Show w CONDENSED I 1 CLASSICS dl THE LAST DAYS 1 s s OF POMPEII c I By EDWARD BULWER LYTTON I V r Condensation l u William WI Hartt 3 V of s 3 oX X r Edward George Earlo Earle L Lytton Bulwer Bulwer Bulwer Bul Bul- more more familIarly familiarly famil famil- Early known to novel noyel r readers as asB asB B Bui u 1 Lytton k was born In London Lon LOon don May 25 26 1803 Ho was more of or a a j prodigy In Jn his his' youth and had a r much more mor public n ca career eer than most men men who have y achieved fame tame as S novelists At the thc x p age of 15 16 15 he dis dis- distinguished distinguished A himself Y f 6 by publishing a volume of poems and by falling so int S' S violently In love that he became h hI i g Sh h l 1 y morbid when his proposal of pt marriage was not taken seriously by the father tather of the girl he loved She dIed a few years later and Bulwer said that the disappointment dIsappointment embittered his whole life Ufe At t Cambridge he won a medal for tor the excellence of ot a poe poe-n and published another book of verse In 1827 he had sufficiently recovered from his premature love lovo affair to marry against his mothers mother's wishes a brilliant beauty of ot society The match was fore doomed t to be unhappy for tor both Bulwer and his wife were too unrestrained to live together They quarreled were legally separated and nd continued to quarrel In print for years Bulwer was rapidly winning renown renown His first novels were successes but It was not until The Last Days of or PompeII Pom- Pom pell peli 1834 that his fame tame was assured Nine years later appeared The Last Lastor of or the Barons which many good judges have considered his best work He wrote numerous other stories novels of society of ot crime of or mysteries mysteries mysteries mys mys- teries of ot family life Ure He was the most successful sUC dramatist of or his time He dabbled In lu journalism For 10 years he was a member of parliament was wad later secretary for tor the colonies and In 1866 was raised to the peerage as Baron Lytton He died on January 18 1873 6 LAUCUS the the- Athenian GLAUCUS thy time has lias come said saida a loud and clear the lions await thee I am ready said the Athenian He had bent his iris limbs so as to give himself him him- self the firmest posture at the expected expect expect- ed rush of th the lion Hon with his small and shining weapons raised on high In the faint hope that one well directed thrust might penetrate through the eye to tp the brain of his grim foe But to the unutterable astonishment astonishment astonishment astonish astonish- ment of all an the beast seemed not even aware of the presence of If the crim crim- inal At the first moment of Its release release re re- re- re lease it halted abruptly in the arena raised itself half on end snuffing the upward air with Impatient sighs then suddenly It sprang forward forward but but not noton noton noton on the Athenian At speed half-speed It circled round and round the space turning g its vast head from side to side with an anxious and find perturbed gaze gaffe as if seeking only some avenue of escape escape es es- cape once or twice it endeavored to leap up up the parapet that divided It from the audience and on failing uttered uttered uttered ut ut- ut- ut rather a baffled howl than its toned deep-toned and kingly roar It evinced no sign either of ot wrath or hunger Its tall tail drooped along the sand instead of lashing its gaunt sides and Its eye though It wandered at times to Glaucus Glaucus Glaucus Glau Glau- cus rolled again listlessly from flom him At length as af if tired of attempting to escape it crept with a moan Into Its cage and once more laid itself down downto to rest The first surprise of the assembly at the apathy of the lion soon grew into resentment at Its cowardice and the populace already merged merged their pity for the fate of Glaucus Into angry compassion for their own disappoint disappoint- ment The manager called to the keeper II How is this Take a n goad and prick him forth and then close the thedoor thedoor thedoor door of at the denAs den As tile keeper with some fear but more a astonishment was preparing heard at one loud was to obey a cry there of the arena rf of the entrances bustle voices of was a n confusion a 11 remonstrance suddenly breaking forth and sudden silence at the reply All AlJ eyes turned In wonder toward the the crowd quarter carter of the disturbance g gave have V way fay y and suddenly appeared appeared appeared ap ap- ap- ap on the senatorial benches his hair disheveled breathless heated half exhausted He cast his e eyes es hastily hastily has has- tily around tale ring Remove the Is innocent Inn Innocent In In- he cried haste Athenian he Arbaces the Egyptian Egyptian Egyptian n cent Arrest tian he is the murderer of ot tides 1 said the 0 O Art thou mad praetor rising from Is ls seat What m means ans this raving Athenian 1 I Quick or II Remove the your your- head Praetor his blood be on with your own and answer delay you with me methe fife life Ufe to the emperor I bring the eye witness to the death of ot the priest Room there stand of Pompeii People back bacIc Give way Arbaces there he lie I t fix every eye upon pon sits Room there for the priest Cale- Cale nus Dust Pale haggard fresh from the Jaws of famine and of ot death his face fallen o his broad broadI I his eyes dull dun as a vultures vulture skeleton was wasa frame gaunt as a n I a supported d Into the very row in which Arbaces sat Ills His releasers had given him sparingly of food b but t the I j I chief sustenance that nerved his feeble limbs was revenge 1 The priest I 1 I cried the mob Is it he ho No It Is a n dead man II It lIt It Is the priest said the praetor bravely What hast host thou to say II Arbaces of Egypt is the murderer of the priest of IsIs these eyes saw him deal the blow It Is from the dungeon Into which he plunged me It Is from the darkness and horror of a death by famine that the gods have raised me to proclaim his crime I Release the Athenian he Athenian he Is Innocent I III II It It is for tills this then that the lion spared him A miracle I a miracle I l' cried Pansa II A miracle a miracle l' l shouted the people people- remove the Athenian Athenian- A Arbaces to the lion The power of the praetor was as as ns a n reed beneath the whirlwind still sHU at athis athis athis his word the guards had drawn themselves themselves themselves them them- selves along the lower benches on which the upper classes sat separate from ro n the vulgar They made but a n feeble barrier the waves of the human human hUeman hu hUe hu- hu man sea sen halted for a moment to enable enable enable en en- able Arbaces to count the exact moI moment mo mo- I meat ment of his doom I In despair and in ina ina ina a terror which beat down even pride he glanced his eyes over the rolling and rushing crowd when right above them through the wide chasm which had been left in the tine velaria he beheld a a strange and awful apparition be beheld and his craft restored his courage courage courage cour cour- age He stretched his hand on high over his lofty brow and royal features I there came an expression of un unutterable utter utter- abl able solemnity and command I II Behold I he shouted with a voice of thunder which stilled the roar oftie of or tie the crowd behold how the gods gods' protect pro pro- the guiltless I The fires of the avenging burst forth against the false witness s of my accusers I 1 The fires Ures of the avenging were those of the great eruption of Vesuvius in 7 79 A. A D. D Toward such a melodramatic climax furnished him by Nature the author had been spinning spinning spinning spin spin- ning the lives of his characters in the little city which nestled under the shadow of the tho volcano The converging threads of the story are many giving in the final weaving a complete picture of the life of Pom- Pom Pompeii Porn Pom its pelt Its shops tiny palaces baths forum theater circus and all aU that daily took place in the energetic life of this this' toy copy of Rome at the beginning begin ping ning of the Christian era ern The story centers around Glaucus the Athenian brilliant gay witty descendant of a nobler race himself away amid the coarser pleasures of the Romans Romans Romans Ro Ro- mans until finally all aU that was fine fineIn fineIn finein In him him was brought forth by his love for lone of Naples who like himself was a child of e. e And alongside je this tale of love runs the pathetic story of Nydia the blind slave girl who centers all aU her hopes of happiness happiness happiness happi happi- ness In winning the affection of Glau Glau- cus To this end she gains possession of a n love potion which the opulent Julia JuJia has had prepared In tn the belief bellof that It will bring to her the much de sired Glaucus In reality the potion Is a poison polson which will drive the unfortunate unfortunate unfortunate un un- un- un fortunate drinker mad It is designed by the sinister Egyptian Arbaces to clear his path to lone from om his rival Glaucus In his raving Glaucus comes upon Ar Arbaces aces Just as the latter has km killed lones lone's brother a ayoung ayoung ayoung young priest of Isis who much to the annoyance of Arbaces has embraced the new Christian faith Arbaces throws the guilt guHt upon poor Glaucus with apparent success But Dut the priest was a hidden witness with the final result shown in the great episode epi epi- episode sode of at the book As the crowd in the circus turned their eyes toward vius they beheld a fire that shifted ed and wavered In its hues with every moment now fiery luminous now of ofa a dull dun and dying red that again blazed terrifically forth with Intolerable glare Then there arose on high the universal shrieks of at women the men stared at each other but were dumbAt dumb At that moment they they- felt the earth shake beneath their feet the walls of the theater trembled and beyond in inthe inthe the distance they heard the crash of falling fulling roofs an Instant more and the mountain-cloud mountain seemed to roll ron towards towards towards to to- wards them dark and rapid like a torrent at the same time It cast forth from Its bosom a shower of ashes mixed vast fragments of ot burning stone stogie I lOver Over the crashing vines over the desolate streets over the amphitheater Itself far Jar and wide with many a mighty splash In the agitated agi toted se sex sea fell that awful shower I No longer thought the crowd of Justice or of at Arbaces safety for themselves was their t sole thought Each turned to fly fly each each dashing pressing crash crash- lug against the other It was save himself who could in that night of ot horrors Of the many episodes seen In the flashes of light was that of f blind Nydia guiding Glaucus to lone and then leading both to safety she the only one at homo home In the darkness darkness dark ness In which she had always a lived And then when they had had- gained a ship rind put to sea and all an but Nydia had bad fallen allen into exhausted slumber May Mav the gods gods' bless you Athenian I she murmured may you be happy halpy with your beloved one may you some sometimes sometimes times remember Nydia I IA A sailor half hat dozing on the deck heard a slight splash on em the waters Drowsily he looked up and believed as ns the tune vessel merrily bounded on ho fancied he be saw something white above the waves waves- Copyright 1319 1919 by the tho Po- Po Post Pot t Publishing CaThe Co Ca The Boston Post AU All ri rights I |