The Wilmington daily Republican. (Wilmington, Del.) 1890-1902, 1894-09-24
A PERSIMMON.

| had never seen ono before. II was ex-
trcmely decorative, and l admired it very
much. Its celers were those of the robes
Of BluIn's little samsen player on the
wall
Why don't you eat it," asked Polly.
Tho idoa of internally absorbing tho
beautiful had n strange charm. 1t was
very large persmmon, but I ate 1t all,
and then went TO bed.
From ceiling that crawled and GRIN
klcd watched n cherry colored mandarin
swing slowly down onto my bed From
the spot from which he dropped came an
other and another, all no longer than
pea pod and as dry. Solemnly they squat
ted on my chest and lifted their hairy
arms, In which were twisted rods with
carven, grinning faces.
Crash! They broke Into a shrill, dis
cordant song, beating, beating, beating on
my ribs. Ono, near the apex Of my heart,
would not keep time, and that was worse
than all How tho blows hurt, and how
their curled up knees sank deep into my
tlcsh The words of the song seemed to
leap forth like little cubes and hop over
my skin, burning as they rolled Tho pain
was uncomfortable. / drew great gasp Of
agony and was free They were gone.
a long vista Of graynoss resolved itself
iiit' q htlaIBt HVEFptttNf. Was 5thttu
in n fragile jinrikisha, but instead of the
lusty runner, blue skirttd and handy leg
gcd, between tho shafts was monstrous
horse, tall to heaven, with stridings that
dovourod the roud. A voice, warning,
portentous, sounded in my cars:
''Bo thou careful, o careless one, for
thou hast that In charge that is precious. "
looked down, and beside me crouchcd
bit of u brown baby, naked and unafraid,
whose knob Of hair, tied in a tiny brush,
painted hleroglyphics In the air with every
leap of the lurcliing vehicle.
BY some swift intuition I knew that
this prancing, gigantic horse was the pride
of the mikado's stables, and the brown
baby the hope OF the empire, and that ao-
cidcnt to either meant u punishment to fit
tho crime / looked ahead. The whito
slopes Of FusiyRma, the sacred mountain,
lay before us, up which none may pass
alive On either side our way impene-
trable pines, in whose dark branches COB
lins sat and grimaced horribly. On we
rushed. Tho great fore feet OF the horse
struck the slope of the forbidden hill. A
sudden shock ran through all his body. 1
stood alone in the road. On the side, his
blood dyelng the scanty sod, lay the horse,
deep hole in his quiverlng side whilc in
my arms the child lay leaden, gasplng.
us and locked upon me ominously, silently.
XIII this wretched creature in mercy"
1 begged. They stood uninoved, silent,
still, while the horse gazed at me in more
than human anguish. Clasplng the child,
l hurried away, falling, stumbling, cry
ing aloud for help In vain.
Suddenly / stood in vast room. All
about its sides were ladders of bamboo,
fragile and hung by slender threads. In
the corners, overhead and swinging corpse
like, wero bundles, shapeless, unspeaka-
bic. The air was filled with sickening
odor, as of mingled decay and strange
spices, pungcnt and sweet. Slowly tho
swinging bundles took form, and beneath
appeared the outline of body in n dim
and bewildCring individuality, ludicrous
and horrible.
Again voice cried-a voice of authori-
ty not to be gainsaid-'' Searchl'' Again
l knew that somewhere in this formless
immensity the little brown baby was hid,
still alive, and could l but find him ere
too late might save our souls alive from
I knew not what. Instantly he was no
longer the heir Of the house OF San, but
mine, my own, that had lived and loved
and lain on my breast, and whose life
would die million deaths to save, whose
agony l would brave tho gods to assuage.
How tossed the dreadful bundles aboutl
How toro them open ruthlessly, only to
scc sunken eye or gaping mouth How
| clung to the spiderlike ladders and leaped
across chaslnlikc spaces. AT last among
heap Of squalid rags In corner where
snakes wrlthtd and ran, u little foot peep
cd out. 1t moved. 1t was warm. l tore
away the cloths as n dog tears at tho earth
that covers his quarry and snatched the
child to my heart, On his bare breast gap
cd wide wound, its edges already purple
and reeeding, and AS l locked | saw the IA
tai flush spread up and up. Water oh,
if there wero only waterl I saw dull
pool at my feet, and, STOPPING, dashed the
icy drops upon the wound, In vain, Ono
chance remained-to call back the fleeing
soul by name in desperate cntreaty. Sure
ly my baby would listen. The word died
oil my lips for the child on my heart
changed again as l would have spoken,
and what knew | Of the name of the mi
kadu's herf Let me think. | must think.
Did not some one Of that cruel crowd that
stared and grinncd speak its l strive; |
groan; cry aloud 1he heavy air sends
back my cries hollowly and as l choke
into silence l sec the lids fiutter and fall.
The hope Of the empire has gone all too
soon to the sacred shades OF Fusiymna,
and !, | alone must answer.
Alune In the silence and darkness of n
cell. l could put out my hand and feel
that the wall WAS made Of some rough wo-
ven grass, about which chung pGnetrM-
ing odor In this grass could hear tho
movement OF millions Of minute insects,
/ knew not of what detcs.ed shape and
kind. began to pass my hands over these
walls in / know not what barren hope Of
escape. Carefully crept on and on, meas
uringi comparing, testing, Then i went
back and began again. My hands kept
slipping OF strangely into space. Tie
cell had no shapc-sinply dimension.
AlaSi l was no simple onlooker at some
splendid reyel of primeval nature. All
that was in this stuponduus scheme was
me, senticnt, suffering soul.
Tho helpless, tortured ego was part OF
the whole. 1t froze on those cold pierre
ing peaks, baked ON those plains Of arid
sand, was tossed In that human sea, was
blown on those tclnpestuous winds All
this ! was, all this l inflicted, all ills |
bore for n forever
Then the end came. About me, ia me,
of me, there WAS only light Hight that
grew and hlazed and turned wLito and
grew again till the eyes Of both body and
spirit sank IN II and were submerged
Out of the light in its very glowing heart
showed point more intolcrably light.
Nearer and nearer It cane in shape now
like u live fame, darling forward snake
like Each instant 1t threatened to touch
my staring eyCAalls. AT last one fiery
tongue leapad farther The spoil thut
boutd me seemed ,Gsed With u mad cry
Of terror put upIny hands to brush away
these horrors and found them olGsped In
auCther's-werm, soff, human. il was
Polly possible, provoking Polly.
''A AH1fpynr l. tla ny 9tt