Staunton vindicator. [volume] (Staunton, Va.) 1860-1896, 1889-01-04
he said, "And beyond thats' She said, ST
see nothing but sometimes, when shade nv

eyes WlUn my mana, L CQlnK see on the far
Their bank trees and hills, and the sun shin
ing on theml" He said, 'That is the Land
of Freedom She said, elbow am to get
there?" He said, ''There is one way, and one
only. Down the Banks of Labor, through the
Water of Suffering" She said, els there no
bridges" He answered, ''None." She said, "Is
the water deep?" He said, "Deep." She said
SIS the floor worn?' He said, at is. Your
foot may slip at any time: and you may be
lost" She said, "Have any crossed already"
He said, ''Some have triedn She said, ''Is
there track to show where the best fording
is?' He said, SIT has to be made"
She shaded her eyes, and she said, IT will
60"
And he said, "You must take off the
clothes you wore in the desert; they are
dragged down by them who go into the
water so clothed"
As she threw from her gladly the mantle
of Ancient Received Opinions she wore, for
i. it was worn full of holes. And she took the
girdle from her waist that she had treasured
so long, and the moths flew out of it in a
cloud And he said, "Take the Shoes of De-
pendence off your feet"
And she stood there naked, but for one
white garment that chung close to her. And
he said, "That you may keep"
And I saw on his breast was written
Truth; and it was white; the sun had not
often shone on it; the other clothes had COW
cred it up. And he said, "Take this stick;
hold it fast. In that day when it slips from
your hand you are lost. Put it down before
you; feel your way; where it cannot find a
bottom do not set your foot"
And she said, ~ am ready; let me 60"
And he said, "No-what is that-in your
breastp She was silent
He said: "Open it and let me see.n
And she opened it, And against her
breast was tiny thing, who drank from
it, and the yellow curls above his fore
head pressed against it; and his knees
were drawn up to her, and he held her breast
fast with his hands. And Reason said:
"Who is hes What is he doing here?" And
she said: "See his little wings And
Reason said: "Put him down." And she
said: 'He is asleep, and he is drinking. I
will carry him on to the Land of Freedom
He has been child so long; so long I have
carried him. In the Land of Freedom he
will be a man. We will walk together there,
and his great white wings will overshadow
me. He has lisped one word only to me in
the desert-'Passionl' I have dreamed he
might say Friendship in that land"
And Reason said: "Put him down." And
she said: Il will carry him so with one arm,
and with the other I will fight the water.n
He said, clay him down on the ground.
When you are in the water you will forget to
fight; you will think only of him. Lay him
down. He said, "He will not die. When
he finds you have left him alone he will open
his wings and fly. He will be in the Land of
Freedom before you. Those who reach the
Land of Freedom, the first hand they see
stretching down the bank to help them shall
be Loves. He will be a man then, not q
child In your breast he cannot thrive; put
him down that he may grow"
And she took her bosom from his mouth
and he bit her, SO that the blood ran down on
to the ground. And she laid him down on
the earth, and she covered her wound. And
saw the hair on her forehead turned white
as snow, and she had turned from youth to
age.
And she stood far off on the bank of the
river And she said, "For what do I go to
this far land which no one has ever reached?
Oh, am alone! am utterly alone!"
And Reason said to her, "Silence! what do
you hear!"
And she listened intently, and she said, 81
hear sound of feet, q thousand times ten
thousand and thousands of thousands, and
they beat this wayi"' 7se-=@-'-+77-'7 '.74ez-"7S-
He said, ''They are the feet of those that
shall follow you. Lead on make a track to
the waters edge! Where you stand now, the
ground will be beaten fiat by ten thousand
times ten thousand feet" And he said,
'sHave you seen the locusts how they cross a
streams First one comes down to the water
edge, and it is swept away, and then another
comes, then another, and at last with their
hOdias nj 1n5 hrdcra ic b111 ,.act
pass over"
She said, "And, of those that come first,
some are swept away, their bodies do not
even build the bridge?'
s'And are swept away, and are heard of no
more-and what of thats" he said
'sAnd what Of that'- she said.
"They make track to the waters edgen
''They make a track to the waters edge.n
And she said, cover that bridge which shall
be built with our bodies, who will pass?"
He said, 'The entire human race.n
And the woman grasped her staff. And I
saw her turn down that dark path to the
river.
And awoke; and all about me was the
yellow afternoon light; the sinking sun litup
the fingers of the milk bushes; and my horse
stood by me quietly feeding. And turned
on my side, and watched the ants run by
thousands in the red sand. thought would
go on my way now-the afternoon was cooler
Then drowsiness crept over me again, and I
laid back my head and fell asleep.
And dreamed a dream.
dreamed 1 saw land. And on the hills
walked brave women and brave men hand in
hand. And they looked into each others
eyes, and they were not afraid.
And saw the women also hold each others
hands. And 1 said to him beside me, "What
place is this?" And he said, ''This is heaven"
And 1 said, "Where is it?" And he an
swered, son earth" And said, "When
shall these things be:" And he answered,
SIN the future.'
And I awoke, and all about me was the
sunset light; and on the low hills the sun lay,
and delicious GOODNESS had crept over every
thing; and the ants were going slowly home.
Then the sun passed down behind the hills;
but I knew that the next day he would arise
again.-Olive Schreiner in the Fortnightly
Review.