Page:McCosh, John - Advice to Officers in India (1856).djvu/102

 or evening twilight for any evidence he gave to the contrary, and one felt a sort of independence and impunity in stalking about under a sola topie at noonday, without the dread of being stared into night blindness,or knocked to the ground by one of his vertical beams. About 2 p.m. the breeze had died away to a perfect calm; not a leaflet was in motion; but allow dark arch of dust became perceptible on the northern horizon, gradually approached the zenith, and descended the southern hemisphere without being felt below. The hum of the crowd hurrying to their homes portended a coming storm; and man and beast were seen running for shelter in all directions. On came an army of clouds rolling, reeling and tumbling over one another in silent yet stupendous grandeur. Now it began to blow, increasing to a perfect hurricane, so laden with dust that neither man nor beast could stand against it,nor see to move a step; but lay down on the ground or in a ditch, where they happened to be. Day seemed suddenly changed into night; candles were lighted to see one's way across the room; on blew the wind for an hour, and on seemed to run a horizontal stream of dust: on looking out of the window the sky, if such could be called sky, presented a lurid blood-red hue as if it were charged with red-hot dust and ashes. Such might have been the last days of Pompeii and