The Wichita daily eagle. [volume] (Wichita, Kan.) 1890-1906, 1903-12-23

| sing agrees, and. taking rs place at the
eead OF the army. he starts On the cam
yaisn- The campaign lasts seven days.
! Zach day the King rides around the army
and rouses the courage OF his warriors
| On the eighth day hts amy meets As
! sarkhadons army in broad valley. By
! he side Of river Lai.ies army fights
| b-avely, but LAlie, formerly AsSarkha-
/ ION. sees that the enemy swarm down
! from the mountains like ants. overrun-
/ ming the valley and overwhelming his
army and in his chariot he fi2ss HIM
/ self into the nids; of the battle. hew-
| ing and felE,ig the enemy. But the war
/ .iors Of Lailie are hut as hundreds. while
/ hose of Assarkhadon are as thousands:
and Lailie feels that he is wounded and
| that they have taken him prisoner
Nine days h. with other captives. trav-
els, bound and guarded Dy the warriors
Of Assarkhadon. On the tenth day, he
IS brought to Ninevah and placed in
cage. Lailie suffers less from hunger
and from his wound that from shame
and inPotent anger. He fees that he is
unable TO avenge himself on enemy
for all that he suffers. The one thing he
can do is not give his enemies the pleas
ure Of seeing his suffe-inss; and. he firm
| " resolves TO endure courageous :. with
out murmur, all they can do for him
For twenty days ne sits in his cage
awaiting execution. He sees his relations
and friends led 20 execution. He hears
the groars Of those who are executed
Some have their hands and feet cut off
others are hayed alive. but he shows
neither disquietude nor pity nor fear ne
sees the wife he loved bound and led
away By the eunuchs. He knows she is
being taken as a slave to AssarEhadon.
And he bears that too. without a muir
muir.
But now two executiOners open his ca e
door. and having strapped his arms tight
behind him, they lead him to the place CT
execution, which is soaked with blood
Lailie sees a sharp stake dripping with
blood from which the corpse OF one of his
friends has just been wrenehed. and he
understands that this has been done that
the stake may serve for his own execu-
ton Lailie is stripped OF his clothes
He is startled at the Iesnness of his cnce
strong, handsome body. The two execu-
TONERS seize that body By It's lean thighs:
they lift him up and are about TO let him
fail upon the stake.
This IS death. destruction thinks
Lailie, and. fo-getful OF his decision to
remain bravely calm to the end. he sobs
and prays for mercy. But 10 one listens
to him
But this cannot be. thinks he. Sure
~ am asleep. 1t is a dream" And he
makes an effort 10 rouse himself Surely
am not.Lailie. but Assarkhadon.
You are both Lailie and Assarkhadon."
declares voice. and he feels that his
execution has begun. He cries cut, and
at the same moment lifts his head out Of
the font The old man stands over
him. pouring on his head the last drops
from the jug
'oh, how terribly have 1 suffered. And
for how long!' sa.u -,ssarkhadon.
Long," replied the old man. You have
only dipped your head under water and
lifted it again. See, the water is not yet
all out of the jug. Have you now un-
derstood?"
Assarkhadon did not reply, but only
looked at the old man with terror
Have you now understood" continued
the old man. that Lailie is you and the
warriors you put 20 death were you also? /
And not the warriors only. but the ami
mails you slew when hunting and ate at /
your feasts were also you You think life /
dwells in you alone, bu. l have drawn /
aside the veil of the delusion and have let |
you see that BY doing evil to others YOU I
have done it to yourself also. Life is one
in them all, and you have in yourself (
but portion Of this common life And .
~ in no
you can you make life better or worse.
can you increase or decrease it. You can /
only improve life in yourself by destroy /
ing the barriers that divide your life from !,
that of others and by considering others /
as yourself-and loving them. To destroy
the life that dwens in others is not in /
your power The life of those you have
slain has vanished from your eyes. but It /
is not destroyed. YoU thought Il length
en- your own life and TO shorten theirs,
but you cannot do this. The life OF a
moment and the lie Of a thousand years.
and invisible beings in the world are
equal. To destroy lie or to alter il g
impossible All else but seems to Us to
be"
Having sal dthis the old man vanished. /
Next morning King Assarkhadon gave
orders that Iailia ard all the prisoners
should be set at liberty and that the exc
cutions should cease
On the third day re called his sen AS
surbanipaI and gave the kingdom over
into his hands. and he himself frs. went
into the desert 20 think over what he
had learnt. Afterwards he began to go
about as a wauJersr through the towns
and villages. preaching 10 the people that
all life is ore. and that men only harm
themselves when they wish to do evil to
others.
Editors Note: The Eagle VIII publish
the other TWO tales Thursday ard Friday
Souvenir POSTAL Cams