The Greenville journal. [volume] (Greenville, Ohio) 1850-1918, 1910-06-16
With a Great Burst of Strength


of labor could have struggled as did
he.
He had been awakened at the self
same instant in his lonely cell upon
the other side of the island. With the
first shock he remembered that some
time in his days Of darkness before
she came there had been similar
upheaval. He realized instantly what
it was. Less timorous than the
woman, more agile, he did not lie SUI
pine for a single second. His thoughts
were instantly for her. He had
thrown himself from his cave and had
raced across the shaking, quivering
island without the hesitation of mo-
ment. Never so long as he might
live could he forget the shock that
came to him when he saw his way to
her barred by that great heap of rock,
fallen from the face of the cliff, which
lay over the entrance to the cave. For
one moment he had stood appalled,
and then he had got to work. How
much time had elapsed before he ar
rived at her door, how much time it
took him to clear it way, he had no
idea. He had no thought but that he
must open a passage and get to her
dead or alive.
1t was not wise for him to expend
breath in cries, but until he had some
reply he could not keep silent. After
that, when her answer came to him,
he worked more quietly save for those
periods when he felt that he must
hear her voice to enable him to go on.
Such was the furious energy of his
toll that by and by the great mass of
rock was cleared away save one huge
trance. 1t was light outside now A
gray dawn and full of storm. Through
the wider interstices she could see him
plainly. She knew now that her res
cue was only matter of time. A
branch of a tree for lever and his
strength would roll the rock away
She started to tell him but he caught
a glimpse of her white face pressed
against a crevice and the sight in
spired him. With great burst of
strength, the like of which possibly
had never been Compassed by mortal
man since Samson pulled apart the
pillars of the temple, he rolled the
great rock aside and stood in the en-
trance, gasping, painting, with out
stretched arms
Dat iutI Iok
she took. With a sob of relief she
fell upon his breast, naturally, newt
ably. His splendid arms swept her
close to him. Her own hands met about
his neck With upturned face she
looked upon him in all the abandon
| ment of perfect passionate surrender.
He bent his head and kissed her, the
first time in all his years that his lips
had been pressed upon another mouth.
He clung to her there in that kiss as
if to make up in one moment for all
the neglected possibilities Of the past,
as If never in all the bringings forth
of the future should such another op-
portunity be afforded him. He felt
for the first time in his life the beat
| Of another human heart against his
| own, the rise and fall of another hui
man breast, the throbbing of another
human soul Tighter and tighter
his arms strained her to him. She
gave herself up in that mad, delirious,
awful moment to the full flow of long
checked passion, and kiss for kiss,
pressure for pressure, and heart beat
for heart beat, she made repsone.
1t was too much. 1t was the man
who broke away. There was nothing,
no experience, no remembrance to
! teach him. 1t was all surprise. He
thrust her from him slowly. Her hands
fingered about his neck, but his back
ward pressure would not be denied.
He held her at arms length, her hands
outstretchsd to him, her bosom pant.
ing, her eyes shining, her cheeks
afame in the gray dawn. Yielding,
giving up to him absolutely, yet some
thing, the magnificent metal OF the
man, the restraints through which he
had gone, the long battles with his
own passion, rose to his soul and gave
him mastery once more.
Woman! woman!" he whispered
no mere local name would represent
her now. She was humanity to him.
Woman" he whispered, my God!
my God"