The copper country evening news. [volume] (Calumet, Mich.) 18??-1907, 1896-03-13
THE LORELEI.

dark curtained. and yawning cavern
ous fireplace. ! sat and pondered. Tho
fire was burned out, save pile Of glow
ing Goals, which threw a fitful glare
through the shadows Of the room mp to
the brown rafters overhead. Without the
wind shricked and howled and whis-
tied, the shutters clattered and the hail
beat upon the window panes. The fire
CLEANS ceased. The wind shrieked loud
or and the spirit Of fear entered into and
took possession Of me.
oh. for light
Starting in a frenzy, I raked some
Goals together, and seizing an old violin
that lay in corner threw 1t on the
Goals in hope Of light sufficient to dispel
tho gloom for few moments at least.
There was 4 cracking. and there went
up . blue fame, and at that instant
there came a quick, singing blow on
my temple--a blow like the shock from
an electric battery-and fell to the
floor. insensible. When my mind came
back to me, the room was filled with
darkness so intense could discern moth
ing. / looked toward the fire. Written
in letters Of fame upon the back wall Of
black, in letters that flickered and grew
pale and then bright, now with a blue
light and now with red. saw this
strange story that try to tell to you:
OF old there was a race of women
who were 1.-the and tall and fair. Their
eyes were like stars and their hair like
strands Of gold, or a veil covering them
below the knees. This was when Jove
reigned in Olympus and the gods and
goddesses paid homage to him there.
Now these women were slaves to the
goddesses, but when they sang, Jove left
his throne and all the gods wept and
thought of nsught save these-the Lore
lei.
Then the goddesses were sore dis
pleased, and their hearts were bitter
with jealousy, so that they pleaded with
love and finally prevailed upon him to
cast the Lorelei out Of Olympus and to
drown them in the sea.
So the Lorelei were hurled into the
waters. But as they sank they cried
aloud, and the sweetness of their voices
pierced Neptune's heart. SO it was filed
with compassion. and he sent ENJOYS TO
guide them through the waters and into
the cavernous palaces under the seattle
palaces whose walls were Of silver span
gled with gold, whose light was the
glimmer from diamonds, whose floors
were Of pearls, and many gems were in
the sands around. The Lorelei rang to
thank kind Neptune, and the monsters
of the deep drew near and ceased to
move, but stood by the entrances 10 the
caverns and were spellbound by the mu-
sic.
The Lorelei maidens were happy.
They danced and sang the livelong day,
and the queen of Lorelei led them. The
water was warm, and its surface glitter
ed and sparkled and flashed, and the
Lorelei chased each other and sang for
very gladness. There was ship on the
sea, and when the breeze reached it laden
with music-the music of the Lorelei's
notes.-the sailors were charmed. so
that the helmsman stood rs one dead,
and the captain was silent, but reached
forth his hands. The winds and waves
bore the ship on. and the voices of the
Lorelei sounded more plainly than be-
fore.
The ship was without guidance. It
struck upon the rocks and sank. But the
men were as dead men before it went
down, for their ears were filled and
their pulses were stopped by the songs
of the sirens. The waters closed over
the ship and her crew, and after many
days the bones of the sailors were cast
upon the sands of the shore, and the
summer suns and winter rains bleached
them. Other ships came. The crews
heard and persisted, and the shore was
stiewn with bones, even as the sands.
The Lorelei mourned and sang to warn
men away. But the voices were 30 sweet
men came ever toward them to their do
struction.
The Lorelei were accused by man
kind, so that the queen Of the Lorelei
came no more through the waters, but
wandered in and ont through the coral
groves in the depths of the sea. Ships
ceased to be lost and the bones upon the
seahore were covered with moss and the
grass and flowers grew near TO the wa
ter's edge.
Now, back from the shore was for
est, mighty and old. The trunks Of the
trees were like great columns and the
branches formed arches overhead; the
leaves were the canopy and the whole
seemed like great cathedral. The
ground was soft with the fallen leaves.
and in this forest the sun never shone
save when the winds came softly and
gently through the boughs, lifted the
leaves flutteringly and let a sunbeam
through, which fell aslant upon the
ground. In the heart of this forest was
q castle. The castle was old. dark and
grim, and the lord of the castle had
been wandering in foreign lands for
many years
A new year had come and was half
gone when the lord came home. The air
was soft and warm and filled with the
song of birds and the hum Of insects.
The sunbeams came down on the old
castle. glancing of ON the blooming
rve,s on the castle walls and falling
through the windows on marble forms
and crystal fountains The lord Of the
castle was brave and strong and calm
and drew oil men toward him.
1t was morning
The lord left his castle and wandered
through the forest, his arms folded upon
his breast and his face raised to watch
the pale sunbeams como Pickering
through the trees. Each football crushed
perfume from the ground-the odors OF
moist earth. of fallen leaves. violets and