Roxy Hastings — page 95: what you’re looking at

Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.

86 ROXY HASTINGS, against their wishes he feared, though no voice had ever been raised in protest. As to any hope of keeping the dreadful news from them, he could not for a moment enter- tain it, nay, he did not doubt that they already knew what the magnetic wires had given so wildly to the world. He hastened back to Washington, faintly hoping that the National Executive might interfere in his behalf, and by commuting Gray’s punishment save his brother’s life. Was it probable? No. Was there time? No. On that day at noon Gray was to suffer, and on the next probably his beloved Alfred would share his fate. In despair of human help his prayers went up moment- arily to Heaven that, in some way, its resistless fiat might be interposed to stay this mountainous weight of misery which impended over so many hearts. 3 At Washington he met his frantic mother, who, with Laura and a friend of the family, a Mr. Worth had has-_ tened to the capital on the same fruitless errand. They were all too late. Gray was already dead, and the news of his execution was probably even then in the Con- federate capital. In convulsions of grief and terror the mother now wept out her utter wretchedness on the breast of her son, now called on him wildly to rush single-handed to the rescue of his brother, and anon threw herself upon her knees and shrieked out her piteous appeals to Heaven for that help which no mortal power could give. It was too terrible a scene to witness or describe, and medical aid was speedily brought to lull by powerful ano- dynes the tortured mind into a temporary oblivion of its woes. CHAPTER XVI. THE GOOD CHEER. Lieutenant Lee, while trying to prepare for death, which he saw no probability of escaping, still resolved not to fold his hands in inaction and passively wait the swift and terri- ble doom that was hastening upon him. It would be doing something to try to escape; it would fill up the dreadful interval between him and the gallows with hope and effort, and if all schemes failed, as his reason told him they probably would, the time for torturing ‘anticipation of his fate would at least be shortened. : ecomicbooks:.co