The Daily bulletin. [volume] (Honolulu [Hawaii]) 1882-1895, 1891-01-10

four generations who 1--we III the sun
light at the same time, drinking the
water of the springs and the wine of the
vineyards and eating the bread of the
fields, much room is needed, high houses,
wide streets.
And for all the generations of the
dead, for the entire scale of humanity
down to us, almost nothing; a field, al
most nothing! The earth takes them
back again. oblivion elfaces them. Fare
well,
AT the end of the inhabited cemetery
suddenly perceived the abandoned
cemetery, that where the older dead are
completing their union with the soil,
where the crosses themselves are crlm-
bling and where tomorrow the last
corners will be placed 1t is full Of free
roses, of vigorous anl dark expresses, a
sad and superb garden. enriched with
human flesh
was alone, entirely alone. | crouch
ed beneath green tree. hid myself
completely among its thick and somber
branches
And | waited, clinging to the trunk
like Il shipwrecked man to a spar.
When it was dark, very dark, | left
my refuge and began to walk softly,
with slow steps. over this earth filled
with the dead.
wandered about long, long. long. !
could not find her grave again With
arms outstretched and eyes wide open,
hitting against tombs with my hands,
with my feet, with my knees, with my
breast, with my head itself. went on,
without finding her. | touched, felt,
like blind man seeking his way; felt
of the stores, of the crosses, of the iron
ratings Of the glass crowns, of the
crowns of faded flowers! | read the
names with my fingers, moving them
over the letters. What night! What
a night! could not find her again.
No moon. What night! | was afraid.
frightfully afraid in these narrow paths.
between two rows of graves! Graves.
graves graves! Always graves! Toright,
to left. in front, arouud. everywhere.
graves, sat down on one Of them, for
could no longer walk. 80 weak was |
in the knees heard my heart beat!
And heard omething else, also What
A confused, indescriblble sound! Was
this sound in my bawildered head in the
impenetrable night, or under the mys-
terious earth, under the earth sown With
human corpses? looked around me!
How long did | stay there2 do not
know | was paralyzed with terror,
was drunk with fear. ready to scream
ready to die.
And suddenly it seemed to me that
the slab Of marble on which was sit
ting moved. Certainly it moved, as il
some one had lifted it. With a bound |
threw myself upon the neighboring tomb
stone, and saw, yes, saw the slab
which had just left rise on its end and
the dead appeared, a naked skeleton
who with his curved back lifted the
stone. | saw. saw very plainly, al
though the night was dark On the
cross could read
"Here rests jacques Olivant, who died
at the age of 81 He loved his family
was honest and good and died in the
peace of the Lord"
Now the dead man also read the words
written on his tombstone. Then he
picked up Il stone in the path, a small
sharp stone, and began to scratch ont
these things carefully He effaced them
thoroughly, slowly, looking with his
empty eyes at the place where just now
they We're craven, and with the end of
the bone which had been his index finger
he wrote in luminous letters like those
lines which one traces on walls with the
end of a match
Here rests Jacques Olivant, who died
at the age of 81. BY his harshness he
hastened the death Of his father, from
whom he wished to inherit; he tortured
his wife, tormented his children, de-
ceived his neighbors, stole when he could
and died miserable
When he had finished writing the mo.
tionless dead man contemplated his |
work. And perceived on turning round
that all the graves were open, that all
the bodies had come out, that all had
effaced the lies written by their relatives
on the funeral stone to replace them with |
the truth.
And saw that all had been torment
ors of their kinsmen, hateful. dishonest,
hypocritical, lying. cheating. slandering,
envious; that they had robbed, deceived.
committed every shameful act, every |
abominable act = these good fathers,
these faithful wives, these devoted sons, |
these chaste young girls, these upright |
merchants these SO called irreproachable |
men and women.
They all wrote at the same time on
the threshold Of their eternal dwelling
the cruel, terrible and sacred truth of
which everybody on earth is ignorant, |
or pretends to be ignorant.
| thought that she, too, must have
traced it on her tombstone. And run
ming now without fear amid the half
open collins, amid the bodies, amid the |
skeletons, went toward her, sure that +
| should find her at once
recognized her at distance. without |
seeing her face, wrapped in Il shroud.
And ON the marble cross Were but a
short time before had read.
''She loved, was loved and died"
saw these words;
Having gone out one day to deceive
her lover she took cold in the rain and
died" 4
1t seems that was picked up uncon-
scious at sunrise, beside a grave.-From
the French of Guy de Maupassant in
New York World
Miss Irene Hoyt is said to have the
finest collection of corner lots of any
person in the United States. For years