San Antonio daily light. [volume] (San Antonio, Tex.) 1886-1907, 1888-04-05
Tears In nay nearU.

Tears In my nearJ.
This, then, was the result of my scheme; 10
was no failure, as Tassard had said; as he
owed his life to me, so now did he owe me
his liberty. Nay, my transports were so
great that would not suffer myself to feel
an instants anxiety touching the condition
of the schooner mean whether she would
leak or prove sound when she floated-and
how we two men were to manage to navigate
so large a craft that was still as much SPELL
bound aloft in her frozen canvas and tackle
as ever she had been In the sepulcher in which
discovered her.
went below, and put the provisions we
needed for breakfast into the oven, and
entered Tassards cabin. On bringing the
lantern to his face as he lay under half a
score of coats upon the deck, perceived that
he was awake, and my heart being full I
cried out cheerily, Good news! good news,
the gunpOwder did its work! The ice is
ruptured, and we are afoat, Mr.. Tassard-
afoat, and progressing north"
He looked at me vacantly, and giving his
head shake, exclaimed, How can crawl
from this mound' My strength is gone"
If was amazed that the joyful intelligence
] had delivered produced no other response
than this querulOus inquiry, was far more
astOnished by the sound of his voice. 1t was
the most cracked and venerable pipe that
ever tickled the throat of old age-a min
Cling of wailing falsettos and of hollow, gasp
ing growls, the whole very weak. | threw
the clothes off him, and said, "Do you wish
to rise! | will bring you your breakfast here
if you wish"
He looked at me, but made no answer I
bawled again. and observed, by the dim Ian
tern light, that he watched my lips with an
air of attention; and while | waited for $
reply he said, Il don't hear YOU"
Anxious to ascertain to what extent his
hearing was impaired, kneeled on the deck,
and, putting my lips to his ear, said not very
loud, "Will you come to the cook house,
which he did not hear; and then louder,
"Will you come to the cook house" which he
did not hear either. l believed him stone deaf
TILL on roaring with all the power of my
lungs, he answered, yes"
l took him by the hands and hauled him
gently on to his feet and had to continue
holding him, or he must have fallen. Time
was beginning with him when he had gone to
bed, and the remorseless old soldier had COM
pletely finished his work while his victim
slept. | viewed the Frenchman while I
graSped his hands, and there stood before me
a shrunk, tOttering, deaf, bowed, feeble old
man. What was yesterday a polished head
was now a shriveled pate-as though the
very skull had shrunk and left the skin to rip
pie into wrinkles, and sit loose and puckered.
His hands trembled excessively. But his
lower jaw was held in its place by his teeth;
and this perpetuated in the aged, dwindled
countenance something Of the likeness of the
fierce and sinister visage that had confronted
me yesterday. l was thunderstruck by the
alteration, and stood overwhelmed with awe,
confusion and alarm Then, re-collecting my
spirits, l supported the miserable relic to the
fire, putting his bench to the dresser, that he
might have a back to lean against.
He could scarce feed himSelf-indeed, he
could hardly hold his chin off his breast He
had gone to bed man, as l might take it,
of IS, and during the night the angel of Time
had visited him, and there he sat 103 years of
age!
He looked it, Ha, thought l, was dread
ing your treachery yesterday; there is moth
ing more to fear. Besides that he was nearly
stone deaf, he could hardly see; and I was
sure, if he should be able to move at all, he
could not stir leg without the help of sticks.
1 was going to roar out to him that we were
adrift, but he looked 50 imbecile that l
thought-to what purposel If there be aught
of memory in him, let him sit and chew the
cud thereof. He cannot last long-the cold
must soon stop his heart. And with that /
went on eating my breakfast in silence, but
greatly affected by this astonishing mark of
the hand of Providence, and under a very
heavy and constant sense of awe: for the like
of such transformation am sure had never
before encountered mortal eyes, and it was
terrifying to be alone with it.