Wheeling Sunday register. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1882-1934, 1883-04-08
~. x,mnb.-A Poem In Prose.

| y,o,.so,ed from the Russian OF Ircn 7oar0e'
nfcT(vr the Modern AGE.
stood before noble range of noun
| tains, clothed from top to base VIII
| fresb green forests, and stretching rouno
| about me in q semi-circle. Blue AND
| clear above them shown the Southern
| sky- The sunbeams played upon their
| tons, while in the valley, half hidden
by the grass, gurgled the running
brooks.
And there came to me, in thought. q
story of the ancient time; how once In
| the first century after Chrlst's birth, q
Greek ship sailed the Egean sea.
1t was noon. The winds were lald
at rest. When, of q sudden, from the
clear sky fell voice, as from heaven,
saving to the helmsman: "When thou
by wonder island sailest, then cry with
loud voice, Great Pan Is dead:
The startled sailor shook with rear;
yet, as the ship passed by, obediently
he cried, "Great Pan is dead"
And now, at once there rose. as II In
answer to his cry, from all along the
barren shore, a wal, and mighty groan,
while in long drawn lamentation
echoed the cry: "Dead Is Great Pan!
Great Fan is Deau:'
Thus ran the ancient tale, and, as
unused upon it, there came to me
strange and wendrous thought: "How
were it if /, too, should cry"'
But in the joyous presence Of that
ovely scene l could not think on death,
and SO, with all my strength, l cried:
"Arisen is Great Pan! He Is arisenw
And at once-O, wonderful!-there
rang from all that circle Of green hills,
as 'twere i'm answer to my call, q JOY
GUS laughter, while with one accord,
on every side, there rose the sound OF
happy voices, and youthful tongues re-
echoed the glad cry: -.
HE is ARISEN! Great Pan is arisenW
All nature about me then began to
smile, brighter than the sunbeams on
the heights, more joyous than the purl-
ing brooks that murmured in the grass.
heard the hasty steps of fairy feet, and
through the thicket saw the CLEAN OF
snow-white garments and the ruddy
glow of naked limbs. The nymphs,
the dryads, and Bacchantes were
thronging to the vale. Suddenly, from
every side they came. From their inn
mortal heads streamed down the wav-
ing hair, their shapely hands bore gar
lands and the cymbals, while laughter,
clear, Olympian laughter, rippled
round about them as they came.
Before them strobe goddess, taller
and more lovely than them all. Upon
her shoulder hangs the culver, in her
hand she bears the bow, while above
her clustering hair sparkles in silver
light lustrOus crescent.
niono fho,, ohaO
Suddenly she halts, and with all her
nymphs. The clear toned laughter dies
away. and / saw how deathly pallor
crept DER the features of the goddess
thus struck dumb. | saw her limbs
grow rigid, her lips part in unutterable
pain, while iii fixed gaze her eyes stared
in the distance.
What had she seen? Whittier bent
her gaze?
/, too, turned to look.
On the horizons furthest edge, cir
cled by fertile fields, CLEANED like a
point of fire, a golden cross upon the
white tower of a Christian church.
The cross had met the goddess eye.
Behind me, then, | heard shrill, long
sigh, as when mighty harp string
throbbing snaps asunder, and when |
turned again l saw no trace Of
nymph or dryad. Before me still there
lay the green, stretching woods,
and here and there in the dense thicket
cleaned for an instant something white,
the nymphs? or was mist cloud rising
from the valley?
cannot say.