New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1896-09-20

wifi 10
Wi'h ,ne that death had her in trap
she watched the old man with an int s,i
that meant she was watchihs ne, "a an almost
away Her fears grew ana shs na .hioh re
prophetc sense of the length OF tiine wiz. ,ha,
~ ,oinad m him II was without n shocR tna'
she nrecentiy overheard one OF the women W.
was about her saying to another: an. p99,
dear I'm afraid It's most done WIFI h''''' ~
can't hardly last till morning 49,, s,u.r
She knew that he would die before the dawn,
and watched beside him, wondering VIZ. n
moment would be come once vi ,ast aa IN
neoted in his stupor the old stale jest aS -,
those erayestones and on each occasion sne ,e
no sign Of disturbance escape her' ,nousa d an,
folk who were with her looked askance aIu en
phasized the situations horror by clumsy e nncs
TO have the mans speech passed oNc'. onar
She went downstairs and escaped ihto ,io liz
on, pr n,,rocrt The vast blue sky, WIN
it's innumerable dim stars reiiesn,u romned
within the house she had seemed 10 ne ,"r,et
oe In tho crave The wind came soft ana ino,'s
from the west and with 1t soothlns n,"l ~
NJ the sea She looked into the vas' Use
the night and was comforted. lheii W. Ia che
of the present came upon her again. anu ~
wont back TO resume her tendance up''l s
body of death to which she was lore,e, orninr
The night passed slowly. I9Wara d,sso,ution
oe lie tho real presence OF death in the room.
There was unbroken silence. within ana wi.nou'
the house; only the old man ptea'"''
rouslv until at last death took DIM .,,
The noise OF his breathing had pecn aw ~
Now n deeper terror fell upon the "atchei''
None dared to speak for awhile .s.,;,,od
AT last. fearfully, one OF the Wo,,en ,ona moor
what all had recognized '' 9
DEAR she cried. , h,,, IN.
window which had been quietly , ope', nan might
hour earlier so that the soul Of the man imsna'
have easy escape She shut 1t without Moiu,
and set about the work that was he0e nc 60
be done The WOMEN helped her. inc ledi
which had been their companion was not YET
gone and they admitted It's presence Dy .icn
Intellectual efforts TO display subdueu chee'
fulncss. , % rori.,e
miraculous survival quickly went tnroushou.
the village. Stranger stories lolio",u' aI =.
was believed jamie had mpousy l1usn ,ronth
the DEGREES Of fate cOnqucring by sheer VI
of her rebellious will IT was SAID that sne
knew this inasmuch as she refused 10 take tne
sleep which necessary after so nuui iS ,ha,
ing When George Carwinnen was buried my
said that she had not yet allowed helseii ~
sleep She was present at the funerai. anu ui.e
Two ora vestones stood before her while the ser
vice proceeded 1t would seem 'as was si'u
later that they spoke To her not lneioquenu!;
For that night she lay down to sieep l9r tne
first time since her husband dled. AS nau nay -,
pened once before, she was still aped Wheh an
the world had long been at work. ana al last
woman went 10 call her she came nl'o >, ' ~
village white with fear and told her stor! ~ ai,
audience no less moved than herself JANE mac
NOT escaped the appointed fate she was lying
In her bed, stiff and dead, and there would DE no
need of yet another graVestohe WIFI 'ne """'
of man and wife upon H.
Her funeral was such a one had never been
known before in these parts. The grave OF
George Carwinnen was reopened, ana peoplc
gathered to look down with fearful sense OF
fascination upon the coffin that awaited l's
companion There a great crowd gathered
here and a multitude followed the coffin when
was borne by eight men OF the village. sluhs On
broad strong webbing.
The procession had reached the gravcsde
when a noise was heard in the crowd. Some one
was forcing mis- way through the crush, ana IN
q
looked in the direction of the disturbance. a
bronzed. bearded man. evidently a seafarer,
came roughly through the people. and made MS
way to the coffin. kneeling beside IT,
The people fell back in horror as he began to
speak to the dead woman they had brought TO
burial Come back. my dear" he said. All
these years I've beer longiE' for zee, all these
wears YOU have been drawing my hear toward
ZEE though my body couldH follow. Come back
That old man is dead. but there's no need Tor
There was silence. Then a murrlur began to
arise among the crowd But suddenly the sailor
sprang to his feet. Il knew you were not dead
he cried. II knew you would come back
Before any one could interfere he had
snatched the sections spade from where it lay.
and in another moment. with noise OF ripping
and rending wood, the lid Of the coffin was laid
open The people gave one gasp and pressed
closer for jamie not dead. She was strug-
Cling to raise herself, her eyes wide OPEN Jim
she said Il heard your voice" Then she fell
back again and looked like the dead woman
she had been believed to be.
But George CdrWlHnen slept ALONE, lol Jane
recovered after they had taken her to house
hard by She never returned to the home where
she had suffered long so great terror. a
few weeks later beautiful woman, with Won
derful snow-whte hair-for 1t was white from
that day though she not yet thrty-was
married in the little church at the Cove and
then she went away TO live with her husband
in a place where II would be possible to forget
the years when those two gravestones had al
ways been before her.
| myself look at them With an inward repul-
sion II may we'll enough be that the story told
on the first is but what 1t seems: \ record Of
pure affection. strong that the woman could
not live when her husband was taken But God
forbid that men should learn the secret which
has been 50 long buried in the grave beside it.
1t Is possible that here also the travellers
speculations would lead him to n right con-
| clusion. But for my own part. I. who knew JAMIE
have seen what It is to live in the daily presence
Of the overmastering fear of destiny ordained
| from the beginning and l am glad that only
speculation is possible. Let the dead past hold
its secrets in a decent obscurty.-(H D. Lowry
| in The New Review.