despair
and anguish which tho preceding one had
aroused. For the salnO reason, the last
window was 80 made Us 10 admit on.
Is shadowy kind Of gloom rather than
light, that tito wrelciled captive might be
surrounded, rs Il were, with every seem,
ing preparation for approaching death.
Viyenzio seated himself on his bier.
Then no knclt and prayed iCryently; and
sometimes tears would gush from him.
Tho air seemed thick, and no hreathed
With difficulty or . II might nigh! be Se
hot and narrow limits Of his dungeon,
which were now 50 diminished that
he could neither stand up nor lie down at
his full length. But his wasted spirits and
oppressed mind no longrr struggled with
him. lie was past hope, and fear shook
him no more. Happy u thus revenge had
struck lts final Blow for he would have
fallen beneath 1t unconscious OF pang.
But such lOthargy OF the soul, after such
all excitement OF It's ilerccst passions had
entorel Into the dhbolical calculations Of
Inlfi and the fell artiAccr OF his designs
had managed countcracting device.
Tho tolling Of IN enormous bell struck
upon the ears Of viyenzio. lie started, 1t
beat but once. The sound wAS SO close
and stunning that II seemed 10 shatter his
very brain, while 1t echoed through the
rocky passages like reverberating peals Of
thunder. This was followed by sudden
crash Of the roof and walls, as II they were
about to fall upon and close around him at
once, NiyenEio sOrpamed, and instructive.
" spread forth his arms, as though he had
d giants strength 10 hold them back. They
moved nearer 10 him, and were now mo-
tionless. Vivenzio looked up and saw the
roof almost touching his hpad, even az he
sat covering beneath III and hO ielt that
further contraction Of but few inches
only must commence the trightul opera
ton.
Reused as he had beer, he now gaspcd for
breath. Ills body shook violently; no was
bent nearly double. Ills hands rested up
on either wall, and his feet were drawn
under him to avoid the pressure in front.
Thus he remained for more than IN hour,
when that deaiening bell beat again, and
again came the crash OF horrd death.
But the conclusion was now 80 great that
II struck viyonzlo down. As he lay gath.
prcdup In lcssened bulb, the bell tolled loud
and frequent; crash succeeded crash; and
on and on and on came the mysterious
engine OF death, I'LL Hivenzio's Nnothercd
groans were heard no more. lie was hor.
ribly crushed by the pondorouS roof and
collapslng sidesi and tho hattened bier
was Ills iron shroud.