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THE SOUTHERN POST,
AND LITERARY ASPIRANT.
TWO DOLLARS IN ADVANCE—THREE DOLLARS AT THE END OF THE YEAR—SI 25 SIX MONTHS.
C. R. EANBEITER & CO.
assasegsi:aii.fflEosfs.
For the Southern Post.
RECOLLECTIONS OF A
MEDICAL STUDENT.
[continued.]
As the reader has doubtless, tty
this time, suspected the two stran
gers alluded to, were none other
than R and myself, who ha
ving made every necessary pre
paration, were now hastening to
join our remaining associates at
the oilice of our preceptor. On
our arrival, Dr. B , our fellow
student H , and three sturdy
blackamoors, with certain formid
able mattocks and spades, were
all in readiness for the anticipated
adventure. Scarce, however, was
it announced that the hour had
arrived for departure, than II
began to show evident symptoms
of backing out —making an awful
complaint of his head, and men
tioning sundry difficulties which
seemingly lay in his path. Whilst
I was contending with him upon
the necessity of our going thro’
with the matter, now that we had
commenced it, R seemed to
have caught the panic to an ex
tent, that ho too began to think
of getting out of the scrape. To
this I objected in such a strenuous
manner, assisted by Dr. B ,
that both of them became ashamed
of their cowardice, and declared
themselves in readiness to go. It
might he mentioned that one of
our negroes w ho was significant
ly known by the name of Big
Sampson, had frequently been in
resurrection scrapes, having pre
viously belonged to a physician
in a neighboring city. The rest
of us knew little or nothing about
it, save a few instances in which
R had figured as the boasted
hero. As for Dr B , lie left
it entirely with ourselves, having
no idea whatever of losing a com
fortable night’s rest for the sake
of a- human frame. It sufficed
that he had promised to aid us in
the dissection, and direct our un
tutored knives to the consumma
tion of some wondrous feats in the
occult fields of anatomical sci
ence.
Notwithstanding a series of de
lays had thus far interrupted our
intended outset, the hour of 12
found us wending our way slowly
and cautiously through the alleys
and by-ways which, very opor
tuncly intersected with the main
streets, in the most public parts
of the city. This manuvering
was entirely necessary to save
ourselves from suspicion, inas
much as even at this late hour, be
sides the watch, there were many
wandering amatures of the glass.
etc. who w ere to be seen prom
enading the streets. It was a
bleaky night, such a one as might
be expected in February, both
cold and rainy. And although
Cynthia looked from between the
fleecy clouds with an occasional
smile lighting up our dark and
still darkening pathway, with the
sintillalions of her borrowed glo
ry ; even this only tended to in
crease our liabilities to detection
and cause our deeds of obscurity
to become more completely under
the supervision of light. The
regular pattering of the ram fa
vored us considerably in not only
obliterating our lootseps as fast
as they were made, but also in the
prospect it heid out to us of com
pletely hiding any irregularities
we might have made in the con
struction of the mound, from the
sexton’s more plastic hand. By
thus continuing our routes in di
vided companies, and carefully
selecting the shadiest parts of the
Jess travelled streets, we were en
abled to make rapid progress on
our w ay until we had passed thro’
the principle part of the city, and
arrived on the banks of the beau
tiful river, on either side of which
it was erected. Here was seem
ingly another obstruction in our
way, but one w hich had before
been carefully investigated and
provided for by R and my
self. At a recent freshet which
properly deserved the title of a
young Dencabion, the old bridge
had been sw r ept, from its crazy
foundation, and passengers had
to cross the river in a ferry boat,
about a quarter of a mile below.
By this time, however, there had
been erected the frame work of a
new bridge, and several cills a
bout. six inches in width stretched
across the whole length of the
river, over which we were ena
bled to go without further hin
drance. Passjpg through a con
siderable villagelying on the east
ern bank, and ascending the steep
sides of a towering hill, brought
us once more upon a level plain,
where the grave yard was situa
ted, as might have been seen more
distinctly on a clearer night,
stretching away in the distance to
tne left of the winding road, which
led us beside the huge w hite gate
o O
by which admittance was obtain
ed into the gloomy abode of the
shades. It was a moment of still
ness and terror to our unpractised
breasts, as these awful portals
creaked heavily on their hinges,
as if to forbid the entrance of li
ving man into that hallowed re
treat at so unusual an hour. It
seemed to make a peculiarly dis
tressing noise, in contrast with the
silence that reigned as universal
as the sable shadows of night,
MACON, SEPTEMBER 30, 1837.
save the barking of the village cur
O o
who had been roused from his
bed by our untimely aggression.
On arriving at the spot, where
lay reposing in the sleep of death,
the poor man whose body we
were so anxious to secure, I could
scarce help accusing myself for
baseness, in aiding to tear away
this humble possessor of his long
home, from beside the little grave
where his infant slumbered so
sweetly. I could but fancy to
myself that the injured spirits of
father and child was hovering o’er
the consecrated spot to chide the
ruthless mortals that dared to in
fringe upon the dormitories of the
dead. Who knew but what my
riads of kindred spirits united
with them in their plaints to hea
ven for vengeance on the sacri
ligous hand that dared to effect
tne adventurous deed. And tho’
dispossessed ot vocal organs by
which to make impressions upon
the senses of man, the Father of
spirits knew well the solicitations
ot his children and could punish
where none dare say forbear.—
With these solemn feelings hang
ing around me I could but let fa’l
a sincere prayer, that I might be
forgiven lor this one deed, and
promise to engage in no more of
a similar nature lor the future.—
Whatever were the feelings of
myself or associates on this occa
sion, we knew full well there was
but little time lor reflection or
parlaver ot any kind, and as such
hastened to the performance o
tiie labor winch lay before us.—
Long and wel 1 did each of us ply
mattock and spade, until tired na
ture seemed almost exhausted,
and yet there was but little pros
pect ot bringing the matter to a
speedy issue. The hours seem
ed truly winged ; and, however
slowly our performance was,they
appeared to fly with increasing
rapidity, until some of us began
to suspect the glimmerings of the
orient to drive us ingloriously
from the field. It was an interval
of time, to myself, truly distres
sing : for, being appointed a
watch,l stood in fearful suspense,
with a cocked pistol in my hand,
listening to every sound however
feeble, that might fall upon the
stilly air of night, and gazing up
on any thing which might have
the semblance of harm about it—
a degree of morbid intensity
which almost partook of delirium.
The very crackling of a stick
would startle me frequently from
the midst of a confused and un
pleasant rev.eiie ; ahd often I im
agined the sound of approaching
footsteps or the mingled murmur
ot voices falling on my ear; hut
these, by turns, were lost away,
upon the feeling of my excited and
VOLUME I.—NO. 5.
over-refined sensibilities, until an
other spectre would spring up in
my immagination to give rise to
new fears, and birth to still more
alarming emotions. Thus tho
night passed slowly and stealthi
ly away, and our anxious hearts
began to beat high with fears lest
morning should break in upon us
and find our work yet unfinished.
At length, however, little Samp
son, who had been m a state of
perturbation all the night, while
busily engaged with his mattock,
made such a severe stroke as pen
etrated to the coffin lid, and echo
ed hack the hollow murmurings
of the abode of silence in so truly
a death-like sound as completely
unmanned the bold adventurer ;
without waiting to make any far
tlier progress in search ot tho
dead, he immediately * r p >ed his
ma lock as if petrified io the spot.
For some moments he was com
pletely speechless, but soon evin
ced the signs of returning life by
the sudden trembling which took
hold ol his mortal tenement, with
all of the seeming severity it had
done on a dissimilar occasion,
when Felix arraigned before him
the manacled apostle. The first
words this trembling coward was
heard to utter in a most piteous
manner, were “ take me out, take
me out,” as though he had been
chained lor hours in a bank of
snow, and was now on the verge
of freezing to death. We per
mitted the fellow to have his way,
!»>r it was evident he would an
swer no purpose where he was ;
and his place was speedily suppli
ed with Big Sampson, who being
possessed of more bravery and
skill, was not long in clearing a
way the dirt from the coffin lid.
This being completed, he made
several unsuccessful attempts to
pull it off, that he might come at
the body, and immediately signi
fied that he needed assistance.—-
The question now arose who
should be that luckless one. This
I soon saw would rnv lot, in
asmuch as all the others declared
they would not do it; according
ly, I jumped into the grave and
added my strength to what had
already been which soon
effected our purpose in exposing
to view the frightful contents of
the coffin. One might better im
agine than I describe mv feelings
on being thus unceremoniously in
troduced to the dead all wrapped
in his winding sheet in such a
gloomy narrow cell as that.—
They were truly of an awful and
unearthly cast.
Bur now it became necessary
tor us to proceed farther in our
operations on the body than we
had as yet gone. I accordingly
laid hold of ins head, which wao