THE SORROWS OF YOUNG WERTHER (72) BY J.W. VON GOETHE

The Sorrows of Young Werther (72) by J.W. von Goethe

A neighbour saw the flash, and heard the report of the pistol; but, as
everything remained quiet, he thought no more of it.

In the morning, at six o'clock, the servant went into Werther's room
with a candle. He found his master stretched upon the floor, weltering
in his blood, and the pistols at his side. He called, he took him in
his arms, but received no answer. Life was not yet quite extinct. The
servant ran for a surgeon, and then went to fetch Albert. Charlotte
heard the ringing of the bell: a cold shudder seized her. She wakened
her husband, and they both rose. The servant, bathed in tears faltered
forth the dreadful news. Charlotte fell senseless at Albert's feet.


When the surgeon came to the unfortunate Werther, he was still lying
on the floor; and his pulse beat, but his limbs were cold. The bullet,
entering the forehead, over the right eye, had penetrated the skull. A
vein was opened in his right arm: the blood came, and he still continued
to breathe.

From the blood which flowed from the chair, it could be inferred that he
had committed the rash act sitting at his bureau, and that he afterward
fell upon the floor. He was found lying on his back near the window. He
was in full-dress costume.

The Sorrows of Young Werther (Die Leiden des jungen Werther) by J.W. von Goethe. Translated by R.D. Boylan.
To be continued

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