{"newspaper_name": "The Columbian fountain.", "edition": "01", "page": "p1", "byline": ""}
{"character_count": 3181, "word_count": 596, "ccnet_language_score": [0.9832000136375427], "ccnet_perplexity": [1075.300048828125], "fasttext_language": ["en"]}
there was no one so friendless and sleepless


as he. For his grave lay near by him. 1t


was covered only with the snow of old


age, not with the green of youth, and he


brought with him out OF the rich abund-
ance Of his whole life, nothing but errors,
sin, and infrmities; wasted body, desc
late soul, breast full of poison, and an old
age full of sorrow.


To-day his beautiful youth-days wan
dered about him like ghosts, and drew him
back to that pleasant morning when his ia
! ther first placed him on the cross-way Of
life, which leads on the right by the sunny
path of virtue in broad peaceful land, full
OF light and harvests, and on the left drags
down in the mole track Of vice into a black
cavern, full Of dropping poison, full of hiss
ing serpents, and dark sultry vapors.


All the serpents hung about his breast.
and drops of poison upon his tongue !; and
he knew not where he was


In despair and unutterable grief, he cried
out to the heavens above, "Give me youth
again, oh Father-place me on that cross
way again, that may choose another path"
But his father and his youth were gone
long ago. He saw wandering lights dane
ing among the marshes, and disappearing in
the graveyard, and he said-"These are
my foolish days" He saw star fall from
heaven and glimmer in its fall, and vanish
on the earth-ssI am that,' said his bleed
ing heart, and the serpent fanss of remorse
struck deeper in their wounds.


His burning imagination pictured before
him flying ht-phantoms on the roofs
and the windmill lifted up its arms in
threatening manner to crush him-and
skull still lying in the tomb by degrees as
sumed his looks. In the midst of this
struggle within him, the music for the new
year flowed suddenly down from the church
tower like far off chant, His heart soft
ened. He cast his eye around the horizon
and over the broad earth, and he thought
of the friends of his youth, who now hap
| pier and better than he, were teachers of
the earth, fathers of happy children, and
blessed men; and he said, co! / also like
you might have slept through this first
night with unwet eyes, if had been will
ing, All, ! might be happy, my dear pa
rents, if | had followed your precepts.
In this feverish remembrance of his
youth-time it seemed to him as if the
skull, with the features of the tomb, raised
itself up. At least through that supersti-
tlon which on the New Years night sees
the spirit of the future, it became living
youth. He covered his eyes. A thousand
scaldng tears streamed down and disap-
peared in the snow. Hopeless and in de-
spair, he yet only sighed in a low voice,
v" Come back again, o youth, come back.''


And 1t came back for he had only
dreamed SO fearfully. He was still young
man. His grief alone had been no dream.
But he thanked God that he, still Young,
could turn in the midst of the dark cur
rents of vice, and restore himself to the
sunny path that leads into the land of
harvests.


Turn back with him, young man, if thou
standest in his wandering way. This fright
lul dream will become in future thy Judge.
But if ever, full of sorrow, thou should'st
cry outcome again, beautiful youth
then will 1t not come again. German of
Richter,