College of William and Mary - Colonial Echo Yearbook (Williamsburg, VA)

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Ii:icl mil I. living in ;iii age of ri ' asdU and ciiliiililciiiiicut, limi cIkiscil In |irii|)liesy ilic t ' liUii-c uf ilic clcxcii (l iu ;lii V wari ' iiiis wIki. I ' l.r fun i- years, liail lialtlcil ai;aiust rill ' (il)stacl( ' s lliat Ix ' sct the ])atli in l iiiiwltMli;c ' . F(ir liiiiirs I had been sitliiii;-, |)i|ic in liaiid. ainly seckiiii: iiispii-ai ion Irdhi ihc ;-niiik llaiiu- nf a laiiip ami (he iinisiral iMHinMly ln ' iui; iMiacIcd liy my sli ' e])iiig bi ' d-i( ' llii v. On the inuiTdW, they said, the t ' niurc nf every Seninr nmsi lie known and rraiU 111 lie |inlilislicd in the woi ' ld. Thai is, williin I he lew hniii- remainini;. I was til lirini; ' inln use the nlisnlete eiisiuui nf Innkiin: iiiin the fninre. and felale the events iit the a|i|in laehi na yeai ' s. Seatiliii myself mi a lu ' iiidi ueai ' llie sialiie, I limk ii|i llie piMMem aiiain. Snrniniided liy seenery lliat had |ifii ' eii siieh a snni ' ee nf ins|ii ral inn In my prede- cessors, 1 wailed nna ailiiii:ly fur inspiralinn In reach my mind. Scenes nf m - (diildhnnd days, when 1 had invented elalinrale tali ' s In gel amnnd difK- ciillies with my teachers, snriivd hefore me, and 1 liegan In wnnder if my iniagi- nalinn were siitticieiitly fertile to swpe]i ]iasl the present difHciilty in like manner. 1 sunn saw. linwe ( ' r, the fntilily nf a mind merely liiiman tryini; In pictnre the future of a i;ron|i nf men cnni|insed nf all grades helween a nmdest, retiring Etheridge and a masterful wire-]inlling Douglas. (living it np in despair, I gazed blankly and ainly at tlie dark walls before me. ' ainl -, ilid 1 say No; for presently a drowsiness began to steal n er me. Indistinctly, I heard the elnck boniii iiiil, ()ne! -Two! ' Tis now tlif veiv witcliiiifj linii ' nl nij;lil. When churchyards yawn, and hell itself lircatlics imi ( ' (intafiion to this wurlil. ' I drowsily mnllered. The moonbeams began to grow dimmer, the chirpings of the insects, fainter and fainter, and presently 1 gave myself o -er to a track- less nniizp of weird flights of the mind. . sserting its jirophetic rights, my mind trampled down all barriers, threw aside lime as if by magic, tore aside the misty veil of the future, and I was permiiled for a brief s])ace to take a glimpse at exi ' Uls that were still to be. Rapidly, the scenes succeeded each other tis in a mn ing ]iicture show, and tlip world seemed a stage whereon every man must play his jtart. Out of the darkness snrronnding.nie ap])eared inysteriniisly a street crnwd ed with wildly excited men and wnmen, waxing bats ;ind handkerchiefs, all striving to gel as close as jmssible to ti man wlm was coming rajiidly down the .street, seemingly much ( inbarrassed. 30

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I ml I In II Kitiil III! Ill hi III. ' 11 r liiin ilniiiiii il a iliriiiii. iiinl I Inn is iin mir In iiili riiril it. ' Ai;iSI. (i (iiiictlv, I slid iuid uiy cual. iind stole sdflly ilnwu llic stairs. icaxiiiL; my rduinnialc In his dreams. W ' iiilcr liad iinl yet fled, Imt it was an ideal s|iriiiii iiiiilil : the weallier was warm ami iln ' aii ' filled with I he eric ' kot ' s chir])iiii;s. itriaht rays from the iiiooii, stealiiiii throiiiih the hranrhes of the trees, riistlinii- softly ill the iiiii ' lit hreezp. illumined the (•ain])iis with a sih ' ery liiilit, and 1 eould see the faint ontliiie of the old statne. IJehind this, the eollei;c Imildiiii;, with its eo ' eriiii; ' of i y, loomed n|i massive ami dark. Soinethinii ' whispered that this was the ]ihi( ' e to find a solution of the knotty iiiv.Ailcm that confronted me. ivnottv in ' olilom, did T sav Vea, verily; for

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Tile uiau was appaivntl} ' uf about t ' nrlv yrars of age, and had a hroad lirow and coiinuaiidiiig eyes. He passed oii, the crowd pressing aflci ' , and lln scene sliit ' lc(l : lint not liet ' oi ' c 1 saw in l ig Ivpc on a paper waxed hy a newsl)oy, Disaster averted; great financial panic pre enieil liy Pi ' esidcnt Koont . of tli; ' First Xalional JJank. And now appcai ' ccl a still stranger scene. I!(din ' c nic I saw a ci-owd of yellow, almond-eyed Obiuese, listening jiatiently to an earnest nnin with long, silvery locks falling about his sbonlders. Presi ' iilly I caught the fragment of a sentence, And now, fellow Cliinaiui ' n, 1 lia i ' an idea in cinliryo. The scene was again shifting, but the face of the spcal:ci-. with whicdi time had dealt wirh gentle liaiids, was loo familiar to pass niircc(mni .c(l ; il was I ' arson Iioacli. This time, T found myself gazing at what was apparently an operat ing room. On a table. nriMniided i nurses with whiti ' . drawn face-;, holding bandages, was the figure of :i man. () -er liim a- beul a tall man cjulli ' d in while, and holding in liis hand a brighl. glillci-inii instrnnu ' iit. Kapiilly. 1 saw the strange instrument flash back and forth, ami then the man si I ' aightcncd up, his haml upon llie patient ' s wrist. His face was partly tnrncil tnwai ' il me, and seeim-d strangely familiar. In a few second.s he nodded lo thi nui-es mid, striding toward the door, let in a woman. T saw him smile ami whispei ' a few words to the woman, who, seizing his hands, fell upon hei ' knees. Willi a smile, re- turned comi])lete recognilion, and 1 Iniew this successful surgeon was my old friend, Post .Sci ' i))l (liiliam. Once more thi ' curtain was drawn, ami the new scene was one of gentle (piietness. A chnr(di, surrounded by broad iields, green with the xiM ' dui ' e of s])ring, appeared. The trees were swaying gently in the breeze, and all the (piietness and jieace of a country Sahbath morning was s|)read hef ' i re me. The congregation was collecting bef ire the doors, ami in a few miiiiites a stout little man in clerical cloak a|ipeareil. AVith his face wreathed in smiles, he slowly passed toward the door, distributing on all sides ihe genial smile anil cordial handshake that only the country minister can hestow. . s he passed up the ste])S he lui ' iied till ' an iuslaul, and 1 I ' ecognized ihe features of one torinerly known as Sizer, D. T). The (dnirch disa|ipeare(l, but the )ieacef ' iilness of tlic scene renniincd. Tu the )(lace ot the (dini ' ch appeared a lieautifnl. ild-fa ' hioned lionsi ' , sel in a grove ot trees, ( ' (lining down the steps leadim; f rom the veranda appeared a tall, creel old licnlleman. lii hair plentifully --prinkhMl with gra ' . His broad shoiildei ' s had a soldierly set. and he mar(die(l with a firm, martial step lo where 31