The Iowa plain dealer. [volume] (New Oregon, Howard County, Iowa) 1867-1895, 1891-11-12
A NIGHT OF HORROR.
Thrilling Experience on the Roof
of Cathedral

Oh q CaLn0QraL
Have you never read OF . persons
hair turning gray in single night?
OF course you have. The old story
books are full Of such tales. can re-
member dozens Of them, stories reek-'
ing with gore and dank with dungeons
aud grewsome with ghosts or other un-
canny things. The heroine and some
times the hero goes to bed at night
with hair as black as the ravens wing
and along in the night come the hor-
rors. whatever they are. and in the
morning the raven hair has turned
snowy white.
i can remember. too. that | never
used to take any stock in such stories.
/ used to hear them read and get up
qs,ite a respectable thrill at the most
hprrible portions, especially when the
candle tiickered awhile with ghostly
light and then went out, leaving every
body in total darkness just as a deep
sigh like the wind through the weep
ing willows in graveyard. Oh, yes.
1 was quite susceptible to touching
passages like those; and | u sed to hurry
mp to bed and tuck my head under the
clothes and shiver with the most timid
of them. But somehow or other could
not accept the ha;r-turning part of the
story. | knew THAT hair, black or
white, could stand on end. but that
good head OF black hair would bleach
itself out between dark and daylight
was little too much to swallow.
know better now. | have had lit
tie experience Of my own which-but
perhaps it is best to tell the story just
as i. occurred.
1t was on the roof of the cathedral
at Milan. We had climbed the stairs
in the late afternoon of ~ beautiful
spring day after paying the custodian
the insignificant price he asked for all
the glories visible from the elevated
position. We looked through the tele-
scope for another fee-and had each
assured the others that we saw Mount
Rlanc perfectly well, without for
moment believing what the others said
or convincing them that we told the
truth. And we had ended our climbs
by ascending to the highest point under
the lantcrn-if it is lantern-by the
cork-screw staircase, which will scarce
~ permit any but the thinnest persons
to pass when one is going up and the
other coming down.
We were a party Of four. and when
the roof was reached the youngest pro-
posed ramble over that portion of the
structure. To this all but myself as
scented. | was tired and proposed to
rest awhile at the foot of the tower
stairs. where the others were to pick
me up on their return, so that we
might all descend together. This was
satisfactory and off they started
Tor time | was quite comforta BILE
and paid no attention to the passage of
time. but | suddenly noticed that it
was getting dark and that my COM
panions had not returned. | called to
them first in a moderate tone of voice.
then more loudly. but received no
answer. Fearing that they would be
belated on the roof l started in search
of them. | walked the entire length of
the ridge of the main roof and peered
down all the side passages in the gath
>ering dusk, but caught no glimpse Of
my companions. Then descended to
the roof of the aisle and made search
there, which was also fruitless. | be-
came alarmed as the light failed and
ran from one point to another, calling
ont as ran, until found to my great
distress that | had lost my way.
could see far below me the lights OF
the great city and hear the distant
rumbling of the carriages as they
drove past on the stony streets. But
was rs effectnally lost for the moment
as il had been in the heart of an
African Jungle without a compass and
no Stanley on the alert to hunt me up.
In the excitement and despair which
the consciousness of this fact produces
rushed about so wildly that slipped
and fell on IL long fight of stone steps
wet with the dew which had begun to
fall. was not conscious of any Sc
rious injury from the fall, bat when
brought up at the foot Of the stair, ano
tried TO regain my footing found t,
my despair and horror that | was ut
aerly unable to move my limbs. | wa,
paralyzed.
The mental agony | suffered is in
conceivable. Yet curiously enough
spent the first moments in Specializing
as to the exact nature of the injury
had sustained. Had broken my bacl
Or simply injured my spinal cord?
tried to recall what had heard IN,
doctor friends say about injuries o
similar character, out could not seen
To remember anything definite. Tn
words the fifth pair flashed into III,
miad and appeared to connect them
selves in some way with my condition
but whether it was the fifth pair o
nerves or ribs or of something else
could not make out. | could not I'm
lerstand either how could have beel
80 seriously injured without any sensi
BILE shock; but that my power of loco
motion was gone there was no doubt
could move my hand, and | began +
speculate on the number of thing, on
could do with ones hands alone. Thi
occupied me for what seemed to be a
hour: but as the train of thought wa
interrupted by clock striking tn
hour of midnight | concluded it mus
have been much longer and wondere
! lad not heard the preceding hours.
Suddenly the full horror of my cor
dition flashed upon ~ l was nc
only doomed to remaiS>where wa'
helpless and alone. during the long
chilly hours of the night. but there ";
no certainty that / would ever 6,
away alive. My friends would new.
dream that | was there. They had Ill
doubtedly concluded that | had gor
down, and if they missed me won
search everywhere but in the rigl
place. 1t might be days before Il