Waterbury evening Democrat., 1891-09-08
The Mystery
 of the Towers

l ulay hide and seek with death; dared to | let them take a living, if a scarce breath. | ing woman and lay her in the earth-tn | the grave from which none are to rise till the great day when every secret shall be brought to light. Then, and not till then, the Divine God himself had decreed | the sleep shall last. Was it possible, I i dreamt. that I-pOor weak I-should take l to myself that power to snatch from the | shallow bed one of earth's fairest blossomSl Like thrills of red-hot madness these thoughts filled my brain, and as drove them from me, others fari far worse took their place.
 What if the potion, the drug, should have less effect than l calculated? What if my darling should wake; wake to find herself entombed ill that narrow shell; wake-the thought thrilled me with fear, so that 1 treE }.ed and shivered, as under the breath of an icy wind. Wake --to what ? So face death too aw- tul-too horrible to be contemplated. even dared not think now. I flung my self on my knees and lay like one bereft Of every sense, while with wild eyes l watched the night come into the sky; | counted the moments and prayed as had never done before, that one might come, the other go, quickly.
 | Ten thousand years lag by, and it seems l to me l must be an old man {; 1 straighten | me; glance at my hands to see if they are not wlthered: feel my face, and in im- | aginatlon count the wrinkles on it; and stare at my own reflection in the mirror | on the wall, and wonder my hair has not | yet changed from black to white. Never | did l think that human nature could sur | Vive such hours of mortal agony as those l spent.
 Will this awful suspense never end ? | Time, they say, waits for no man. But | surely some tyrant fate has overruied, | for my torment, natures greatest law, | stayed even the rapid approach of | Eternity to torture me.
 Yet no, this cannot be, for see how dark it has grown. Ne speck of light lights up the gloom-pale fair evening has met | its rival, dark chilly niEht-the daily l struggle for mastery is fought; the weak | once more gives way-the dark pail falls over all; the foster brother of death reigns supreme. Yet even as In death, | darkness is not all round so night shows | forth her one guiding light. With hands | clasped high above my head l stand and | watch the clouds drift apart slowly, for the day has been very close, and scarcely | a breath of wind StirS the air; calm | which heralds the storm to come-watch | as the silver moon ever and anon yelling | its face with tieecy VapOr gleamS down upon the shadows and bids them play l 1 highness prompts her, while here and there as l watch, dainty and glimmering in the dark sea of clouds diamond stars peep out and wink and laugh at the rampant shades, their mistress's servants | who makes them obedient to her every caprice.
 One by one count them as I do the | moments. while ever and anon that one sound upon which 1 hang all my hopes | rings out into the night. It is the chiming of the clock in the church tower, beneath whose tall dark shadow my darling sleeps till shall wake her, and bear her forth from that great darkness into light once more
 Nine-ten-those within the house are stirring still. Eleven They pass one by oue up the stars. 1 count them and seem to hear last oSall from his study, by whose | door no doubt the servants have passed with light footstep and faces of fearful sympathy, for here sits alone, half beside himself with grief for those two dear spirits W hich have been snatched from him | Sir Philip come with slow tagging footstep up the long passage to the room where he will lie down to rest and sleep the sleep of rest which is denied my weary spirit for no conscience has he, this devil Tn mans form, to paint before his eyes his crimes, and echo in his ears the cries of the poor soul on whom he had no mercy.
 'Sleep on" say, shaking my trembling hand as his footballs die away. 'Your reckoning is not with me, but with mightier judge.
 Then all is silence save when from out the church tower those silver chimes, that welcome sound break down the bars of time once more. And l stand free to do my task.
 Listen, listen Nine hundred seconds, with ten thousand demons dragging them n
 limbs to drive my strength from me, to make me weak and helpless.
 Weak who says that word No, no, I am Strong-strOng as lion, strong as a
 glant; strong as the strongest man
 strong in the knowledge of that great love which trusted all-yea, even life and
 death-in my hands.
 Death no, it will be life. I am strong,
 and, hark one, two, three, four, five, six,
 seven, eight, nine, ten, eleven, twelve. At
 last yet as the chimes which 1 have
 longed for ring out l stand unable to
 move, spell bound. AS the last echo dies away, l am myself again, living with
 every hope centered in that narrow bed in
 the churchyard, and at the foot of the
 hill-in Madeline.
 Yes, 1 am ready, calmly now, all excite ment is gone. I fold over my arm the
 thick cloak with which I shall protect
 my darling from the night, and hide il
 my bosom the chisel which shall break
 open the door of her prison, and give hel
 back to me once more.
 , Yes the time has come: in a little
 while my task will be done, and shall
 hold my living darling in my arms once
 more.
 With swift, firm tread cross the room
 with prayer tor strength that may not
 fail in my task. What IS it more thar
 that of many who, for science-sake, rot our graveyards of our beloved dead, 1T sciences name to snatch from the deat
 their secrets, that the living may have
 their suffering lessened; though they
 scarce know how the blessing is obtained
 At the worst am but a body-snatcher, O
 whom had heard such fearful tales wheI
 a child, which, even as a man, when hat passed Gods Acre, had made me shrfnl
 with terror lest I should see those men O
 fear at their dread work-work which wa
 done in fear and trembling, afraid i
 should be interrupted. If they then could
 over and over again carry out their work l why ShOnl6 I who had a aO far UraRtA