The Arkansaw traveler., 1884-08-16
Fer TH< .ftk1ssay Trcpei<r.
 4 SAD STORY.
sY D. 6. cAHRAwAf.

BY D. 6. cARRAsay.
 You want me to tell yoa a story, my soa 2" said Dr. Taylor as his little twelve year old son, Geasge, crawled up upon his knee.
 sWen, when you, my son, were but a wee fitsls thing, about twsive months old, your brother Willie, who was then about seven years of age, vas taken m. t vas one beautiful summer evening jhsa everything was bright and lovely. l vas out in the country visiting my patients and when returned Willie was quite III and your mother was very much alarmed, for her whole soul seemed wrapped up in Willie. There was six years between your birth and your brother's, and during that time your mother had learned to look upon Willie almost as her life, and maybe was too much devoted to my profession to treat her as became me, consequently often thought if Willie should die it would kill her.
 As night came on poor Willie grew worse. All that my medical skill could do was done, and if a mothers nursing, tanned into warmth by a mothers love, could have saved him, Willie would be living now. But 1t seemed that God, in His infinite wisdom, deemed it best to be otherwise so after suffering in- tensely for three days and nights your brother quietly passed away into that deep sleep which we all SO dislike to think of As Willie ceased to breathe l examined his pulse and then his heart both had ceased to throb and 1 took your mother in my arms, and carrying her in the next room laid her gently down and told her Willie had gone to heaven.
 "iour mother broke completely down. The three days and nights of constant watching told fearfully on her system and her heart-rending grief added to it threw her into severe attack of brain fever. The next day Willie was buried in our family vaul, along side of his grand parents and other kindred. Your mother was too ill to attend the funeral, in fact she was delirious.
 Willie was buried about five o'clock in the evening and returned home at once from the funeral and found my wife perfectly conscious, but as soon as she saw me she seemed to realize that had just returned from the burial, and she went of again into the most terrible raving delirium ever witnessed. All the fore part of the night she seemed to live over the belief that Willie was not dead, but that he had been buried alive. sat up with her and administered every- thing knew of to quiet her, but all in vain. At last, tired and exhausted my self, l fell into deep sleep and awaking found the sun up, and looking towards the bed found it vacant-your mother was gone. looked about the room but she was not there. searched the house but within it not trace of her could I find. All the servants were called and questioned, but none knew what had be- come of her. If she had lett the house it was impossible to track her as a heavy rain had been falling up to daybreak. Il was wild with alarm and horror. What had she done and where had she gone If she had left the house in the rain with a burning fever scorching her it was sure death, if in her delirium she did not do something worse. In my excitement I intuitively rushed to the graveyard and went straight to our vault. The door was open, and as l reachedit and looked Tn l saw sight that curdled my blood in abject horror. My God. cannot think of it now without closing my eyes to hide the scene. Seated on coffin, her gown wringing wet; her long black hair hang ing over her shoulders, dripping with water and gleam Of deliious triumph flashing from her eyes saw your mother, and kneeling at her feet, his little hands and face. pale and wan, upturned to heaven, in prayer, was Willie. Oh, God thought, l must be dreaming. stood rooted to the ground. To move one step seemed impossible, and as stood in a 1 trance unable to move or speak your mother raised her eyes, wild with delirium, and seeing me snatched Willie up in her 1 arms, and before 1 could intercept her, sprang past me and flew down the path with all her might So quick vas the | action that ere 1 could recover myself and l ssart in pursuit of her she vas at the gate. l started in hot pursuit, never stopping for either graves or fences, bur over ali into i the street right after her and then, horri- ble thought, 1 saw she was makinv