Democratic Northwest. [volume] (Napoleon, Ohio) 1869-1894, 1892-02-11


ceding hours.
Suddenly the fun horror Of my condi.
ton flashed upon me. was not obly
doomed to remain where was, helpless
and alone, during the long chilly hours
Of the night, but there was no certainty
that l would ever get away alive. Ny
friends would never dream that was
there. They had undoubtedly con.
cluded that / had gone down. and II
they missed me would search every
where but in the right place. II might
be days before the particular spot in
which | lay would be visited. and in
that case it would DO too late. Starva-
ton would do for me, even If the injury
had received did not. In my anguish
l shrleked aloud, but was duly con-
scious all the time that nobody could
hear me. Visitors and custodians alike
must have departed hours before; and
even if my cries were heard from the
streets below nobody would attribute
them to their real source.
To the feeling Of acute anguish sue
ceeded one of blank despair. no longer
speculated on the possibility of being
discovered, dead or alive. There was u
dull leaden feeling at my chest. and
found myself repeating mechanically
old rhymes and jingles and saying the
alphabet backward, as / once learned to
do in seeking relief from insomnia. Yet
at the same time | was conscious that
my whole life was passing in review be-
fore me, as they say it does when one is
drowning or being hanged. renem-
bered that saying, too, and without any
cessation of the review wondered in
my doubled consciousness if | were
undergoing the sensations of drowning
man, or of one being hanged, and wished
| could put them down on paper for the
benefit Of the rest of mankind.
What struck me as singular was that
the clocks kept on striking twelve. The
second time they did this thought must
have lost consciousness for an entire day.
and that this was the second midnight.
But when the third stroke of twelve
came from half dozen clocks, knew
it could not be two days since | had
fallen.
| thought first that l had become de-
mented; and then it occurred to me that
if | were l could not reason about it in
that fashion, SO the clocks themselves
must be crazy. This theory satisfied me
until the striking began again, when
went off in another fantastic speculation.
My friends had discovered that | was
missing, and were having the bells rung
to keep my spirits up.
Oh, the long, long, weary hours
spent in waiting for glimpse of day
light. l had no hope that daylight |
would bring me any relief, but the pros
pect of staying where it was endless mid
night seemed uncomfortable. groaned |
and wept and dug my nails into the |
palms Of my hands until it seemed as if |
the blood would come; but did not |
even feel any sense Of pain.
1t must have been after the clocks had |
struck midnight dozen times or more
Il kept no exact account-that | saw
in the distance at what seemed to be the
farther end of the cathedral roof two |
faint glimmers of light. Presently there
were two more and then two more,
until there was regular procession of
them. tried to shout, but had become
SO weak with cold and suffering that
could not raise my voice above a whis-
per.
The lights nevertheless approached,
growing gradually stronger, until
could see that they were borne by sever
al black-robed figures who were march
ing beside a coffin. AS the procession
moved slowly toward me began to
wonder what it meant, and whether
took place at midnight on the
roof Of Milan cathedral. Then specu-
lated moment on the propriety of dis
turbing the obsequies even in my ex-
treme need. Suddenly it dawned upon
me that this was my own funeral, and
knew that was either dead or had gone
mad. In the supreme anguish of this
discovery all memory Of past suffering
was blotted out, and entered on a new
period Of the most exquisite torture.
Fortunately, 1t was Of brief duration.
AS the foremost Of the moving figures
reached me l felt grasp on my arm
and voice called in my ear:
"Wake up, father; it's time to be
going down. guess you must have had
your yoke turned"
1t was my daughter, and beside her
were the rest Of the party, flushed with
their ramble on the roof. Strengthened
out my cramped limbs, which must have
gone to sleep about the time did, and
pulled out my watch. l had been there
Just fifteen minutes.
Idontmean to be understood that my
nair really did turn gray in that night
IF horror on Milan cathedral. In the
irst place there is not much of it and
what there is has been tolerably gray for
some years. Put do mean to say that
am no longer incredulous as to the
of such capillary change as
'he story books tell about. am quite
'ure that if any man or woman really
had just such an experience as | thought
had, his or her hair would turn gray
provided Of course he or she had any
lair that was not gray already.-True
flag.
Antidote for Snake and Dog Bites.