The Washington times., 1901-09-15

+.
ceaseiessly paced their beats to and fro
NisitcrsSIstood in the darkness on thu
lawn and little group of newspaper mer
quietly waited at the foot of the lawn tc
flash toStiie anxious world the announce
ment of the end
Every littas while some visitor would
emerge from the house and hurry away
Messen ngsrs-tiptoed down the lawn. walk
cd hurricdiy to the barriers. plunged
through thccrowd and disappeared dowr
the stree8.%Only the sound of nurmured
voices could be heard and it seemed as II
some mysterious influence held the crowd
spelbound
The closed doors and shaded windows
shut out all view of the interior, but the
mind quickly formed picture of wha,
was transpiring within. 1t did not re-
guire a great stretch of the Imagination
to see the darkened room. the watchful
surgeons. the anxious nurses. and the
stricken chief of the nation fighting
E bravely and patiently to ward off the in
4 evitah:e- The dominant characteristics
that had made him the President well-be-
3 loved of the nation--the modesty patience
and unaffected, piety and purity-showed
through clear and distinct in the strug-
gle. and the hope and faith with which his
soul was iniHsgnated manifested them
+ selves in. the last great struggle is
/ lowering on the border line between life
and death, waiting only for the fulfill
ment of the time allotted him by his max
er, his mind wandered to his home and
the old days when he was a boy. His
struggles. his battles, his successes, were
recalled But with returning conscious
! ness his thoughts reverted to her for
whose pleasure and comfort he was al
ways striving. All, everything else van
ished and she alone filled his thoughts.
! she. whose courage. love and devotion and
sufferings equaled his own; the wife.
! who through life remained the sweet
Z heart. The white lips moved and he ask
ed that che be sent to him. She came.
I There is no American whose head will
| not bow and heart ache at the mere
| thought of that meeting. There is no
brighter. more luminous phase of the
| Presidents life than his devotion to his
wife. 1t was unaffected and pure, and the
! inspiration of his ambitions. The people
have learned to associate their lives with
all that was highest and noblest and they
have learned to love and honor the pa
item. suffering wife of their martyred
President.
No nobler picture can be imagined than
! this and when the inner history of the
great tragedy just consummated comes
4 to be written. it will stand out clear and
! luminous on the page, a star to guide by
and an ,appealsto every true Americans s
pride. A weeping nation stood in spirit
with bowed head at the bedside of the dy-
| ing President with his heroic wife and
poured out Its love and sympathy before
them. l.
That bedside scene will live in the
/ hearts ofsthose who witnessed it OF those
who read qf it. The Presidents life was
an open bobkti his loving devotion to his
wife household topic. and every Amer
lean who, ,3oves his country. her welfare,
and her Advancement. had right to be
in spirit at-lesst in the chamber of the
dying President. The brave fight was
kept up ,PnsrWd of succunlbing early in
the evenings al was expected, he bravelya
fought it out e. the end. The house was
filed with grief-stricken friends. Cabinet
officers. surgeons. and guests. dread
expectancy made them all speechless and
only mute fodss Of agony were exeehHans7
ed.
Meanwhile all was despair without.
Lined against the barriers were the wait
ing crowd, hushed and silent. At the end
OF the lines and scattered about the street
were groups of watching newspaper men,
Their tents glowed with lights >and INSIDE
were dozeas. writing. while score of teie-
graph instr,imeHfs clicked as the bulle-
stins of arrivals and latess. announcements
werssjnstantly fashedsto The newspapers
at ali points Inside the barriers the SOL
diers patrolled their posts, keeping the
crowds back. The men. off duty lounged
n ta,~f
of the officer of the day giowed n shaded
light, while he walked anxiously up and
down, waiting aud watching and hoping
against hope.
on the further corner of the street was
the little tent in which was located the
wire to the White House. Outside, with
fixed bayonet, stood the guard. and no
one not on official business was allowed
10 enter. Every few moments a messen-
ger would dash through the lines with
bulletin for the White House. These near
the tent would make q rush in expectancy
of finding that the death of the Presi-
dent was to be 'arrounced. but the busi-
nesslike air of the sentry kept them at
respectful distance.
Women and children lined the sidewalks
far down into the darkness that envelop-
cd the side streets and stood there, pa
tiently, hour after hour, waiting fer the
news that, all expected and which it was
believed could not be averted. Men were
seated on the curhstones, Campstoois from
neighboring houses Were loaned and it'll
lied and sleeping messenger boys ouried
themselves up on the flaps of the tents
and dozed until aroused to run with mes
sases or bulletins. But the majority of the
crowd was restless, they wandered
around, talked in low tones. discussing
the possible chances of recovery or stand
ing watching the house where the faint
lights glowed. and where the light of life
of the Chief Magistrate was waning and
Pickering preparatory to going out for
ever.
the quick rattle and gallop of cabs and
horses. the whirring of automobiles, and
the hurried orders of the police keeping
the crowd back The scene was weird
and uncanny. and the pail of darkness
that overhurg the street seemed to al
most envelop everyone
The sky was clear and the stars shone
family, but did not help to relieve the
gloom. Standing at the press tent and
looking north. a bright glow in the sky
rejected the illumination of the exposi-
ton grounds. Flashing up and down and
lowering over the house, as If to point
out the place, where the greatest tragedy
of generation WAS being consummated,
was the searchiigiit frc-n the Electric