Idaho County free press. [volume] (Grangeville, Idaho Territory) 1886-current, 1889-11-08

stretched out before them, or seated
motlonless like statues of desOlation,
Others, holding on their knees heavy
dropping bodies which no longer
responded to their endearments.
Women, disheveled, danced, with up.
lifted skirts, mad. One would verify
have believed ones self with Dante,
The moisture cold on his brow,
frozen with horror, the wretched Jep.
! pi leaped over corpses, scalded walls.
and the one though necessarily beat
ing in his brain, like the ticking of a
clock, was, "Shall arrive
in timer" At the corner of a
street, he saw by the light of the
moon n woman's arm thrust out
from under heap of fallen beams, n
naked arm, caught as I'M wise The
white hand loaded with rings, writhed
like a crab. The cries of the sufferer,
deadened, stified under the debris,
could not be heard, but these witch
ing fingers called for help, and this
hand, thrust out into space, shrieked:
ITO the rescued The count could
have rescued her. He turned away
his head and passed on. He had not
the time.
After retracing his steps more than
twenty times, after wandering about
for over an hour, he arrived at last
before what had been his dwelling.
What aslght! The charming villa, the
villa ofkisses and flowers, was now but
smoking mass of ruins. One side of
the wall alone remained upright and
overhead, in it's cage of gilded osier,
cooed a turtle-dove, which the count
ess had cherished. 1t was touch
ing sight, this poor, frail little bird,
suspended between heaven and earth
IN its dainty house-this doveof mir
acle, as If to prove that the God who,
in His terrible and mysterious power.
RACED cities to their foundation in an
instant, could equally, if it were His
Will, save the life of Il dove.
AT the sight of these great stones,
piled one above the other. the count
felt himself turn weak as u child.
She was there underneath this mass,
his adored wife. Where, in which di-
rection2 Even if she were dead, he
must find her at any cost. Softly,
with infinite precautions, with steps
of velvet, clinging to the projections,
he ventured among the ruin of his
house. He hesitated before
setting his foot down any
where, as if fearful of trampling on
the beloved body.
Suddenly he thought he heard-he
did hear-a distant voice, but so
faint one might have said it was but
a breath, II sigh borne by the wind.
He stopped. 1t was subterranean
voice, a woman's voucher voice!
He recognized it now. lie could not
distinguish what she was saying, but
1T was, indeed, her carressing voice,
calling to him from the depths of
that fearful night, where she believed
herself immured forever.
81 will save her." he said, and he
set to work.
Bruising his knees, lacerating his
hands, the nails torn away, sweating
tears, weeping blood, for over an
hour the count toiled at the mass of
stones with frenzy. Now, vainly
thrusting his bleeding hands into a
heap of rubbish, the powdered plas-
erslipping through his fingers like
water; again, moving heavy
blocks OF stone, which fell back,
his hand in an iron grip.
The distant voice guided him con-
1t began to grow less lis
tinct, and suddenly it ceased alto
gether.
Then despair helped him to accom-
plish prodigies. He lifted blocks of
stone, which he thew far from him;
he wrested away beams bristling with
nails. With blows of his feet, of his
shoulders, urged ON by terocious
energy, he rapidly accomplished n
giant word, and was ready to fall
from fatigue and thirst, when there
was a suddengiving way in the mass
under his feet, which landed him on
the edge of an excavation, which !
yawned beneath him black and I'M
Crouched down over
this sinister hole, he reached out his
arm and CROPPED cautiously around !
IN the darkness. He encountered |
soft and cold In spite of |
The horror which seized him, he had |
The courage to examine with tremb-
ing hands the already icy flesh. He
first an open mouth,
closed eyes, a smooth brow, then,
his fingers were buried in a
silken mass, which he recog-
1ized instantly. Her superb tressesl
Merely by touching them, he recalled
-heir color distinctly.
Carressing, in the darkness, the
ocks he had so often tondled, he
softly: "My love-if you
Ire not dead speak to me-"
Only the silence replied to him.
"She is dead" he thought; 81
must take her from this too narrow
.omb."
Selling her at hazard by the
he began to lift her toward
Jim. Three times he raised her, and
hree times was he forced to let her
all back. She seemed terrible
leavy, as if some enormous weight
vas suspended from her feet. At
asst, gathering up all his strength,
lie succeeded, and dragged forth
omething which he did not at first
lare to look at. and placed it near
i'm on the stones.
But he had scarcely cast his eyes