Mexico weekly ledger., 1889-10-31

derstood the secret of religion.
~te picture passed. and once again tLe
Priest, my guide, spoke to me.
Hast thou understood, Harmachis, those
things which it hath been granted thee to
sec.n
II have I said. ..Are the rites endedr 81
Nay, they are but begun. That which
follows must thou endure alone, Behold,
l leave thee, to return at the morning
light. Once more l warn thee that which
thou shalt see few may look upon aud live.
In all my days hay ! known but three who
dared to face this dread hour, n of those
three atdawn but one was found alive. My
self, l have not trod this path. 1t is too high
for me-"
Depart" 1 said; my soul IS athirst for
knowledge. l will dare it,
Ee laid his hand upon my head aad
blessed me. He went. / heard the door
shut to behind him, the echoes of his foot
steps slowly died away. Then l felt that ]
was alone, alone in the Holy place with
things which are not of the earth. Silence
fell-silence deep and black as the darkness
which was around me. The silence fell; 1t
gathered as the cloud gathered on the face
of the moon that night when, "a lad, 1 prayed
upon the pylon towers. 1t gathered denser
and yet more dense till it seemed to CREEP
into my heart and call aloud therein; for
utter silence has q voice that is more terri.
Bile than the voice of any Cry. Ispoke; the
echoes OF my words came back upon me
from the walls and seemed to beat me down.
The stiffness was lighter to endure than an
echo such as this. What was / about tc
sect Should I die, ever now, in the fullness
of my youth and strength Terrib.e were
| the warnings that had been given to me. ]
was fear-stricken, and bethought me that ]
would fly. Fly!-fy whittier? The temple
door was barred; I could not fly. l was
| alone with the Godhead, alone with the
| power that I had invoked. Nay, my heart
was pure-my heart was pure. l would
face the terror that was to come, even
| though / died.
isis, holy Mother" l prayed, Isis
Spouse of Heaven, come unto me-, be with
me now. l faint be with me now"
And then l knew that things were not as
things had been. The air around me began
to stir. it rustled as the wings of eagles, il
took life. Bright eyes gazed upon me
strange Whispers shook my soul. Upor
| the darkness were bars of light. They
changed and interchanged, they moved tt
and fro and wove mystic symbols which
| could not read. Swifter and swifter few
that shuttle of the light; the symbols
l pTOupeu, SdIuSEed, iohCu, SatileIcu Sc
again, faster and still more fast, till my
eyes could no more count them. Now
was afuat upon a sea of glory; it surget
and rolled, as the ocean rolls it tossed mt
high, it brought me low. Glory was pilet
On glory, splendor heaped on splendor'!
head, and l rod above it all.
Soon the lights began to pale IN the roll
Ing sea of air. Great shadows shot across
1t, lines of darkness pierced it and rushed
together on its breast, till at length l onl,
was u shape Of fame set like a star on tn
bosom of immeasurable night. Bursts o
awful music gathered from far away. Mile
and miles away l heard them, Thrilling
family through the gloom. On they came
nearer and more hear, louder and more
toud, till they swept past above, below
around me, swept on rushing pinions, terri
wing and enchanting me. They fioated by
.ver growing fainter, till they died in space
Then others came, and no two were akin
Some ratified as ten thousand sistra shaker
all to tune. Some rang from the braZel
.hroats of unnUmoered clarions. Some
se-led with a loud, sweet chant of voice:
.dat were more than human; and som'
rolled along in the slow thunder of a million
drums. They passed; their notes wers los
In dying echoes; and the awful silence ono
more pressed in upon me and overcame me
The strength within me began to il.
felt my life ebbing at it's springs. Dealt
drew near to me, and his shape was 81
.ence. He entered at my heart, entered
with a sense of numbing cold; but m.
brain was still alive, | could yet think.
knew that l was drawing near the confne
Of the dead. Nay, I was dying fast, and oh
the horror of 1t! l strove to pray and coul'
not; there was no more time for prayer
One struggle and the stiffness crept into m.
BRAN. The terror passed.; an unfathom
able weight of sleep pressed me down.
was dying, l was dying, and then I wa
Acknowledgment
A change-life came back to me-, but be
tween the new life and the life that ha
been was a gulf and difference. Once NOR
[ stood in the darkness of the shrine, but
blinded me no more. 1t was clear as tn
light of day, although it was still black.
stood and yet it was not l who stood, bu
rather my spiritual part, for at my feet La
my lead self. There it lay, rigid and still,
stamp of awful calm sealed upon its fac
while I gazed on it.
And as l gazed, filed with wonder, I wa
caught up on the Wings Of Flame an
whirled away awayi faster than the Ugh,
ming fash. Down l fell, through depths c
empty space, set here and there with gilt
tering crowns of stars. Down for te
million miles and ten times ten million, ii
at length / hovered over q place of soft, ur
changing light, wherein were Temples, Pa
aces and Abodes, such as no man ever say
in the widest visions Of his sleep. The
were built of Flame, aud they were built
Blackpess. Their spires pierced up and VI
their great courts stretched around. Eve