Port Tobacco times, and Charles County advertiser. (Port Tobacco, Md.) 1845-1898, 1858-11-04

ting there with their wine and segars; but
! they would have me in and take glass, o.
port, and shook hands with me all round
as polite as possible, and treated me as
handsomely as any gentleman could.
Here's health and success to you, my
brave fellow" said Col. Steward, ''and a
pleasant trip to us all.' And then I found
that they were going up in the car with Mr..
! Staines
And now, with their light, cheerful ways,
and pleasant talking, and what with the
glass of wine that I had taken, and the hum
of voices from the outside, I was in first rate
spirits, and as impatient to be off as a racer
at the starting point Presently one of the
gentlemen looked at his watch.
"What are we waiting for p said he, ''it
is ten minutes past six, already"
And so it was. Ten minutes past the
hour, and Grihiths had not been seen or
heard of. Well, Mr.. Rice grew very un-
easy, and the crowd very noisy, and SO
twenty minutes more went by. Then we
made up our minds to 60 without him, and
Mr.. Rice made little speech, and explain
ed to the people, and then there was cheer
and great hustle and the gentlemen took
their seats in the car; and hamper full of
champagne and cold chicken were put in
with them and T was made fast by one leg
to the base of the trapeze, and Mr.. Staines
was just about to get in himself, and give
the signal to cut loose, when who should
we see forcing his way through the crowd
but Grfiths.
Of course there was another cheer at this,
and delay of eight or ten minutes more
while he was dressing. At last he came,
and it was just quarter before seven o'clock.
He looked very sullen when he found he
was to be the undermost; but there was no
time to change anything now even if had
been willing SO his left wrist and my right
were bound together by leather-strap, the
signal was given, the band struck up, the
crowd applauded like mad, and the balloon
rose straight and steady above the heads of
the people.
Down sank the trees and fountains, and
the pavement Of upturned faces. Down
sank the roof of the theatre, and fainter grew
the sound of hurraing and the music. The
sensation was SO strange that for the first
1aanaAnt I was forced to close my eye, and
felt as if must fall and be dashed to pie
ces. But that soon passed away, and by
the time we had risen to about three hun
dred feet, was as comfortable as if had
been born and bred in the air, with my head
downward.
Presently we began our performances.
Grifhths was as cool as possible-I never saw
him cooler-and we went through every
conceivable attitude: now swinging by our
hands, now throwing summersaults, one over
the other. And during the whole of the
time the streets and the squares seemed to
sink away to the right, and the noise from
the living world died on the air; and as I
turned and swung, changing position with
eviry minute, I caught futtering glimpses
of the sunset and theacity. the sky and the
river, the gentlemen leaning over the car,
and the tiny passengers swarming down be-
low, like ants on an ant-hill.
Then the gentlemen grew tired of look
ing over, and began to talk and laugh, and
busy themselves over their hamper. Then
the Surry hills drew nearer, and the city
sank away to the right, further and further.
Then there was nothing but green fields,
with lines of railway crossing them here and
there; and presently it grew quite damp and
misty, and we ceased to see anything ex-
cept through breaks and openings in the
clouds.
"Come, John, says I, ''our share Of this
business is done. Don't you think we might
as well be getting into the car p
He was hanging below just then, holding
on by my two hands, and had been hanging
so quiet for some minutes. He did not
seem to hear me: and no wonder for the
clouds were gathering about us so thickly,
that even the voices of the gentlemen up a.
boye grew mufled, and I could hardly see
for a yard before me in any direction. So
I called to him again, and repeated the ques-
ton. .az3 ~ - -
He made no answer, but shifted his grasp
from my hand to my wrist, and then up to
the middle of my arm, so raising himself by
degrees, till our faces came nearly on level.
There he paused, and I felt his hot breath
on my cheek.
civilian Waldur," said he hoarsely,
was not tomorrow to be your wedding
day %
Something in the tone Of his voice, in the
question, in the dusk and dreadful solitude,
struck me with horror: I tried to shake off
his hands, but he held too fast for that
.sWell, what if it was p said l.. after a
moment. ''You needn't grip SO hard
Catch hold of the pole, will you? and let 60
of my arms"
He gave short, hard laugh, but never
stirred.
II suppose we're about two thousand feet
high" said he and it seemed to me that he
had something between his teeth. If eth
er of us was to fall, he'd be dead man be-
fore he touched the ground
/ would have given the world at that mo-