Idaho news. (Blackfoot, Idaho) 1887-1891, 1889-06-15
IN AN INSANE AsYLuM.


through the high, narrow, iron-barred
windows into long, gloomy corridor.
With the tirelessness OF a Gagged tig-
er, says the Philadelphia American, a
few men, most of whom are barefoot,
afflicted with milder type OF de-
mentia, pace the floor and gibber to
themselves.
Ranged on either side OF the corridor
are cells, and here and there can be dis
cerned pair Of wild eyes glaring sui
lenly through the small apertures in
the door.
Tie weird notes Of flute fill the air.
The tune is impromptu, and is well
adapted 10 the discorded fancy OF the
players.
Now its sounds are low and pathetic,
such as to make tender-hearted women
weep. and now It is shrill and exultant.
wild series of high-pitched trills.
The music ceases, and the player,
casting aside his instrument, with .
grating, meaningless laugh. hastens
down the corridor with a desperate
energy.
When he arrives at the other end he
has forgotten his errand. and he slowly
retraces his steps to obey the next
capricious dictates of his imbecile
mind.
The reporter. conducted by keep
er. ascends TO the floor above.
The cell nearest the stairway is ten
anted by a dark-featured man. who
clutches at the bars Of the door with a
fury that threatens to snap them like
so many match sticks.
There is no danger, however
This" said the keeper, sis one OF
our most violent patients. He is
Germrn, and was educated in Heidel-
berg. His story is rather romantic.
Upon the completion Of his scholastic
career she made a tour Of the CONT
nent While at Nice he saved the
daughter Of some nobleman from
death. He fell deeply in love with
her.
'-She returned his affection, AND
they were engaged to be married. Be
fore that event could be consummated
the girl was taken i'll with malignant
fever and died Her death deeply az
fected the man before you. and at the
solicitation Of friends he left Nice. He
wandered from place TO place. finally
coming to this country. Being in
opuIent circumstances, and rendered
insensible to every thing good and
pure by the untimely death of his be-
trothed. he plunged into dissipation ia
the widest form. which eventually
made him a mental and physical
| wreck.
During this conversation the insane
man gave utterance to EXPLANATIONS of
an incoherent character, and as soon
as the keeper had ceased, burst into
passionate recital. He fancicd that he
had cast his afiancied into a flaming
pit and that her death shrek still rang
in his ears
"Ha! ha, ha!' he laughed. wildly.
They think she is dead, but she didn't.
hai ha! hal / killed her. Yes, killed
her. Oh, my. but wasn't it a fine
night for such devils deed2 The
darkness was frightful. Lightning
blazed forth with demoniacal fury from
the heavens. The thunder made the
earth CULVER like a reed in the blast
All the imps of Pat la were out
The maniac paused in his excessive
frenzy and dashed from his distorted
face the great beads Of Precipitation
that tricl1led from his forehead. and
continued in the same wild manner:
II stole her when she was asleep.
and fed like some arch-demon from
the blacklist abyss of Hades with her,
out-out into the night She, his. Ia,
no, no. struggled like some frightened
bird. But what good did it dos Ii
had her. On we went, through the
fierce nocturnal storm, until we came
to plateau. A blazing pit yawnec
before us Oh. how merrily the yellow
and blue-tongued flames curled up
The air was filled with an internal din
-whoops, agonized screams, yells and
laughter. Saturnalian demons played
with cleaning rods Of flame on shin.
ing death heads, and serpents Kissed in
their ambuscades. l held the one
loved aloft, and with arms Of iron hurL
ed her into the pit Her cry-that o
a lost soul--still haunts me.
And the maniac sank exhausted te
the floor.
''It seems strange, said the keeper.
as the twain descended the stairs
"that man afflicted so violently with
insanity can talk so ooherently al
times That mans imagination is a
powerful and wonderful as was Poe's.
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Fashions Changes
Mr.. De Style-'Why, my dear, Tn