Feliciana sentinel. [volume] (St. Francisville, La.) 1877-1892, 1878-04-27
Written for the Sentinel,1
THE LONG AGO.

Away from far OF, down III the SHiAn-
owy distance of the past, comes the music
of Long Ago, sad and low, reminding
one of the departed friends and lovers OF
childhood, who played together and
walked arm in arm on the great high
way of life, and died before their journey
was finished, or their work was done.
Again, the music swelling and dying
away, louder and louder, and now soft
and low, the sad sweet music OF Long
Ago.
The thoughts of Long Ago. sad and
sweet even in their remembrance some
dark and fearful some ghostly and mys-
terious, like the shadow of the trees IN
the moonlit and silent graveyard, whore
the tall church spire points upward
showing the way to Heaven.
The haunting faces of the Long Ago,
in youths bright hour, when all was
happipess and love, come like dark
dreams of night, dim and indistlnct
they rise and vanish again they come
and are gone. Among them one dark and
gentle-eyed, with long, wavy hair, and
eye Like stars-bright stars-shinlng
on the cold earth, and warming all with
their dark and gentle beauty; how the
haunting faces of the Long Ago have
passed. again they rise and are gone.
The companions Of the Long Ago, who
were then in their pride and beauty, are
now-some lying under the waving grass
in the green and silent graveyard, with
the wind sighing through the trees, and
whispering of the Long Ago; some be-
meath the foaming waters of the dark
and bounding sea.
The vail of tho Long Ago, was whis-
by the winds to the meadow, where the
brook runs babbling along; to the dark
woods, where the tall tree trunks look
like the palace-pillars of the great
Earth King far below the dark noun
tains. Then the spirits of the flowers
raised their heads, and wondered what
the mournfui words meant but when
the low, sad wall was again heard, they
| hung their heads in grief, and said : "Ah
the Long Ago, when all was happy on
the green earth when the flowers and
grass were left to grow! and they re-
peated, "Ah, the Long Ago" The winds
still WHISPERED their wall of the ''Lone
Ago.' and bore it off to the great ice
palace of the Frost King in the fal
north When the rivers heard it, they
froze at the words !; but when they wcre
so, they were not busy, SO they thought
more of the sLong Ago.
And the winds car led it into tho pal
ace of the king, who sat dark and ter
rible on 4 throne of clear ice. The hal
slone with a thousand lights, for th
lamps of the king were lighted, art
flashed and tlickered along; which tn
people said were, "Northerr Lights" no
knowing they were the torches O
the Frost King. Dark looked the kin
upon his throne, with a crown OF tire
cones upon his head, and the great sta
of Wooden in his hand. In rushed til
winds and stood before the king. "Wha
meancst thou by this ?" said he, and til
winds trembled but the north WIN
took courage and told the tale OF ''Lon
Ago. to the king, who said, 'Go." I'll
word was repeated by the long dark pa
sages and caves of the mountain
which echoed "Go' and even the kin
was made sad. Out rushed the wint
and carried it to the dark pine forest
where the trees We're laden with sno"
and when the winds whispered the sto1
to the trees, they shook with grief, an
the snow fell to the ground.
An angel hearing of the vail of Nat"r
:, came to the earth wherever she wen
the light from her eyes warmed all, al
made them think no more of the Lo'
. Ago, but of the Present; and the ange
name was Hope.