Ellsworth American. [volume] (Ellsworth, Me.) 1855-current, 1911-07-19
"A GRIM
VISITOR
SEA MroE1
cseysisht ~ Ansrsean Pres 49,
citation. isll

! was sitting IN rsstaurant In Ma
ples with several American friends
talking about the cholera
This cholera business u merely q
scare" said one. Besides. why fear
deathi We must all die some time"
THAT for deathF" said young Thorn
ton. swapping his angefs4 --I'm going
to live to be . hundred"
A singular looking fellow came into
the restaurant and sat down at an ad-
joining table. ! could not make out
that he was Of any especial age; he
might have been thirty or fifty or a
hundred and 6fty. Yet there was
something about him that made him
look prematurely aged. His eyes were
set very deep In his head and giistened
like those of wild animal In the dark.
He was % thin that one could almost
see the functions of the bones Of his
face, and his clothes hung about him
In huge folds. He had evidently heard
Thornton's boast. for he fixed his eyes
on him In way that made my blood
run cold Other Of the younger MEM
berY Of the party who sat with their
backs to the newcomer perpetrated
jokes about death. Every word on
that subject seemed 70 excite the stran-
gers ire until be was dashed Into q
fury.
NY friends" be said presently.
you who condemn death do not real
izs what you are talking about You
should have seen such sights ~ I have
seen. Were any Of you In q battleT'
We all stared At the stranger. tongue
ued No one Of ~ claimed to have
seen anything Of war.
y was at the battle Of Gravelotte."
he said. and advanced with an At
lacking party Of PrussianA II you
had seen that white pail that threw
over the faces Of those who were
struck you would not laugh At death
"Yos threw over their facesr' ask.
ed. puzzled.
Then at New Orleans" the man
went on without noticing my remark.
''you should have seen the British COM
ing up In perfect formation against
the Kentucky hunters. Here. there,
everywhere the redcoats sank down
In their tracks''-
do you refer to the battle of New
Orleans. STRIP interrupted one Of our
party.
Eyes, sir, ! do. But battles are moth
ing. fake the great plague that swept
London Two men were walking be-
fore me on Cheapside. touched one
by way of attracting his attention. He
paled and sank down In his tracks. A
party were drinking In an ale house
without the town limits. As looked
at one of them he threw up his hands.
street and saw the people burning bar
rels OF tar. laughed at them"
do you mean. SIR" | asked. that
you were In London at that timer
My friend. where have l not been
when men and women and children
were struck down by this something
you call death: In the days Of ancient
Rome whole communities OF Gauls who
rebeied against the Roman authority
were bufchered- They had been: they
were not
IL was evident to most Of us that the
man was iunatic. But We did not
communicate the thought TO one anoth-
err Each Of US was spellbouud no
less by his strange talk than his weird
personality.
But even these stricken barbarians.
80 far as numbers are concerned. were
but few In comparison with those
this thing you sometimes call the
reaper has cut down at one time.
There have been portions Of the earth
that have sunk into the sea swallowing
up q hundred times the number Of the
greatest butcbery."
"when?' | asked
when? What knowledge have you
Of the little planet on which you i've
beyond q few thousand years: The
dime Of which speak was forgotten
10000 years ago"
Tell u.s." 1 asked. your nationality.
You speak English a. II you are Anglo
Saxon"
3uku1u. ! opc9A VveGy HvtuB ooA
every dead language. ] am q citizen
Of the world. | am always busy. AZ
this moment am resting preparatory
to q great work"
when did you come to Naplssr
Yesterday at noon"
We oil shuddered. Al II O'Clock the
day before the nrst cholera patient had
died
~Will you remain longT
my stays no human being knows.
20 into q place. do what work ! 0nd
for me to do there and 90 else where.
Then ! stop often by the wayside.
During my journey here sstopped at
. cottage. There was one lens In the
family when ! left. On entering this
city made several calls before resting
from my journey. But | must be 60
ing. am pleased to have met you
a.