Year: 1870

It was midsummer and high noon
when her soul dropped its humanity
I held her in my arms till the very end;
then | laid down the deserted chrysalis
of the immortal soul, and left it for
awhile, [ went out to commune with
myself; wished to be away from the
idle gabble of those who thought them
selves able to comprehend and sympa-
thize with me because of our human
ity.


The fields were basking still and
green in the broad and yellow sunlight;
the cattle were resting in unreasoning
animal content ia the cool shadow OF
the Pickering foliage; the great blue
trimmed lake smiled sparkled and crink>
led in the full moonlight.


[ saw these things, not in their real.
tiles, but in their possibilities. The
fields, bathed in sunlight, and vocal
with the shrill chorus of the insect or
chestra, became verdureless aud silent,
and yawned into deep sepulchres for
the entombment of all life the beasts,
ruminant and content, decay again,
and be again reborn. All created life,
to my grief-annointed eyes, was but a
whirling circle, and to die was but a
change of form.


But [ held in my hanl secret. 1t
would enable me to make exceptions to
the universal law-I, an in1nitesimal
atom of the universe, had learned how
to contravene the apparently immuta
BILE order of things.


I had learned how TO arrest decay.


This knowledge was 90 sudden inspi
ration. It was the result of long, la
borious study and research. It was ;
successful result after many vain ex
periments-a victory wrested from
countless failures. Not in my owl
cause had I so ardently striven for th'
possession of this secret; it was for her
my beloved, my beautiful bride, wh'
had just died upon my breast. All un
conscious of my dread knowledge, sh
had calmly talked of the time when he
soul should be awaiting mine in anothe
sphere, while the perfect form which
rested in my arms should bloom int
flowers, or be blown hither and yon b,
idle winds, like common dust.


/ looked upon that sweet face, AM
silently swore to myself what was s.
dearsto me should never become moth
ing. The breaking of one Of creation
laws weighed little with me in compar
ison with the utter loss of that dea
incarnation. True [ could not bin'
the soul to edrth-T had no power owe
spirit, but only over matter-but !
could render the body imperishable
Perhaps / hoped at some future hou
the soal would revisit the temple thu
kept inviolate.


Filled with this resolution, | return
ed to the body, and subjected it to Ger
tain operations which my researche
had proven would suspend the natura
law that governs lifeless matter.
extracted all the blood from the eod
and replaced it with a liquid prepara
ton. Further revelations | eanno
make. IT is one of the secrets whic
cannot be impaired. Each rash inquir
er must, at the hazard of life and rea
son, wrest it from among natures well
guarded mysteries.


While the world slept I worked
quickly and steadily. At last the NOR
broke, and my task was finished
Slowly and gradually rose the god {
day lie shone upon a new sight
Interchangeable matter. One rathful re
ray he shot through the oriel window
it fell lpon the statute, Ike figure, an
bathed it as if in blood. There SCENE
nothing ominous in that sign to me-
then,