The Somerset reporter., 1894-10-04
THE RAYS WORK.

4 DttIe ray lONcu SO wei us tuc sulullici
sea. He and his comrades would play
by the hour together with the ripping
wavelcts, darting from one to another
in dazzling, mad flashes Of light, spread
ing themselves over the waters, a sheet
of molten gold, till a touch of the
winds light lips broke ii up into thou
sand shimmering fragments. And the
waves loved their playmates, too, and
each, rs the rays kisscdi it, became itself
little golden sun. sending forth its light
into the radiant air for the sea, like a
tickle, loyable woman, answers back to
all in hcir own moods and is loved just
because She cannot be trusted. Then,
where the waves broke on the golden
sands or round the clean, dark rocks,
the little rays would fill their foam with
light till it shone moro brightly white
than til Jungfrau 5 crest and the music
of the waves breaking was JOY song
for their own lovelincss Laughing, they
ran up the smooth sand and embraced
with teasing play the small pink feet
which scampered away before them,
while the sun : rays flashed from their
surface to meet the light, brighter still,
which shone from childrcn's eyes. Oh,
those We're happy days, and as the little
ray danced along over the waters he
hoped that they never might end.
But time came when the voice of
the wind sounded from afIr The sea
heard it and was troubled to its depths
at the new life of power and strength
which was tearing within il, while the
wavclcts far and wide raised their tiny
crc,ts, and in ripples Of white foam
whispered the news one to another. Tho
clouds, too, heard the voice and gath
cred together at its bidding to spread
themselves a thick, dark curtain over
the sea and hide from the suns face
the things which were to be And 50
the little r..y could visit the sea no
longer nor join any more in sport with
his faVorite playmatcs. At this his
heart was very sad, and he took no de-
light in the other pleasures to which
his comrades called him They told him
of the wild games they played with the
wind shaken leaves of the forest; of the
snow cold peaks which they crowned
with dazzling splendor Of Jewels; of fog
laden valleys filled with dream forms Of
weirdcst, strangest lovelncss; of mys-
terics of beauty revealed midst the
worlds most squalid drearincss But it
was all in vain. The little ray longcd
for his lost playmates and would care
for none of these things
As he wandered sadly among the
heavy, driving Clouds losing himself
in their sullen masses, searching for
some crevice through which he might
penetrate, one of them pitied him.
"Since you will it 50, said she, 81
will let you through, though fear you
will find that dreams that are past can
never be dreamed again Then she
shrank back from her neighbor, and
with one swift word of thanks the little
ray darted down through the opening
she had made.
Down he went to the sea below and
there lay quivering and lost in its black
gulf Oh, what changed world it
was Above him tho tempest hurried
along and shouted to the waves as it
went, and the waves threw their white
heads up and answered back in crashing
thunders. death, death, and tho end
of all thingsV' passionatcy yelled the
tempest ''Ruinl' roarcd the waves.
"Naught is that can Withstand usl"
world of darkness and tumult and
terrible unrest. The little ray lay where
he had lighted, tremulous and afraid,
now glimmering for an instant among
cataracts of rushing foam and then lost
again in the dark depths of the water,
"Hap' cried the waves when they saw
him. $50 you are here, little ray The
world is changed since you saw it last. y
"Changed indeed, said the ray. ooh,
why cannot you be as You were before,
my playmates?" But the waves laugh
ed, shaking spray from their crests till
the tempest caught it and whirled it
mountain high in the air. "Give us
tho winds for playmates, they cried,
land the men lives for our sport. Talk
to us not of the wretched, spiritless
days that are past TIE world is worth
living in now" "Bus you were happy
then. You rejoiccd i'll the earth's beau
ty and were happy, said the little ray
wistfully. because we knew no bet
ter" they answered. I'VE have learned
since then that there is something fairer
than beauty, more glorious than joy.
Oh, the rapture of fury when we raise
the ship high in the air to hurl her
down on the locks boncath--the cruel
rocks whom we love and linger to kiss
and infoid in our soft white arms even
then in the joy of that moment of pow.
En- To crush into pieces the mighty
vessel with all its wealth and labor of
workmanship; to scatter abroad the
heavy fragments, flinging them to and
fro in the very scorn of our sovereign
strength; to watch men gasp in their
death agony rs we lift ourselves above
their writhing bodies, and then to crash
down and dash the life from their lips
this is power, little friend; this is pow
err and there is no glory in the world
like the glory of power
The ray grow chill and wan and trem-
bled as he listened, rs there nothing
then, left which is fair to look upon in
all this waste of watcrs?" he cried, and
he wandered dismally on. Everywhere
the same dark CULTS and white crested
mountains mingling together in tumul-
tuous chaos; everywhere floating frag'
ments of wreck and the stain Of earth
torn from its parent shore; ruin and dc.
struction and nothing that was fair to
look upon.
Far out to sea woman, with child
In her arms, floatod alone in small