Excerpt from Ardath: The Story of a Dead Self Deep in the heart of the Caucasu's mountains a wild storm was gathering. Drear shadows drooped and thick ened above the Pass of Dariel, ' that terrific gorge which. Like a mere thread, ' seems to hang between the toppling frost-bound heights above and the black abysmal depths below; clouds, fringed c ninously with lurid green and white, drifted heavily yet swiftly across the jagged peaks where, looming largely out of the mist, the snow cap ped crest of Mount Kazbek rose coldly white against the, darkness of the threatening sky. Night was approach ing, though away to the west a broad gash of crimson, a seeming wound in the breast of heaven, showed where the sun had set an hour since. Now and again the ris ing wind moaned sobbingly through the tall and spectral pines that, with knotted roots fast clenched in the reluc tant earth, clung tenaciously to their stony vantage ground; arid mingling with its wailing murmur, there came a distant hoarse roar as of tumbling torrents, -while at, far-off intervals could be heard the sweeping thud of an avalanche slipping from point to point on its disastrous downward way. Through the wreathing vapors the steep, bare sides of the near mountains were pallidly. Visible, their icy pinnacles, like uplifted' daggers, piercing with sharp glitter the density of the low-hanging haze, from which large drops of moisture began presently to ooze rather than fall. Gradually the wind increased, and.soou with sudden fierce gusts shook the pine trees into shud dering anxiety; the red slit in the 'sky closed, . And, a glearn of forked lightning leaped athwart the driving, darkness. 'an appalling crash of thunder followed alt. About the Publisher Forgotten Books publishes hundreds of thousands of rare and classic books. Find more at www.forgottenbooks.com This book is a reproduction of an important historical work. Forgotten Books uses state-of-the-art technology to digitally reconstruct the work, preserving the original format whilst repairing imperfections present in the aged copy. In rare cases, an imperfection in the original, such as a blemish or missing page, may be replicated in our edition. We do, however, repair the vast majority of imperfections successfully; any imperfections that remain are intentionally left to preserve the state of such historical works.