Wheeling Sunday register. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1882-1934, 1889-12-15
WHEELING REGISTER SUNDAY DECEMBER 10, 1889

thus, even of my oath to thee, to be forced
TO eat the bread and do the biddlngs OF
one whom SO bitterly haie!-one who has
robbed me of thee, and who, through the
workings of my jealousy, brought me to
that which l am, brought thee to shame,
and all Egypt to It's ruinl Can jewels and
riches and the f4ttery Of princes and no
bles bring happiness TO such a one as l,
who am more wretched than the meanest
scullion wench? On, often have wept
till was blind; and then, when the hour
came, l must arise and tire me, and, with
a smile, 20 do the bidding of the Queen
and that heavy Antony. Msy the Gods
grant me TO see them desd-sy, the twain
of them!-th myself shall l be content
to die! Hard hath been thy lot. Harms-
CHS; but at least thou hast been free, and
many is the time that have envied thee
the quiet of thy haunted cave"
81 do perceive, o chsrmion, that thou art
mindful of thy oaths; and it is well, for
methinks the hour of vengeance Is at
hand"
II au mindful, and in all things have
worked for thee in secret-for tlee. and ior
the utter ruin of Cleopatra and the Roman.
I have famed his passion and her jealousy.
| have egg, d her on 20 wickedness and him
TO folly, and of sill have caused report to
be brought to Cesar. Listen! thus stands
the matter. Thou knowest how went the
fight at Actium. Thither with her fleet
went Cleopatra, sorely against the viii
of Antony. But, as thou sendest me WORD,
I entrested HIM for the Queen, VOW
log to him, with tears, that, did ne
leave her, she would die Of grief; and be,
poor slave, believed me. And SO she
went, aud in tine thick OF the fight,
for what cause l know not, she made
signal to her squadron, ana, putting about
fed from the battle, sailing for Peloppon-
nesus And now mark the end. When
Antony saw that she was gone, he, in his
madness, took galley, and, desetting all,
followed bard after her, leaving hid fleet 70
be shattered and sunk, and his great army
in Greece of twenty legiOns and twelve
thousand horses without leader. And al
this would no man believe, that Antony,
the smitten Of the gods, had fallen so deep
in shame. Therefore fur awhile the army
tarried, and but now tonight comes news
brought by CAnidius, the General, that,
worn with doubt and being at length sue
that Antony hsd deserted them, the whole
of that great force hath yielded to Cesar. "
"And where, then, is Antony"
"Oa little isle in the Great HarOor
hath he built him habitstiOn and named
it Timonium; because, forsOOth, like
Timon, he cries out of the iugrstitude OF
mankind that hath fOrssken him. Aud
there re lies smitien by fever Of the
mind, ana thither must thou 90 at dawn,
SO wills the Queen, to cure him of his llls
and draw him TO her arms; for he will not
see, Nor knows ne yet the full measure OF
his woe. But first my bidding Is &c lead
thee instantly to Cleopatra, who fam
would ask thy counsel"
II come" ! answered, rising. "Lesd
thou on"
And so we passed the palace gates and
along the Alabaste' Hsll, and presently
once again stood before the door OF Cleo
pstrs's chamber, and once again Charmicn
left me TO warn her of my coming.
Presently she came back and bekoned
to me. MAKE strong thy heart" she
whispered, land see that thou dost not
betray thysef, for still are the eyes of
Cleopatra keen. Enter
"Keen, indeed, must they be TO find
Harmachis in the learned Olympus. Had
l not willed it, thyself thou hadst not
known me, Charmion,n ! made answer.
Then l entered that remembered place
and listened once more to the splash Of
fountain, the song of the nightingale, and
the murmur of the summer sea. With
bowed head and hating gait l came, till
at length l stood before the couch of Cleo
patra-that same golden couch whereon
she had sat the night she did o'ercome
me. Then l gathered my strength and
looked up. There before me was Cleopa-
ira, glorious as of old, but oh! how
changed since that night when l saw An
tony clasp her in his arms at Tarsus. Her
beauty still clothed her like a garment;
the eyes were yet deep and unfathomable
as the blue sea. The face still splendid
in its great loneliness. And yet all was
changed. Time, that could not touch her
charms, had stamped upon her presence
such a look Of weary grief as may not be
written. Passion, beating ever in that
fierce heart of hers, had written his re-
cord on her brow, and in her eyes shone
the sad light Of sorrow.
Low bowed before this most royal wo-
man, who once had been my love and my
destruction, and yet knew me not"
She looked up YEARLY, and spOkein her
slow, well-remembered voice.
80 thou art come at length, Physician.
How callest thou thyself-Olympus? It's
name of promise, for surely now that
the Gods of Egypt have deserted us, we
do need aid from olympus. Well, thou
hast learned air, for learning goes not
with beauty. Strange, too, there is that
about thee which doth recall what know
not. Say, Olympus, have we met be-
fore?"
Never, o Queen, have my eyes fallen
on thee in body" l answered. "Never
till this hour, when came forth from my
solitude to do thy bidding and cure thee
of thy ills"
Strange! and even in the voice
Pshaw, its some memory that can not
-. I'M