The Carbon advocate. [volume] (Lehighton, Pa.) 1872-1924, 1892-03-05
ON THE ROOF.

OAN 4 liz llOOI
Have you never read Of a persons haii
turning gray in a single night? OF course
you have. The old story books are full
Of such tales. 1 can remember dozens of
them-stories reel5ing with gore and
dank with dungeons, and grewsome with
ghosts and other uncanny things. The
heroine, and sometimes the hero, goes TO
bed at night with hair as black as the
ravens wing, and along in the night
come the horrors, whatever they are, and
in the morning the raven hair has turned
a snowy white
1 can remember, too, that Inever used
to take any stock in such stories. used
to hear them read, and get up quite a
respectable thrill at the most horrible
portions, especially when the candle
fiickered awhile, leaving everybody in
total darkness, just as a deep groan was
heard or a long, shuddering cry, like the
wind through the weeping willows in a
graveyard.
Oh, yes! ! was quito susceptible to
touching passages like those and used
to hurry up 90 bed and tuck my head
under the clothes and shiver with the
most timid of the.a. But somehow or
other could not accept the hair turning
part of the s'Sry. | knew that hair,
black or white, could stand ON end, but
that good Head of black hair would
bleach itself ont between darl, and day
light was a little too much to swallow.
l know better now. have had lit
tie experience Of my own yFhich-but
perhaps it is best to tell the story as it
occurred.
It was on the roof Of the cathedral at
Milan We had climbed the stairs in
the late afternoon Of a beautiful spring
day, after paying the custodian the in.
significant price he asked for all the
glcries visible from the elevated station.
We had looked through the Telescope
for another foe-and had each assured
the others TINT we saw Mont Blanc per-
fectly well without for q moment be-
lieving what the others said or convinc-
ing them that we told the truth, and
had ended our climbs by ascending to
the highest point under the lantern-if
it is a lantern-by the corkscrew stair
case, which will scarcely 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
sented. 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 satisfac-
tory and off they started.
For a time was quito comfortable,
and paid no attention to the passage OF
time; but l suddenly noticed that it was
getting dark and that my companions
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 oi
the main roof and peered down all the
side passages in the gathering dusk, but
caught no glimpse Of my companions
Then / descended to the roof of the aisle
and made Il search there which was alsC
fruitless. / became alarmed as the light
failed, and ran from one point to an
other, 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 l was as effectually lost for the
moment as if had been in the heart o.
an African jungle without a compass
and no Stanley on the alert to hunt IN,
up. In the excitement and despair
which the consciousness of this fact pro
duced, rushed about so wildly that
slipped and fell on a long flight of stont
steps, wet with the dew which had be
gun to fall. | was not conscious Of any
serious injury from the fall, but when
brought up at the foot of the stairs an(
tried to regain my footing, found, t
my despair and horror, that was utter
ly unable to move my limbs. was par
alyzed,
The mental agony / suffered is incon
ceivable. Yet curiously enough ] spen
the first moments in speculating as {,
/ the exact nature Of the injury had sus
tanned. Had broken my back or sim
| ply injured my spinal cord? | tried t
recall what 1 had heard my docto
friends say about injuries Of simila,
/ character, but could not seem to remem
] Der anything definite. The words, 9Th
/ fifth pair" ," flashed into my mind and ap
peared to connect themselves in SOM
way with my condition; but whether
was the fifth pair of nerves or ribs, or o
something else, could not make out.
/ could not understand either how
could have been so seriously injured
without any sensible shock, but that M
power of locomotion was gone there Wa
no doubt. Icould move my hands ant
/ began 10 speculate on the number o.
things one could do with ones hand
alone. This occupied me for wha
seemed TO be an hour; but rs the trail
of thought was interrupted by a clocl
striking the hour o. midnight, | con
cluded it must have been much longer
and wondered ] had not heard the pre-
ceding hours.
Suddenly the full horror Of my condi
ton flashed upon me, was not oull
doomed TO remain where l was, helples
and alone, during the long chilly hour
of the night, but there was no certainty
that would ever get away alive. NJ,
friends would never dream that l wa
there. They had undoubtedly cor
ciuded that l had gone down and
they missed me would search every
where but in the right place. It Nigh
be days before the particular spot j
which / lay would bo visited, and !
that case it would be too late. Starv,
ton would do for me, even if the injur
l had received did not, In my anguis
l shrieked aloud, but was duly cor
scious all the time that nobody coul
hear me. Visitors and custodians alih
must have departed hours before; an
even if my cries were heard from til
streets below nobody would attribut
them 10 their real source
To the feeling of acute anguish SUI
ceeded one of blank despair. no longO
spoeulated ON the possibility of beiu
discovered, dead OF alive. There was
/ duh leaden feeling at my chest, and
found myself repeating mechanical
old rhymes and jingles and saying III
alphabet l-qk ward. as 1 once learned
70. .tof all in Leavening P
t-s,.-