The Princeton union. [volume] (Princeton, Minn.) 1876-1976, 1898-06-30

sooA 6udIuIdu spirit. SOm6 Will
mel! said the good angel, in a voice
Of unearthly symphony. It was music
like that which drops from a lutte Of
heaven when a seraph breathes on it..
NO, no." said the bad angel, come
with me; l have something better to
offer; the wines I pour are from chal-
Ices OF beWitching %carousal; the dance
l lead is owe floor tessellated with I'M
restrained indulgences; there is no God
TO frown on the temples of sin where I
worship. The skies are Italian. The
paths 1 tread are through meadows
oalsled n pr1rarosed; come with me-"
The young man hesitated at a time
when hesitation was ruin, and the bad
angel smote the good angel until it de-
parted, spreading wings through the
starlight upward and away, until a door
flashed open in the sky and forever the
wings vanished. That was the turning
point IN that young mans history; for,
the good angel flown, he hesitated no
longer, but started on a pathway which
is beautiful at the opening, but blasted
at the last. The bad angel, leading the
way, opened gate after gate, and at
each gate the road became rougher and
the sky more lurid, and, what was pc
cul1ar, as the gate slammed shut it
came to with a jar that indicated that
it would never open. Passed each por-
tai, there was a grinding Of locks and
a showing of bolts; and the scenery on
either side the road changed from gar
dens to deserts, and the June air be-
came a cutting December blast, and the
bright wings Of the bad angel turned to
sackcloth and the eyes Of light became
hollow with hopeless grief, and the
fountains, that at the start had tossed
wine, poured forth bubbling tears, and
foaming blood, and on the right side
of the road there was a serpent, and
the man said to the bad angel, "What
is that serpent?" and the answer was,
THAT is the serpent of singing re-
morse" On the left side of the road
there was a lion, and the man asked the
bad angel, what is that lion?" and
the answer was, "That is the lion of
all-devouring despair" A vulture flew
through the sky, and the man asked the
bad angel, "What is that vulture?' and
the answer was, "That is the vulture
waiting for the carcasses of the slain"
And then the nan began to try to pull
Off of him the folds of something that
had wound him round and round, and
he said to the bad angel, "What is it
that twists me in this awful convolu-
tion?" and the answer was, "That is the
worm that never dies" and then the
man said to the bad angel, what does
all this mean? I trusted in what you
said at the corner of the street that
night; I trusted it all, and why have
you thus deceived me?" Then the last
deception fell off the charmer, and it
said: Il was sent forth from the pit to
destroy your soul; I watched my chance
for many a long year; when you hest
tated that night OF the street I gained
my triumph; now you are here. Ha!
ha! You are here. Come, now let us
fill these two chalices of fire and drink
together to darkness and woe and
death. Hail! hall" Oh, young man,
will the good angel sent forth by Christ
or the bad angel sent forth by sin, get
the victory over your soul? Their
wings are interlocked this moment
above you, contending for your destiny,
as above the Apennines eagle and con-
dor fight mid-sky. This hour may de-
eide your destiny. God help you! To
hesitate is to die!