The Washington herald., 1914-05-03

II
wink. A man-why and how / do not
| know-was killed on the sidewalk in
| front of the house. / heard the rapid
reports of an automatic pistol, and a few
| minutes later the wounded wretch
| crawled up to my door. moaning and cry
ing out for help. Arming myself with
| two automatics. went to him. BY the
light of match I ascertained that while
he was dying of the bullet wounds, at
| the same time the plague was on him.
fed indoors, whence heard him moan
and cry out for half an hour longer.
in the morning. my brother came to
me- / had gathered into handbag what
| things of value ] purposed taking, but
I when I saw his face i knew that he
would never accompany me to the Chem
istry Building. The plague was on him.
He intended shaking my hand, but 1
| went back hurriedly before him.
Look at yourself in the mirror
commanded.
He did SO, and at sight Of his scarlet
| face the color deepening as he looked at
il. he sank down nervelessly in a chair.
my God" he said. I've got It. Don't
come near me. ] am a dead man.
Then the commissions seized him. He
was two hours in dying. and he was con-
scious to the last, complaining about
the coldness and loss of sensation in his
feet, his calves, his thighs, until at last
il was his heart and he was dead.
That was the way the Scarlet Death
slew. caught up my handbag and fied.
One stumbled on bodies everywhere.
Some were not yet dead. And even as
you looked you saw men sink down
with the death fastened upon theml
There were numerous fires burning in
Berkeley. while Oakland and San Fran
cisco were apparently being swept by
vast confagrations. The smoke of the
burning filled the heavens, so that the
midday was as gloomy twilight, and, In
the shifts of wind, sometimes the sun
shone through dimly, dull red orb.
Truly, my grandson, II was like the last
DAYS of the end OF the world.
There were numerous stalled motor
cars, showing that the gasoline and the
engines supplies of the garages had given
out. i remember one such car. A man
and a woman lay back dead in the seats.
and on the pavement near II were two
more women and a child. Strange and
terrible sights there were on every hand.
People slipped by silently, furtively. like
ghosts-white-face6 women carrying in
fants in their arms: fathers leading chill
dren by the hand: singly, and in couples.
and in families-all fleeing out OF the
city of death. Some carried supplies of
food, others blankets and valuables, and
there were many who carried nothing.
There was a grocery store-a place
where food was sold. The man to whom
il belonged-I knew him well a quiet,
sober. but stupid and obstinate fellow.
was defending it. The windows and doors
had been broken In, but he. inside, hiding
behind a counter, was discharging his
pistol at a number of men on the side
walk who were breaking in. In the en-
trance were several bodies-of men.
decided, whom he had killed earlier in
the day. Even as I looked on from a
distance. I saw one of the robbers break
the windows of the adjoining store. a
place where shoes were sold, and deliber-
ately set fire to 1t. did not go to the
groceryman's assistance. The time for
such acts had already passed. Civiliza-
ton was crumbling, and II was each for
himself.
went away hastily, down a cross
street, and the first corner I saw an
other tragedy. Two men of the working
class had caught q man and q woman
with two children, and were robbing
them. I knew the man by sight. though
! had not been introduced to him. He
was a poet whose verses I had long
admired. Yet did not go to his help,
for at the moment I came upon the
scene there was q pistol shot. and I saw
him sinking to the ground. The woman
screamed. and she was felled with a
first blow by one of the brutes. I cried
out threateningly. whereupon they dis
charged their pistols at me and ran
away around the corner. Here I was
blocked by an advancing confiagration.
The buildings on both sides were burn
ing. and the street was filed with smoke
and fame. From somewhere in that
murk came a woman's voice calling
shrilly for help. But did not go to her
A mans heart turned to iron amid such
scenes. and one heard all too many ap-
peals for help.
Returning to the corner, I found the
two robbers were gone. The poet and
his wife lay dead on the pavement. 1t
was a shocking sight. The two children
had vanished-whither I could not tell
And 1 knew. now, why it was that the
fleeing persons I encountered slipped
along so furtively and with such white
faces. In the midst Of our civilization.
down in our slums and labor ghettos. |
We had bred a race of barbarians, of
savages; and now. in the time of our
calamity, they turned upon us like the
wild beasts they were and destroyed U.S. |
And they destroyed themselves as we'll |
They inhamed themselves with strong |
drink and committed a Thousand afro |
cities, qusrreling and killing one an /!
other in the general madness. One group /
of workingmen / saw of the better sort, /
who had banded together. and. with their |
women and children in their midst, the |
sick and aged in litters and being car |
ried, and with number OF horses pull |
ing a truck load of provisions, they were
fighting their way out OF the city. They |
made a fine spectacle as they came down |
the street through the drifting smoke, |
though they nearly shot me when / first |
appeared in their path. As they went |
by, one of their leaders shouted out to |
they were killing the robbers and looters |
on sight. and that they had thus banded |
together as the only means by which to |
escape the providers.
ct was here that saw for the first |
time what / was soon to see SO often. |
One of the marching men had suddenly |
shown the unmistakable mark of the |
plague. Immediately those about him |
drew away, and he. without a remon-
STRANGE, stepped out Of his place to lei |
them pass on. A woman, most probably |
his wife, attempted to follow him. She |
was leading a little boy by the hand.
But the husband commanded her sternly |
to go on, while others laid hands on her /
and restrained her from following him. |
This 1 saw, and 1 saw the man also. /
with his scarlet blaze of face, step into
a doorway on the opposite side of the |
street I heard the report Of his pistol. /
and saw him sink lifeless to the ground.
After being turned aside twice again
by advancing fires succeeded in getting |
through to the university. On the edge of
the campus I came upon a party of uni
versity folk who were going in the direc-
tion of the Chemistry Building. They