Omaha daily bee., 1889-07-14
KEPT EASTER WITH HIS COD.
The Last Days of the Leper Prizes
of Molokai.
TIRED BY A FIFrY-MlLe TRAM
How Robust North Caroiinan Real
lied That He Was Growing old
Edison Works BY Music
Beranger's Last Song.
Current Anecdotes,

Current Anecdotes
The London Tablet in its account of
the last days of Father Damien. the he
roic leper priest of Molokai, says: On
the 2Sth he took TO his bed, and on the
Both began his direct preparation for
death by general confession and re-
newal of his VOWS. Next day he re-
ceived the holy viaticum. "You see
my hands," he said; "all the wounds
are healing and the crust is be coming
black. You know that is sign of death.
Look at my eyes, too; l have seen so
many lepers die that 1 can't be mistaken.
Death Is not far off. / should have liked
to soc the bishop again; but lie bon Dieu
is calling me to keep Easter with Him.
self God be blessedl" On April
Father Conrardy gave him extreme unc-
ton. ''How good God is" he said
during the day. "The work of the lep-
ers is assured, and SO Pm no longer ne
cessarv and will soon go up yonder.'"
"When you are up above, father, you
will not forget those you leave orphans?''
"Oh, no! If have any credit with God
| / will inte rcede for all in the Lepro-
serie."
A few days of respite, even OF rally
ing and hope, followed. The good Sis
ters of Charity often visited him. Ev-
erybody admired his wonderful pa
tience. He, so ardent, so lively, so
robust, was thus nailed down to his mis-
cradle couch, yet without much pain.
| He was laid on the ground on a
wretched mattress, like the poorest
leper. We had the greatest difficulty
| to get him to accept a bed. A I'd how
poorly off he was. He who had spent
| SO much money to relieve the lepers
had so far forgotten himself that he
had not change of linen or bed
Clothes" On the 18th he had a relapse
after midnight he received holy COM
| munion for the last time and began to
| lose consciousness. The next day he
still recognized his comrades, but could
| not speak, though from time to time he
affectionately pressed their hands. On
| the 18th his agony began, and soon all
was over. He died without any effort,
as if going to sleep. After his death
all marks OF leprosy disappeared from
his face and the wounds in his hands
were quite dried. Strange to say, at
large pandanus tree. When he first
| landed at Molokai he had no dwelling
and was obliged to sleep for several
nights under the shade of this tree, and
| for this reason he desired to be buried
there.
Every one must know that Senator
Vance, of North Carolina, is great
| story teller, says Washington corre-
spondent. Not that 1 mean by this to
| assert that he deviates from the truth,
but he delights to recount some of the
| striking and humorous occurrences that
come under his notice. caught him a
few nights since in a herdic on his way
home to his residence on Massachusetts
| avenue, and remarked to him that felt
tired, as had done good days work.
| of a man in North Carolina. You must
know that way up in the mountains of
North Carolina, in Buncombe county,
there exists u man named Tom Wilson.
Tom is and always has been one of my
| ardent friends and supporters. He is
fully six feet three, magnificently built,
without one ounce of superfluous flesh.
He used to be a mighty hunter and the
terror OF every one who had regard for
physical strength. The last time was
In North Carolina I chanced to meet
very detected. why, what is the mat
ter with you? You look as If you had
not friend on earth Vance, re-
piled Tom, Il realize I am not long
for this earth. l am getting old. My
old woman made a kit of butter the
| other day; it only weighed forty pounds.
1 merely had to carry it to our market
| town, which required me to cross Mount
MITCHELL on my way there and back-a
simple matter Of fifty miles-and do you
believe it, Vance, when / got home l
wi rk.N ,, \ I,
genial senator, "if you have done as
much work as my worthy friend Wilson
| did, you have right to claim that you
| are tired" AS could not do so I am
| afraid that the senator thought was
| merely s'shamming."
Thomas A. Edison, ''the Wizard of
| Menlo Park, F" arrived in Pittsburg the
other day. A Dispatch reporter had a
long chat with HIM at his hotel, and
here are some of the things he said:
Eyes, am a hard worker. 1 hardly
ever sleep more than four hours per day,
and l could keep this up for a year.
Some times I sleep ten hours, but don It
feel we'll when I do. II could sleep
| eight hours, as most men do, l would
wake up feeling badly. My eyes, would
hurt me, and would have a tough time
] to keep awake. l inherit this from my
| father. he Is remarkable old man,
eating little and sleeping less. / have
| often known him, when was boy, to
| sit up all night talking politics with
friend or swapping stories.
II eat about a pound day, and my
food Is very simple, consisting of some
toast, a little potato or something of
that kind. You know when am work.
| ing OH anything keep at it night and
| day, sleeping few hours with my
clothes on, never take chem off; don't
oven wash my face; couldn't think of
such thing, and in this condition
take my meals. II 1 were to remove
| my clothes when slept would get up
feeling out OF shape and with no desire
| to go to work. NO. 81 is my den in the
laboratory, and l shut myself in there
and hustle.
~ sleep from 10 to 2 o'clock in the
morning, and then jump up and go to
work again as fresh as a bird. This is
all the sleep need.
| "But tell you we have lots OF fun in
the laboratory. Some time ago had
forty-two men working with me ON the
incandescent lamp in big building. 1
hired German to play an organ for US
all night and we worked by the music.
About o'clock farmer brought in our
lunch, and we ate from long table.
At first the boys had some difficulty in
keeping awake, and would 60 to sleep
under stairways and in the corners.