The St. Johns herald., 1891-05-07

] he discovered it's position on wa n brackett. He groaned when he sa
 that the hands pointed to half pas f 12. Those hours already passe ] had dragged so painfully throug every minute of their course tha he had imagined it was nearl , morning. Oiga-Olga-Olga be came again his only thought. Hi apathy flew, and despair, deep ant
 tragic, took it's place. What wa his wife doing? How would sh,
 act under this unparalleled trial Two big, scalding tears gathered un
 der his closed, eyelids as he pic
 tured her crying and wringing hel
 hands-those pretty little hands he
 loved to kiss and caress. Then he
 saw her pale, indignant, insulted al
 this incomprehensible desertion
 he imagined her frightened, starting
 at every sound, dreading to go out
 alone in the strange city, feeling
 herself forsaken, outraged, disgraced
 At these terrible mental visions the
 strong man moaned and writhed.
 Drops of water stood out on his
 forehead his head seemed to swell,
 and a singular feeling compressed
 his chest and hindered his breath
 ing. Then everything became blurr-
 ed and indistinct. The next mo-
 ment he had tainted and become
 mercifully oblivious to the reality
 of his miserable situation. He must
 have passed from this state to one
 of unconscious slumber, because,
 when he opened his eyes again, the gray dawn was creeping in at the
 window, making the gaslight change to pale and sickly hue, and bring ing out, in dim, shadowy outline, the roofs and chimneys of the en- vironing houses. He was achingin every limb; stinging pains shot through his arms and up his legs; his jaws were numb and stiff; his throat was parched and swollen. He looked around at the clock; it was 6 o'clock. Thank God the night was over. With the breaking of another day hope rose glimmer- ing in his heart. He ran over in his mind all the possibilities of es- cape during the day; the assistant might return on some errand the gas would be seen burning through the transom should any one ap- proach the room; his friend might return to the hotel, hear of his strange disappearance and give some clew to the mystery. That lifeless form on the floor had no terror for him, fortunately, and, unless he moved his head and look ed right down, he could not see it. It was an awful death, he thought, and what if he should die, too, and never meet his wife again-never explain what had happened? How it was his brain did not give way through the fearful ordeal he never knew. Hour after hour passed in sickening, agonizing suspense. The tortures of waiting, the faintness of hunger, the compulsory, strained position of his body, combined to overcome and undermine his phys ical strength, and finally deprived him of all feelings of conscious ness. A stinging, flaming sensa- ton suddenly gathered the scatter ed embers of his half-extinguished senses together, and caused them to emit a small flicker of stirring, glimmering vitality. The heat in- creased until he was sufficiently re- stored to locate the sensation. It was his throat, which seemed on
 fire. Molten lead seemed to be trickling down, drop by drop. By dint of oft-renewed efforts he slow ly opened his eyes. Where was he? Was this life or death? A strange face was bending over him. He tried | ! |