a line with the church of
All-Hallows-in-the-Wall, and he accordingly proceeded in that direction.
The pit which he was about to visit was about forty feet long, twenty
wide, and the like number deep. Into this tremendous chasm the dead were
promiscuously thrown, without regard to sex or condition, generally
stripped of their clothing, and covered with a slight layer of earth and
quick lime.

The sun was setting as Leonard walked towards this dismal place, and he
thought he had never witnessed so magnificent a sight. Indeed, it was
remarked that at this fatal season the sunsets were unusually splendid.
The glorious orb sank slowly behind Saint Paul's, which formed a
prominent object in the view from the fields, and threw out its central
tower, its massive roof, and the two lesser towers flanking the portico,
into strong relief. Leonard gazed at the mighty fabric, which seemed
dilated to twice its size by this light, and wondered whether it was
possible that it could ever be destroyed, as predicted by Solomon Eagle.

Long after the sun had set, the sky was stained with crimson, and the
grey walls of the city were tinged with rosy radiance. The heat was
intense, and Leonard, to cool himself, sat down in the thick grass--for,
though the crops were ready for the scythe, no mowers could be
found--and, gazing upwards, strove to mount in spirit from the tainted
earth towards heaven. After a while he arose, and proceeded towards the
plague-pit. The grass was trampled down near it, and there were marks of
frequent cart-wheels upon the sod. Great heaps of soil, thrown out of
the excavation, lay on either side. Holding a handkerchief steeped in
vinegar to his face, Leonard ventured to the brink of the pit. But even
this precaution could not counteract the horrible effluvia arising from
it. It was more than half filled with dead bodies; and through the
putrid and heaving mass many disjointed limbs and ghastly faces could be
discerned, the long hair of women and the tiny arms of children
appearing on the surface. It was a horrible sight--so horrible, that it
possessed a fascination peculiar to itself, and, in spite of his
loathing, Leonard lingered to gaze at it. Strange and fantastic thoughts
possessed him. He fancied that the legs and arms moved--that the eyes of
some of the corpses opened and glared at him--and that the whole rotting
mass was endowed with animation. So appalled was he by this idea that he
turned away, and at tha