Page:Isvar Chandra Vidyasagar, a story of his life and work.djvu/709

662 sank and sank, till it was almost imperceptible. The numerous doctors and Kavirajes came in and went out every few minutes, talking in inaudible whispers, with sad despondence depicted in their faces. The great crowd of relatives, friends, and visitors awaited the fatal issue with mournful silence. The thin and feeble wick of the pale, flickering light of life of the ever-merciful, great man was fast dying out. At last, the last symptoms of early dissolution of the body set in; the difficult breathing became more and more rattling and impeded; the pulse quite imperceptible. At 11 P. M. in the night, the breathing could be felt only in the navel. This last struggle continued for upwards of three hours, relaxing every moment, till 2-18 A. M. following, when his last breath was drawn. Not a moan escaped his lips, not a muscle of his feature moved. The friends and relations, particularly the female portion, were frantic with grief. They struck their breasts and foreheads with their fists, loudly bemoaning their fate, and filling the whole neighbourhood with pitiful lamentations, which no body had the heart to prevent. Thus ended the worldly life of the great man, who had struggled manfully with adverse circumstances from his very early years to the last days of his existence.