Rensselaer Union, Volume 1, Number 37, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 10 June 1869 — Selected Miscellany. [ARTICLE]

Selected Miscellany.

The Man in the bell. iN.my younger days, bell-ringing was muchjmijje in fashion among the young men of - than it is now. Nobody, I believe, practices it there at present except the-servants of the church, and the melody bps been much injured iu couse quenca,, Some fifty years ago, about twenty ofrtis whl) dwelt in the vicinity -of the cathedral, formed a club, which used to ring every peal that was called for; -and from continual practice and a rivalry which arose between ub and a club attached *to another steeple,- < and whiohtended considerably to sharpen our zeal, we became vary .Mozarts on our favorite instruments. But nay was short%ied by’a dingdlaf accident, which not oftty stoppedray perfbrilßflree, but made even the sound of & bell terrible to my ears. , One riuuday, 1 went w,ith other into the tjfelnV to ring t?ir noon pfAyers, but the second stroke we bad pulled showed us that thefclauper of the .bell we were at was Aufll id. one had Been buriefl* that morning, and it had been prepared, of courstL tfc ’ring a mournfifl note. We ilid not kndwbf AM, bdt the remedy was easy. “ Jack.” said my companion. “ step up to the loft, and cut off the hat ? ? for the way we had of run 111 mg was .by tying a h|t, oyof (the forsapf was prelerreu), to oneslde of the clapper, which deadened every second toll. I cdfcplfijd, audmounting into the belffy,\ crept as usual into the bell, where I began to away. The hat had been tied on in somuAhore edmplicated manner .than usual, and I was perhaps three or four miuutesin getting it off; during which time my compuniptb below was hastily called away—by a message from his sweetheart, Llmlieve—but that is not mates al to my story ■ The person who called him was a'bwithir of the club, who, knowing that the time had come for ringing for service, and mot thinking that any one was aboTO, began to pull. At this moment I wastjust,gettihg out, when I felt the bell moving; I guessed the reason at once—-it was ififadmeift of terror; but by a hasty and almost convulsive effort, I succeeded in jumping down, and throwing myself on the flat of my back under the bell. ThftOo&tin which it was, waa little more than sufficient to contain it, the bottoif ]pf the; bell coming wi,thin a couple of feet of tne floor.of lath. At that time I certakfly was-not sq bulky as iam now, but as-I lay it was' within an inch of my face.„ii ; hafi not laid myself down a second,Vhen the rihgtiig b< gan It a dreadml-situation. Over mu swung an immeMe mdss df metal, one touch of whiewould have crushed me to pieces; the rocr under me Was pAiicipally composed nfmrazy lathi, andjf theygave w»y. I was precipitated to theolitance of about fifty fedt upbu a which w ou W, in all probability, : haVe sunk under the impulse' of myvfaJV and sent to be dashed to. stoma upoif fne marled flbok or tho chancel, a hundred feet below. I remembered —for fear is quick in Recollection—how a' com mon ckicjkweight, abotit a month before, had fhlcn, ana bursting -through the flobia of the steeple, drove in the ceUings of the porch/ arid even broke into the marble tombstone of a bishop who slept beneath. This ’f ai thy” first terror,. but the ringing had not continued a minute, before a more aw fill dnd immediate dread came on nfo. The deafening sound of the bell smote into my ears with a thunder which made me fear their drums would crack; there was Ml °f my body itdid not-thrill i through. It entered my very soul; thought and reflection were almost utterly banished; I oqlv'retained the sensation of agonizing lerrir, Every moment 1 saw the belt sweep within an inch of my fafce; and my eyes-rdiooald not, close them, though tolook w;the object was as-bitter as death—fdlloweiiSt instinctively in its oscillating progrtaA’until H came back again. Tft was in vain, L said to myself tliat it could come mo nearer'at any thtiire swing than fVdid' at first:.evarytiqu l it descended, l endeavored -to Mditikubto the very floor to avoid b® l * l *, bpttfid under the down-sweepipg mass / aMbtndh, reflecting on the danger of pressing toq weightily on my frail supporC’XuLi cower up again as far us I Af*ArS# ifcy fears were mere niattess'of fact.J wa%afraid thepulleys above would * i 7 e “"MAhLd let'the bell plunge on me At another time, the possibility of the clapffcfWanfe slot out in ««e sweep, and dashing through my body, is I ham seen a ramrod giidTT through a door, flitted across my mind. The dread also, as I have alreaffknedtMnwL pf (be craky fIoCL tormented me; but tnese soon gave way to unft *tnded/ bnt mere vk(-f ion ary, and* pf courne more tremendouß. rOTOTtisM r K sg

abtss. As I gazed on it, it assumed all drapes; it was w flying -eagle, or rather a roc of the Arabian story-tellers, clapping its wings and screaming over roe As I looked upwards into it, it would appear sometimes to lengthen into indefinite extent, or to be twiated At the'end into the sniral folds of the tall of a flying dragon. Nor was the flaming breath or fiery glance of that fabled animal wanting to conmlete the picture. My eyes, inflamed, bloodshot,; and glaring, invested the supposed monster with a full proportion of unholy light Lt would be endless were I to merely hint at all the fancies that possessed my mind. Every object that was hideous and roaring presented itself to my imagination. I often thought that I was in a hurricane at sea, and that the vessel in which I .was embarked tossed under me with the moat furious vehemence. The air, set in motion by tks swinging of the bell, blew over me, nearly with the violence, and more than the thunder, of a tempeet; and the floor seenqCd to reel under me, as under $ drunken man. But the most awftti of all the ideas that seized on me were drawn from the supernatural. In the vast cavern of the bell hideous faces appeared, and glared down on me with terrifying frowns, or with grinning mockery still more appalling, . At last, the devil himself, accoutred as in the common description of the evil spirit, with hoof, horn, tail, and eyes of infernal lustre, made his appearance, and called on me to curse Qod and worship him, who was powerful to save me. This dread suggestion he uttered with the full-toned clangor of the bell. I had him within an inch of me, and I thought an the fate of the Santon Barsisa. Strenuously and desperately I defied him and bade him begone. Reason, then, for a moment, resumed her sway, bat it was only to HU me with fresh terror, just as the lightning dispels the gloom that surrounds tne benighted mariner, but to show him that his vessel is driving on a rock, where she must inevitably be dashed to pieces. I found I was becoming delir ious, and trembled lest reason should utterly desert me. This is at all times an agonizing thought, but lt smote me then with tenfold agony. I feared lest, when utterly deprived of my senses, I should rise—to do which I waa every moment tempted by that strange feeling which calls on a man, whose head is dizzy from standing bp the battlement of a lofty castle, to precipitate himself from it, And then death would be instant and tremendous. When I thought Of this, I became desperate. I caught the floor with a grasp which drove the blood from my nails; and f yelled with the cry of despair. I called for help, I prayed, I shouted, but all the efforts of my voice were Of course drowned in the bell. As it passed over my mouth, it occasionally echoed my cries, which mixed not with its own sound, but - preserved their distinct character Perhaps this was but fancy. To me, I know, tfley then sounded as if they were the shouting, howling, or laugh ing of the fiends with which my imagination had peopled the gloomy cave which swung over me. There is no man, however m%y by, wh*x»ttld retain his .courage in‘this situation. In twenty minutes the ringing was done Half- of that time passed over me without .power of computation—the other half appeared an age. When it ceased, I became gradually more quiet, but a new fear re tained me. I knew that five minutes would elapse without ringing, but, at the end of that short- time, the bell would be rung a second time, for live minutes more. I could not calculate time I feared to rise, least the five minutes should have elapsed, and the ringing be again commenced, in which case I should be crushed, before I could escape, against the walls or framework of the bell. I therefore still continued to lie down, cautiously shift ing myself, however, with a care ful gliding, so that my eye no longer loeked into the hollow. This was of itself a considerable relief. The cessation of the noise had, in a great measure, the effect of stupifying me, for my attention, being no longer occupied by the chimeras I had conjured up, began to flag AH that now distressed me was the constant expectation of the second ringing, for which, however, I settled myself with a kind of stupid resolution. I closed my .eyes, and clenched my teeth as firmly as ir they had ueen screwed in a vice. At ia&t the dreaded moment came; and the first swing of the bell extorted a groan from me, afi they say the most resolute victim screams at the sight of the rack, to which he is for a * second time destined. After this, however, I lay silent and •lethargic, without a thought Wrapt in the defensive armor of stupidity, I defied the bell and its intonations. When it Ckased, I was roused a little by the hope of escape. ■ I did not,’ however, decide on this step'llastily, but, putting up my hand with the utmost camion, I touched the rim. Though theringing had ceased, it still was tremulous from the sound, and shook i apdermy hand, which instantly recoiled as Amka electric jar. A quarter. of an elapsed before I again dared to msHrxhe experiment, and then I found it at rest. I determined to lose no time, fearing that I might have lain then already too long, and that the bell for evening service would catch me. This dread stimulated me, and 1 slipped out with the ut most rapidity, and arose I stood, I suppose, for a minute, looking with silly wonder on the place of my im pri'onmcnt, penetrated with joy at escaping, but then rushed down the stony and irregular stair with the velocity of lightning, Mid arrived in the bell-ringers’ room. This was the last act t had power to accomplish. I leaued against the wall, motionless and deprived of thought, in which posture my companions found me, when, in the course of a couplo Of houfg, they returned to their occupation.

They were shocked, as well they might be, at the figure before them. The wind of the bell had excoriated my face, and my dim and stupefied eyes were mixed with a lack-lustre gaze in my raw eyelids. My hands were thru and bleeding; my hair disheveled; and my clothes tattered. They spoke to me but I gave no answer. They shook me, but I remained insensible. They then became alarmed, and hastened to remove me. He who had first gone up with me in the forenoon met them as they carried me through the church-yard, and through him, who was shocked at having, jn some measure, occasioned the accident! the cause of my misfortune was discovered. ’ I was put to bed at home and remained for three days delirious, but gradually recovered my senses. You may be sure the bell formed a prominent topic in my ravfogs, and if I heard a peal, they were instantly increased to the utmost violence. Even whs* the delirium abated, my sleep V. ■!. • • ♦

waa continually disturbed by imagined ringings, and my dreams were haunted by the fancies which almost maddened me while in the steeple Time cured this as it does most of our follies; but even at the present day, if, by chance, my nerves be unktrung, some particular tones of the cathedral bell have power to surprise me into a momentary start. Ballou’t Monthly.