The Wheeling daily intelligencer. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1865-1903, 1878-02-16


ed Bartram, "Where might 1t be n
Ethan Brand laid his finger on his owl
heart.
"Here r. replied he,
And then, without mirth in his connte
nance, but asif moved by an involuntar!
recognition Of the infinite AbSurdity o
seeking throughout the world for Wha
was the closest Of all things to himself
and looking into every heart, rave hi
own, for what was hidden In no othel
breast, he broke into laugh Of scorne. !
was the same slow, heavy laugh, that hal
almost appalled, the lime-burner whel
II heralded the wayfarer's approach.
The solitary mountain-side was made
dismal by il. Laughter, when out o
place, mistimed, or bursting forth from /
disordered state Of feeling, may be the
most terrible incubation Of the human
voice. The laughter Of one asleep, ever
II II be child.-the madman's laugh
the wild screaming laugh Of born idiot
are sounds that We sometimes tremblt
to hear and would always willingly forget
Poets have imagined no utterance o.
tends or hobgoblins so iearfully appro-
pirate as laugh. And even the obtusC
lime.burner felt his nerves shaken, a
this strange man looked inward ut hi
own heart, and burst into laughter thai
rolled away into the night, and was indis
tinctly reverberated among the hills.
"Joe," said he TO his little son, scamp
er down TO the tavern In the village. ant
tell the Jolly fellows there that Elhar
Brand hAs come back, and that he hal
found the objectionable Sinp
The boy darted away on bis errand
to which Ethan Brand made no objection
nor seemed hardly 10 notice II. de sal
on log OF wood, looking steadiastly Al
the iron door OF The kiln. When the child
was out OF sight, and his swift and lighl
iooutep ceased to be heard treading frs
on the fallen leaves and then on the rock J
mountain. path, the lime-burner began e
regret his departure. He felt that thu
little fellows presence had been bar
rier between his guest and himself, and
that be must now deal, heart TO heart
with q man who, on his own confession
had committed the one only crime foi
which Heaven could afford no mercy
That crime, In It's indistinct blackness
seemed to oyershadow him. The lime
burners own sinsroSe up within him
and made his memory riotous with a
throng OF evil shapes that asserted their
kindred with the Master Sin, whatever /!
might be, which 1t was within the scope
OF mans corrupted nature to conceive
aud cherish. They were all Of one fam
lily; they went TO and fro between his
breast and Ethan Brands, and carried
dark greetings from one to the other.
Then Bartram: remembered the stories
which had grown Evolutionary in refer
ence to this strange man, who had come
upon him like shadow Of the night, and
was making himself at home In his old
place, after so long absence that the dead
people, dead and buried for years. would
have had more right to be at home, In
any familiar spot than he. Ethan,
Brand, It was said, had conyersed with
Satan himself 10 the lurid blaze Of this
very kiln. The legend had been matter
OF mir,h heretofore, but looked grisly
now. According 10 this tale, before Ethan
Brand departed on his search, he had
been accustomed to evoke 6end from
the hot furnace Of the llme.kiln, night
after night, in order to confer with him
about the objectionable Sin, the man
and the fiend each laboring 10 frame The
image Of some mode Of guilt which could
neither be atoned for nor forgiven. And,
with the frat glenn OF light upon the
mountain.top, the fiend orept In at the
iron door, there to abide the intensest ell
ement OF FIRE, until again summoned forth
to share in the dreadful task OF extend
ing mans possibls guilt beyond the scope
Of Heavens else initiate mercy.
While the lime burner was struggling
with the horror Of these thoughts, Ethan
Brand rose from the log, aud dung open
the door Of the kiln. The action was in
such accordance with the idea 10 Bar
trans mind, that he almost expected TO
see the Evil One issue forth, red hot from
the raging furnace.
"Hoid hold |" cried he, with trem'
ulous attempt to laugh; for he was
ashamed OF bis fears, although they over
mastered him. "Don't, for mercy sake
bring GU. your devil now"
"Man !" s,ernly replied Ethan Brand
"what need have Of tho devil? ] have
left him behind me, on my track. II il
with such half way sinners as you that
he busies himself. Fear not, because
open the door. | do but act by old GUS
tom, and am going TO trim your FIRE, like
lime burner, as | was once
He stirred the vast Goals, thrust II
more wood, and bent forward to gaze int
the hollow prison house Of the fire, re-
CARELESS Of the fierce glow that reddenet
upon his face. The lime burner ga
watching him, and half snspecting hi
strange guest Of purpose, II not to evok
fiend, at least to plunge bodily into III,
flames, and thus vanish from the sight 0
man. Ethan Brand, however, drew qni'
etly back, and closed the door Of the kiln
u have looked" said be, Unto many I
human heart that was seven time
hotter with sinful passions than yondel
furnace Is with FIRE. But ! found no
there what sought. No, not the Unpar
donable sinP
"What is the objectionable sin?'
asked the lime.burner; and then HI
shrank farther from his companion
trembling lest his question should b.
answered.
Sits a sin that grew within my owl
breast" replied Ethan Brand, standing
erect, with q pride that distinguishes al
enthusiasts OF bis stamp. "a sin tina
grew nowhere else The sin Of an intel
lect that triumphed over the sense o
brotherhood with man and reverence fol
God, and sacrificed everything to its owl
mighty claims! The only sin that de
serves rscompense Of immortal agony
Freely, were Il 10 do again, would ] incnl
the guilt. Unshrinkingly ] accept thu
retributionP
Grhe mans head ia turned,n mutlered
the lime.burner to hiurelf. "He may be
a sinner, like the rest OF us,-nothini
more, likely,-but, I'll be sworn, be Is !
mailman too."
Nevertheless he felt uncomfortable nj
his situation, alone with Ethan Brand on
the wild mountain-side, and he was righ
glad to hear the rough murmur Of ton
CUES, and the footsteps Of what seemed
pretty numerous party, stumbling over
The atoneS and rustling through the un
derbrnsh. Soon appeared the whole lazy
regiment that was wont to infest the vii
laee tavern. COMMUNICATING three or foul
individuals Who had drunk Zip beside tht