GLADSTONE'S DREAM.

Samoa Times and South Sea Gazette, Issue 52, 28 September 1878, Page 2

GLADSTONE'S DREAM.

Night had fullen :it Hawarden, and the shadows cast in tho moonlight fell blackly on the levelled trunk that, lying prone on the green Bward, showed ray labour hud, for thnt day at least, not been in vain. I had not drawn down the blind of the window at which I sat correcting the proofs of a pamphlet shortly to bo published—need 1 say it hud been written on the Eastern Question I —and as I now and then glanced out upon thu moonlit park, my fancy peopled its glades with tin' bests of llnly KiiNsia's modern crusaders, the hooting of theowla and the screech of the night-birds Booming to mo to bo suggestive of the dark hordes of Mussulmans Hying from their righteous vengeance. How tin- into the realms of imagination my fancy might, have carried me I luiinoi say. but it is certain I should have long sat there with my pen idly polled, bad not tho tottnd of the hallgong recalled me to soberer thoughts and Ml]l|>. I

I'W. wishing to reserve ny If for n critical evening with my proofs, I had dined early on the day of which I speak, and, nil inv wont on such occasions, had ordered a favourite dish of mine for my swains meal. The sweet savour of a juicy kidney stowing in the ii--art of a big Spanish onion had, indeed, I •'.-..; In ■ ■ tickling my nostrils, on 1 it required i very violent effort to throw down my p. and descend to the dainty plat whic awaited me. 1 must confess 1 ate hoartily, if not . deod heavily ; and it was, 1 well rnu - l>er, remarked in pleasant banter by those I love that I had evidently been cutting down trees again. In less than an hour I was in my bod, and the last thing 1 re member is that a silvery moonbeam, stealing through the half-closed Venetian blind, glorified with its ellucid brightness the dressing-case upon my toilet-table. Half-dozing an I then was, I saw in this at once a pood omen and a coincidence, for that dressing ease was made of Russia! and, thinking how the moonbeams of heavenly approval were also shining on the land of the Holy Czar for the sacrifices it had made, aiid the task it .had accomplished, I turned upon my back and—- • • * • » "The Emperor is at the door!" said the Princess C—, in her most dulcet tones, and, throwing down the uxe 4 with which I had been blythely assisting in cutting down a huge "Turkey fig-tree which Wanted the land around with its upas-like shade, I crammed a few of my inost Itussophile pamphlets into my eoat-tuil pocket, and rushed out to his Majesty, But before I could fall at his feet and thank him in the name of the 40,*+:! widows and 185,203 orphans—l remember these figures with peculiar distinct seal —for the holy war ho had waged, ho raised me graciously and motioned :::■ to sit by bis side in the Imperial sledge "This is too great an honour. 1 was exclaiming, when suddenly mv words changed into an involuntary "(.)' of pain, as it' I felt i was sitting cu :-o-u•■ hard and protruding object not oahal'.'.od to add to the comfort of my seat. Half rising ami putting my hand down t i investigate the cans" of mv annovance, I laid hold of a thick stick, oner end of which had been projecting throng!: the cushion ; and, pulling away at it 1 eaon drew out and held up to mv view *.ie' reason of my discomfort. It was, as 1 have said, a stick, some i feet long, with a number of long leather thongs fastened to one end of it. plaited some of them, and welded together with coarse wire. and altogether as ugly a whip as it was possible to imagine. 1 don't know what it was prompted ray words, but, without for a moment thinking of what I -aid, i extended my discovery towards the Czar, and cried out: "Why, surely this is a knout!" His Imperial Majesty turn.''; ■.•■-rv ale for a moment, and then faintly smiled as he took the horrible tiling from my hand. remarking, " Yes, that is what, they call it. I take it with mo to whip the stream with when I fish." This explanation at satisfied me, and I settled down quietly beside the Czar, wlu had all the time been driving swiftly on. " We are going to see the land of tiehappy delivered ones," he whispered to me, explanatorily. " They are anxious' to see their deliverer!" and then it was as ho said this, that I for the first time noticed that his Majesty, although in full uniform, had the breast of his" tunic open so aB to show an elaborate front, with pink coral studs in it. "This will be indeed a treat, yoi r Majesty," I responded. " I have longe. i to see with my own eyes the proof ol your holy work !" With that I turned to him with loving yet respectful eyes; and tried to get hi i right hand out of his fur-lined [nickel that I might shake it. But even as I did so, I looked up and saw to my horror, that what I had taken for pink studs were drops of blood slowly trickling down his front. At the same moment there was a vivid flash ef light ning, and the Bledge bumped against a finger-post in the very middle of the road on which, roughly jerked as I whs. ] could plainly read, in letters of lire, " One xerst to Siberia !" "Oh, Oh!" said I with a laugh, for which I was unable to account, " We are going to Siberia, are we ,'" It was a simple question, but on hearing it the Czar was visibly affected. "Groat and good man!'' I could not help exclaiming; " then here, too, we shall find proofs of your holy work !" But his Majesty threatened me so with the knout that 1 instantly ichanged tho subject, and said, briskly, "Howbeautiful this is! How I should like my old friend Benjamin, Earl of Beaconsfield to bo here !" "So should I!" eaid tho Czar, with almost savage earnestness, and at the same time we drew up at a hole in the ground, round which a number of skeletons were bleaching in the snow. Never did I feel less inclined to be satirical than at this moment, and yet for the life of me, the only thing I eould say was, with a jerk of my left thumb towards the bones. "Some of tho deli vend ones, eh, your Majesty 't Oh i you hj )ly man!" My words were strangely taken up by a chorus of hollow and sad voices, [sluing from the depths of the earth : and the words "Holy, holy man," were plainly discernible amidst the clashing of chains, the gnuttogtf teeth, the (faults of paiu

rii.l the gibbering of ma Ineas 1 turned to my dear Cwu to ask foi ■ n explanation, but be bad put his b.a.l mider tho cushion, and only k impatiently with his feet when i spoke; bo 1 was at a loss to account for our reception, until a gaunt figure i"" fn in a :■ I. i:i the ground, with a complexion ol ghastly blue, hollow, sunken eyes, and a Irame bo thin that the bones titeiallv rattled in ber body, for a woman's form it proved to be. •■ Ah," said I, chcen'y, thinking there must he some mistake, " 1 daresay it's all right, but we've come to see the delivered outs, if you can make it convenient.'' I shall never forget the mocking, hitter laugh that came from the bloodless lips tf the spectre-like form I addressed. It made my blood creep in ray veins, and 1 drew buck in horror as, holding out her hnny linger, the wretched creature cried. "Yes, yes, it is as you thought, t am one <>f the delivered ones, 1 am ! 1 have been delivered ever since our holy Czar was crowned. He banished me to the quicksilver mine the same day for loving a Prince of Poland. 1 am the Baroness Bnt, even as she spoke,a stalwart man approached from a hut in the wide distance, and in his hands was r. knout such as I had sat on. He merely said, " blabbing again !" n.s he stepped up, and, raising the whip, brought all its cruel thongs twining around and cutting into the poor woman's worn and wasted back. Kre he could draw them out from the quivering llc-.li—there was just enough to quiver, and no more, upon her bones—l had dropped in the bottom of the sledge in a -We took the wrong turning," cried th- Czar, merrily, as I tuned to him, with a shuddering recollection oi what I had seen, to ask him what it meant ; • that was all. Now wo are going right !" and lie pointed for confirmation to the milestone we were passing, which had Bulgaria, i Milk, upon it. 1 u.s ■■■ roil! L.i .I, ,: ■ 'hoe. i ■ ill Majesty," said 1. "Yes.-he returned, " tie- sh-J- i- nut of order." '• Or the road." I answered ; for, on looking down, I found we were making our way over a number oi smooth, round substances, half embedded in the mud. "Why, your Majesty," 1 cried, a; a thought suddenly struck me, "1 believe v.e are bumping over skulls ;" " Really''' he re-turned, -you do:i'i say Again the wish to he nothing but po-l-'e was overcome in ..fine inexplicable ' ivay by the words I uttered, and 1 found myself saying, with a most ill-fitting air of respect. " It mav 1"-. vour Majcstv. von liave been at vour*old kind of delivering here!" ' ' Before he could answer mo, we came upon a ruined village, bearing trace of the fire and sword. A few half-starved women were sitting in a circle round a freshly made mound, and moaning in their own Bulgar tongue. Turning once more for information, I again found the Czar with his head under the cushion, whilst his twitching legs spoke of bis-agitated feelings. This de- , livering business, thought 1, is not so pleasant as I imagined. 1 look it on myself to stop tho horses . at this point; for, as we journeyed on, the foul stench, the wide-spread ruins, the ' scattered skeletons, the loathsome beggars, and the horrible scenes of squalid misery , and ghastly horror so surrounded us that ' further progress was most unpleasant, if , n it. indeed, impossible. But not till we were well out o-f Bulgaria did the l.'zar remove Ids head from 1 beneath the cushions. "It's all ray modesty f he said, by way of explanation. "1 cant bear to he thanked for such trifles ; I can't indeed !" . ft was as much as 1 could do not to fall on his neck and embrace the philail- S thropic ruler. But I managed to content myself with dropping votive tenrs instead. \ " You have seen how my new children y prosper beneath my paternal sway," remarked the Emperor to nip, carefully spreading out his coat-tails so as to cover y the projecting handle of the knout he wit upon. " Now let us go and see how ,\ beatific is tho state of my sons and daughters in my own realm '." With that he whipped up the horses, ] and We started at a mad gallop down the . lull, Tho Czar gazed abstractedly before him, thinking may ho of tho glimpse T we had had of the state of his eons and daughters in the Siberian mines ; and he 1 evidently did not notice that the horses, suddenly swerving, had borne away sharpie to the left. ' T I, thought had caught sight of a direc- j fion-post, and read what was on it. .So I nudged Alexander and said, "1 suppose it's all the same wherever we go. Vour sons and daughters are, doubtless equally beatific everywhere. But, for all thai, -i pet-Imps you ought to know we are but two miloß from Warsaw!" " Warsaw!'' ho shrieked. " Thev will cut me in little pieces for love. I dare j ( not, go there!" and, so saying, ho -. pulled the leius with all his might. 0 j Unt the horses galloped on and ou, A utterly regardless of his with, The w towers of the ehurohes-of the city were, | hi indeed, pluiuly soon, and 1 shall never fit Krwl the lo>k of mingled horror and'll

to stop the horse unavailing. I'resently, as we were C ;"''''•• he firmly and "m-'.y to me, •: i ; .u'v V- .-., Ijuuip!" A m .me.,t aftei wards we leapt hj ml !" Iwud, Horn lb- sledge and pitch- : - ; - Iforcmust on a bank of soft sn iu I awoke to find myself with my feel the pillow and the bolster and tlie bedclothes piled upon my chest. So shocked, however, was I with my dream, of which 1 had only too vivid a recollection, that, though it was onh just daybn-ak, I could not bring myself : to g„ to bed again. So 1 turned to my writing table by the window-, and drawing up tho blind continued the correction of the proofs of my preliminary pamphlet, which by a course coincidence is to be called: Tin; C'z.vit as a Deliverer; or, The Merciful Mission of the Muscovites. i have fully determined. I nuy- add. mver again to lie on my back after eating « hearty supper.—Figaro.