Yorkville enquirer. [volume] (Yorkville, S.C.) 1855-2006, 1897-05-15

| longer he
Their joke will soon be dead, and I re
leased"
But an hour, and two others, slowly
came,
And then he murmured: "This is nj
It is a silent signal, which means Death =
shouted, but no answer came to him
Not even an echo, on that lofty perch.
He waved his hand in mute entreaty, bu
The darkness crept between him and hi!
friends.
A half hour.seemed an age, and still hi
He looked down at the myriad city lights
And prayed, 20 blessed city of my birth
In which full many I love, and one DER
Or should not be feebly clinging here,
Is there not 'mongst those thousands one
kind heart
To help me2 or must come back to you
Crashing my way through grim, untime'
" death ?''
Rich sounds of mirth came faintly-but
no help.
Another hour went by and still he clung.
He braced himself against the rising
And wrapped the flag around his shiver-
ing form,
And thus he prayed unto the merry
winds:
90 breeze You bear no tales of truer love
Than can give you at this lonely height
Tell but my danger to the heart serve,
And she will nei ~ rest till am free!"
The winds pressed hard against him as
Aud well,nigh ew'renched him from that
But made no answer to the piteous plea.
Hour after hour went by, and still he
held
Weak, dizzy, reeling-to his narrow
perch.
It was a clear and queenly summer
And every star seemed hanging from the
sky,
AS if ,'twere bending down to look at
him.
And thus be prayed to the far-shining
20 million worlds, peopled perhaps like
this,
Can you not see me, clinging helpless
here?
Can you not flash message to some eye,
Or throw your influence on some frlendly
brain
To rescue me9" A million sweet-eyed
stars
Gave smiles to the beseecher, but no
help.
And so the long procession Of the night
Marched slowly by, and each scarce hour
was hailed
By the great clock beneath; and still ne
clung ,.
Unto the frail preserver for his life,o !.
And held, not for his life, but tor his
Held while the spiteful breezes wrenched
Held while the chills of midnight crept
through him;
While Hope and Fear made him their
battle ground,
And ravaged fiercely through his heart
and brain.
He moaned, he wept, he prayed again
he prayed
Grown desperate and half-ravlng IN MS
woe
To everything sin earth, or air. or sky;
To the fair streets, now still ana silent
To the cold roofs, now stretched 'twixt
him and help;
To the dumb, distant hills that needless
slept;
To the white clouds that slowly fluttered
past
To his lost mother in the sky above;
And then he prayed to God.
About that time
The maiden dreamed she saw her lover
Clinging for life; and with a scream
And rushed to the old sexton's yielding
door,
Granting no peace to him until he ran,
To find the truth and give the boy
release.
An hour ere sunrise he came feebly
down,
Grasping the flag, and claiming his fair
prize. -,
But what wreck to wis a blooming girl
His cheeks were wrink led, and OF yellow
hue,
His eyes were sunken, and his curling
hair
Cleaned white as snow upon the distant
Alps.
But the young maiden clasped his weary
head
In her white arms, and soothed him like
child;
And said, "You lived life of woe for
me
Up on the spire, and now look old enough
Even to please my father; but soon l
will nurse you back into your youth
again."
And soon the tower bells sung his we'd
ding song.
The old-young man was happy; and
they both, -,
Cheered by the well-earped bounty of the
king,
Lived many years within Vienna's gates.