Year: 1878

BY LAUREL.


In the year Of 1885,, | was spending the
summer with my brother, who was a pop
ular physician in the Mt Fl. Asylum for
the Insane


One day as | was employed in writing,
my silence was disturbed BY voice be-
side me, saying, "Miss Lettie, / have
brought you an offering Of fruit and
flowers


looked up, and found the voice to be
that of man, with sad eyes, long curly
hair mixed with gray, and form which
appeared bowed down with the weight of
years and sorrow / recognized him at
once as one of the most harmless patients
in the asylum. He was permitted to wan
der about the grounds and surrounding
forests as he wished


Nearly every morning, upon entering
the Office room, I found upon the table
an exquisite bouquet of wild flowers, or
cunning little basket made of fine withes,
ornamented with leaves, and filed with
nuts or berries, labelled, HFor Miss Let
tie"


Whence these had come was profound
mystery; but what the old man now held
IN his extended hand, showed him to be
my benefactor.


81 thought while gathering this" said
he, show well It would look in your dark
wavy hair. Will you wear it for me ?''


Il was spray Of some wild vine with
delicate petals, as white aud pure as
snowflake. Stepping to the glass /
wound it round my head, secured it with
hair-pin, and, turning to mark the effect
on the old man, found him stealthiIy clos
ing the door. Though I knew him to be
gentle and harmless, / was startled. "Fair
lady" said he, with low courtesy, AT
endeavor, in my humble way, to contribute
to the adOrning of your person, and the
pleasures Of your appetite. There is an
other, who, having discovered the gifts
and graees of your mind, sends you this"


He took from his pocket small pack
age, and, placing it in my hand, opened
the door cautiously and went out.


The gift proved to be several sheets of
letter paper, closely written 1t was a
tumble of sense and insanity, spiced with
strange blending Of the possible and i'm
possible.


The writer of the strange letter, who
was one Of the patients, informed me that
he had mission on earth, greater than
had been given to any man, save Christ.
Men called Gods gifted ones, insane, and
shut them up in vile dens, which they
called BY various names, as asylums, hos
pitals, etc.


God permitted these things, because in
these prisons, with the vast world shut
out, they had time for meditation and fit
ting themselves for their work. Then fol-
lowed great deal about aerial navigation,
which was perfectly unintelligible to me.
At last he said it had been revealed to him
that i was divinely appointed to assist
him, and that his work could not be fully
accomplished without me. He advised
me to hold myself in readiness to obey the
call Of God, and go forth into the world
with him to perform our mission to-
gether Just as I had finished reading,
my brother came in, and, finding what /
had, asked me for it.


"That man" said he, "only shows his
insanity in writing. 1t was upon the
subject of aerial navigation that he became
insane. We cannot get him to mention it
in conversation. You will therefore be do
ing US and him favor if you will encour-
age him to write to you He is keen, and
it is hard to get at his case. This will
open the way"


1t was the custom of the asylum to have
a dance, for the amusement of the patients,
once month. The next evening, as |
sat watching set composed of insans per-
sons, the Superintendent brought my cor
respondent to me, and, having introduced
him, left us to a chat. His manner was
easy and graceful, and soon discovered
that he was finely educated and had tray
eled extensively. As could not discover
any touch of insanity in word or manner.
! began to think of all the stories l had
read of sane persons being shut up in mad
houses by designers of evil, and at once
yoye pretty romance of which he was
the hero. The letter of the r,orning was
surely insane, but | decided that a gentle
man so handsome and well-informed could
not be the author of document so non
descript | answered it in words dictated
by the physician letter followed letter,
and in each he opened his mind so freely
that was soon convinced of his insanity.
/ had also many interviews with him, cum
ningly arranged, so that my brother heard
every word, without any suspicion on his
part. At these times he talked of the
subject which filed his thoughts-but up
on which his lips were sealed to all others.
Heknew that it was because he was thought
insane on the subject of aerial navigation.
that he was kept prisoner, and wisely re-
fused to mention 1t, or, in any way, be led
into conversation upon it. Thinking he
had found in me one of like mind, and
the woman appointed by heaven to assist
him, he laid open his wild schemes without
reserve.


At the close of beautiful autumn, |
left the asylum, and soon other cares and
duties, with other friends, drove from my
thoughts the poor correspondent in whom
| had been SO deeply interested. Many
changes came to my life, but, wherever |
went, letter was sure to follow me from
my would-he fellow-worker, In the last,
received just before tho breaking out of
the war, he informed me that he was con-
sidered 'coH,Pos mentis' again, and would
soon be with me. | laughed at this, aud
soon forgot it.


0nc rainy, disagreeable morning, in the
summer of 1866, l was waiting in the
dingy little depot of one of our western
towns for belated train. l was travel
ing alone on my way to vista sick brother