The daily Cairo bulletin. (Cairo, Ill.) 1878-1???, 1884-07-22
Condemned to Death.

CONDEMNED to deathn Ever since
the judge spoke the awful words in the
shush OF the crowded courtroom they
have been ringing in his ears. His
nerves had been strained to their
utmost tension when the words were
spoken, and they seemed to have been
burned into his brain. When he closed
his eyes the sentence stood out red,
where all else was black. When he
forgot himself for moment he came
back with a start to Il sense of bitter
recollection, as something seemed to
whisper in his ear, Condemned to
death" At first the time of execution
appeared morcifully far off, but day
after day passed like the steady drop
ping of water, and each fair summer
morning that woke the world to the
enjoyment of life and beauty. merely
for him tinged the stone walls with
gray and gave more fearful signiti-
canoe to the words that haunted him
CONDEMNED to death
He wakes in the middle of the silent
night and sits bolt upright with the
overwhelming pressure of some unde-
Unable fear upon him. He asks him
self; What is it?" 'Where am I?"
He must have had horrible dream.
He must wake himself. He will laugh
at this when sleep has completely left
him. But as he arouses himself he
sees the terrible letters like phosphor-
escent handwriting on the wall of his
cell, and he falls back aghast rs il
struck by an unseen hand. Whichever
way he turns the words Condemned
to death" confront him. With groan
he sinks on his hard bed. The grim
reality is more fearful than the dread
full dream. He tries to forget-to sleep.
if possible. The distant bells, which
tell to Others the hour of the night,
toll out to him: CONDEMNED to death,
| condemned to death.'
At last the very rhythm of the words
in his ear brings on troubled slum-
Der. But what must be the dreams Of
wretch sent to sleep with such .
hideous lullaby?" He dreams, per-
haps, of the man in the room of ever
closing walls that at last crush him
to death. He sees himself in u narrow
| passage, from which there is no escape.
An iron grating shoves him toward the
other end. As he nears it he sees in
his pathway an open grave. He grasps
the iron frame work that is sending
him remorselessly on. He puts forth
his strength but it avails him nothing.
The next move will be the last. He
filings himself against the wall and
shrieks for help. The grave fades
from his sight, and he finds himself
grasping the iron bars Of his cell. He
draws breath of intense relief, but
the next instant begins the dread re-
train--
CONDEMNED to DEATH. ="
He has his wild and fruitless dreams
of escape and then the madness of self
destruction makes him for the moment
insane. There are the hours of unut-
terable despair when he sits on his bed
with his head bowed and his fingers
tangled in his hair. He listens with q
dull, mechanical agony to the footsteps
of the death watch on the stone floor
outside, and they seem to slowly creak
the words, ITO death, to death, to
DEATH
At times it is impossible for him to
believe that he, who is sound in health
and limbs, robust and full of vigor,
with not an ailment that he knows OF,
man in the prime of life, with energy,
strength, well-all that goes to make
life worth living-that ho is Gagged
here, helpless like rat in trap, wait
ing till at signal he will be culver
inc, inert mass. Then he faces his cell
and raves and curses all mankind. The
knowledge of the uselessness of this
forces itself upon him and he becomes
calm again. His thoughts turn to tho
one and only channel that can give re-
lief There is but one ray of light that
enters the cell of the condemned-Re- :
ligion. He has doubtless given little |
regard to it in former life, but now hea
realizes that it alone can dull thel
CHASTITY significance Of the dismal echos
in his ears, Condemned! condemneds
10 dnoth r-Detr0u Free Press,