Wood County reporter. [volume] (Grand Rapids [i.e. Wisconsin Rapids], Wis.) 1857-1923, 1897-10-07

very act of walking l was almost IN
conscious of movement. An awful SOL
itEde seemed to encompass me--a 81
lence Of my own creating. | fancied
that even the angry elements avoided
me as l passed; that there was moth
ing, nothing in all the wide universe
but myself and dark brOoding horror
called Vengeance. All suddenly, the
mists Of my mind cleared; l moved no
longer in deaf, blind stupor. A fash
OF lightning danced windy before my
eyes, followed by a crashing peal Of
thunder; I saw to what end Of wild
journey | had come! Those heavy
gates-that underlined stretch of land
those ghostly glimneTs Of motionless
white like spectral mile-stones emery
ing from the glOOm-I knew it all too
well-it was the cemetery. / looked
through the iron palisades with the
fey erish IL terest of one who watches
the stage curtain rise On the last scene
OF tragedy. The lightning sprung
once more across the sky, and showed
me for a brief second the distant mar
/ tire ~ the RCn?ani vault. There
the drama began-where would it end?
Slowly, slowly there fitted into my
thoughts the face of my lost child-the
young, serious face as it had looked
when the calm, preternaturally wise
smile of death had rested upon it; and
then a curious feeling Of pity possessed
Te-pity that her little body should be
lying stiffiy out there, not in the
vault. but under the wet sod, in such
relentless storm of rain. | wanted
to take her up from that cold couch
To carry her to some home where there
should be light and heat and laughter
- to warm her to life again within my
arms; and as my brain played with
these foolish fancies, slow hot tears
forced themselves into my eyes and
scalded nv cheeks as they fell These
tears relieved me-gradually the
t''-l'v strung tension of my nerves re
faxed, and I recovered my usual COM
pOsure by degrees. Turning deliber
ately away from the reckoning grave
stones, l walked back to the city
through the thick of the storm, this
time with an assured step and a
knowledge of where | was going. l
did not reach my hotel till past mid
night: but this was not late for Ma
pies, and the curiosity of the fat
French hall-porter was not so much
excited by the lateness Of my arrival
as by the disorder of my apparel.
"Ah, heaven!" he cried; that
| monsieur the distinguished should
have been in such a storm all unpro-
tected. Why did not monsieur send
for his carriage?" | cut short his ex-
carnations by dropping five francs into
his ever-ready hand, assuring him that
| had thoroughly enjoyed the novelty
of a walk in bad weather, whereat he
smiled and congratulated me as much
as he had just cOmmiserated me. On
reaching my own rooms, my valet Vim
cenZo stared at my dripping and di-
sheveled condition, but was dIscreetly
mute. He quickly assisted me to
change my wet clothes for a warm
dl essing-gOwn, and then brought a
glass of nulled port wine, but per-
formed these duties with such an air
of unbroken gravity that l vas in
Wardly amused while I admired the
fellows reticence. When I was about
to retire for the night, [ tossed hin, a
napoleon. He eyed it musirgIy and
inquiringly; then he asked:
Your eXcellency desires to purchase
something's