tionless--not a stir in the thickets
around, not a movement in the forest at the ravine. Through the solemn
silence the crash of the falling water came upon the ear, and its
gleam was caught against the black background of the cloud. It really
seemed as if Nature held her breath in anticipating terror. Higher and
higher rose the cloud--fiercer and fiercer flashed the lightning,
sterner and sterner came the peals of the solemn thunder. Still Nature
held her breath, still fear deep and brooding reigned. The wild tint
still was spread over all things--the pines and hemlocks near at hand
seeming blanched with affright beneath it. Suddenly a darkness smote
the air--a mighty rush was heard--the trees seemed falling upon their
faces in convulsions, and with a shock as if the atmosphere had been
turned into a precipitated mountain, amidst a blinding flash and
tearing, splitting roar, onward swept the blast. Another
flash--another roar--then tumbled the great sheeted rain. Like blows
of the hammer on the anvil beat it on the water--like the smitings of
a mounted host trampled it upon the roof--like the spray flying from
the cataract smoked it upon the earth. The fierce elements of fire
and air and water were now at the climax of their strife--the dark
blended shadow of the banners under which they fought almost blotting
out the view. Occasionally glimpses of writhing branches could be
seen, but only for a moment--all again was dim and obscure, with the
tremendous sights and sounds of the storm dazzling the eye and
stunning the ear. The lightning would flash with intolerable
brilliancy, and immediately would follow the thunder with a rattling
leap as if springing from its lair, and then with a deafening, awful
weight, as if it had fallen and been splintered into pieces in the
sky. Then would re-open the steady deep boom of the rain, and the
stern rushing of the chainless wind. At length the air became
clearer--the lightning glared at less frequent intervals--the thunder
became more rolling and distant, and the tramp of the rain upon the
roof less violent. The watery streaks in the atmosphere waxed
finer--outlines of objects began to be defined--till suddenly, as a
growl of thunder died away in the east, a rich thread of light ran
along the landscape, that looked out smiling through its tears; and
thronging out into the damp fresh, sweet air, where the delicate
gauze-like rain was glittering and trembling, we saw on one hand the
g