The Iowa plain dealer. [volume] (New Oregon, Howard County, Iowa) 1867-1895, 1889-11-07

w sat, questioning the lutures
but no answer came. At length looked
up, and behold Charmion stood before me
-Charmion, no longer gay and bright, but
pale Of face and hollow-eyed.
sRoyal HArmachis," she said, "Cleopatrs
summons thee presently. to declare to her
the voices Of the stars"
So the hour had falleni
1T is well, Charmion," answered. Are
all things in orderi'
"Yca, my Lord; all things are in order;
we'll primed with wine, Paulus guards the
gates, the eunuchs are withdrawn save one,
thelegionaries sleep, and already Sepa and
his force lie hid without. Naught has been
shamble doors can be more innocent Of its
doom than is Queen Cleopatra
ut 10 WE'LL" Isaid again; "let 10 be go
ing.n And rising, I placed the dagger IN
the bosom OF my rood Taking . cup Of
wine that stood near drank deep OF it, for
food had scarce tasted all that day.
Zone word" she said hurriedly, "for it
is not yet time: last nlght-ah, last nightm
and her bosom heaved-ssI dreamed .
dream that haunts me strangely, and per-
chance thou also didst dream o dream
Twas all dream and it's forgotten: is it
not so. my Lordi"
.sYea, yea" said; ''why troublest thou
me thus 1t such an hour!''
..Nay. know not; but tonight, harma-
CHS, Fate is in labor Of . great event, and
in her painful throes mayhap she'll
crush me In her grip-me or thee, or the
twain Of US, Harmachis. And II that be 30
well, would hear from thee before tits
done, that twas naught but . dream, and
that dream forgot"
.sYea, tbs all Q dream,n ! said, idly !;
'thou and /, and the solid earth, and this
heavy night Of terror-ay. and this keen
pointed knife-what are these but dreams,
and with what face shall the waking comet"
$50. now thou fallest in my humor, Royal
Harmachis. As thou ssyest, we dream;
and while We dream yet can the vision
change. For wonderful are the fantasies
Of dreams, seeing that they have no stabil-
ity, but vary like the v2prous edge Of sun
set clouds, building now this thing and now
that, being now dark and heavy and now
alieht with splendor. Therefore, before we
wake tomorrow, tell me one word. Is that
vision of last night, wherein seemed to be
quite ashamed, and thou didst seem to laugh
upon my shame, q fixed fantasy, or can it,
perchance, yet change its countenance
For, remember, when that waking comes,
the Agaries Of our sleep win be more IN
alterablc and more enduring than are the
pyramids. Then w II they be gathered into
that changeless region Of the past where ell
things, great and small az, even dreams,
Harmachis-arc, each in its own semblance,
frozen into stone and built within the Tomb
of Time immortal"
may. Charmion," replied. 81 grieve il
did pain thee; but DER that vision comes
no change. / said what was in my heart
and there's an end. Thou art my cousin
and my friend; more l can never be t.
thee.n
"'Tis well-'tis very WELL" she said; s.lei
it be forgot. And now on from dreani-te
dream And she smiled with such smile
rs had never seen her wear before; twas
sadder and more fateful than any stamp
that grief can set upon the brow.
Fof-though, being blinded BY my own
folly and the trouble at my heart, l knew |,
not-with that smile, for Charmion the