Cincinnati daily press. [volume] (Cincinnati [Ohio]) 1860-1862, 1861-11-12


of the car and commenced the performance.
II seemed odd to me at first, tumbline and
swinging in the air, with the gardens and
the audience, the houses and the trees, such
a depth beneath us; but what struck me as
being strangest was when we hung head
downward and looked up at the clouds. l
used to feel that the earth could not be so
very distant, for, high as we had risen, the
sky seemed as far off from us as ever.
" Our performance gave great satisfaction,
and was favorably noticed in the daily and
weekly papers. We were told that the act
that pleased the audience most was the last
one we performed before descending Ran
ford, who was o heavier man than /, hung
from the rope with his head downward I;
then, taking hold of both his hands with
both mine, l swung by their support; and
then, by way Of climax, let go my left
hand, and hung only by my right. never
felt the least fear We knew each others
grip and it was all right"
At first, the aeronaut went up with us,
but after few times we were able to man
age for ourselves, so we'll that, had an acci-
dent happened to one, the other could have
got safely down.
awe were earning great deal of money,
paler, and more care-worn every day, and l
knew how her husband was conducting
himself by that. She often told me that
she wished they were poor again, as he had
been much kinder in those times"
"0ne night shall never forget it-I
was returning from the gardens, and, as
passed the door of Ranford's lodgings little
Evelina's nurse ran out to me and said:
hnn col oir no in
and missus have had q dreadful quarrel,
and missus is going to kill herself2'
al ran into the house. found the par
lor door open. Mrs. Ranford was in the
room alone; her back was toward me, bu
l could see her face in the large mirror that
stood over the chimney-piece. She had a
razor in her hand and was about to use it
on herself, when she caught the reflection
of my face in the glass. She stopped, turned
round, and fell upon the floor in fit.
picked up the razor, put it in my pocket,
and placed the poor woman on the sofa.
Ranford came into the room, half mad, and
scowled at me like demon.
al expostulated, and tried to reason with
him, but he only made me jeering replies,
such as 'Oh l understand better than you
think forP I'm not foolr I've got eyes
and can seep and so on, and 1 left the
house with heavy heart"
"Next day the nurse-girl told me that
Ranford was jealous, and that he and his
| wife had quarrels about me. We ascended
that night He never spoke to me nor to
him. We both twirled up in the air with
ou exchanging q word
"When we got down felt inclined to
give him good thrashing for his unjust
suspicious; but kept my temper for the
sake of the poor woman and so we went on
for eight or ten days.
"Our next ascent took place on the
Grand Gala night of the United Order of
Ancient Toxopholitas. 1t was a still, sum-
mer night, without breath of wind. We
ascended till the gardens and the streets,
and the churches looked like Dutch toys,
and then got out upon the rope.
"As l took my seat beside Ranford I no
ticed that he had been drinking more than
usual. He had lately taken to an odd way
Of shutting his eyes, smiling with his lips
pressed tight together; and what with his
knit brows, white tights, spangled trunks,
and the bit Of ribbon round his hat, with a
paste star in the center, he looked as he
sat swinging backward and forward in the
air, more like an evil being than man.
We went on through our performance
all but the last trick. As was swinging
from his two hands, the thought came into
my head, If he should not hold on!
GAS | let go with my left hand, and
swung only by my right l heard the voice
above me.
"Kerr,' he said are you guilty or not p
81 asked him what he meant.
"'You know he answered. Confess
that you have wronged me; speak the
truth They are your last words | have
but to loose my grip, and down you gOP
" tried to seize his disengaged arm, but
he held it above my reach, and put his
other in such a position that l could not
catch at it, but swung entirely at his mercy.
81 leaped to reach the rope with my
heels, but l failed. l shut my eyes, and
prayed heaven to forgive me. Every act of
my past life, rushed through my brain; at
the sane time l was perfectly conscious
of every thing about me-the blue sky, the
quiet evening, the rope, the bottom of the
Ger, and Ranfords head inverted over me.
thought what a time / should be falling,
falling. / knew how slowly the sand sank
from the car, and what long, long time l
should be dying, ere l reached the earth.
~ found strength to speak.
"Ranford,' ] said, you are mistaken
"'You lier he answered.
"If you let go my hand you are muir
derer. There will be an inquest
"I don't care
ait is known that there was ill-blood
between u.s. / continued. Your wife will
say how jealous-
ga w!e can not gipe evidence against her
husband?
al knew the next moment should be
falling through the air. A pang shot to my
| heart. | fancied l saw the bottom Of the
car rising from me- felt the grasp of his
fingers loosen With the energy anu
strength of desperation l leaped up and
caught his wrist with my disengaged hand.
climbed up his body, know not how, till
l reached the perch, and thence into the
car, where | lay painting for breath, and
trembling like hare.
"He soon followed me. Il frightended
you, didn't /, said he You didn't sup
pose l meant it, do you?
~ made no answer but prepared for the
descent While arranging the cordage our
hands met. l could not bear his touch.
struck him, and knocked him into the bot
tom of the car, where he lay growing and
swearing till we came to the ground.
"Next morning l called on the proprietor
of the gardens, and told him all. To my
intense astonishment, he fatty refused to
cancel our engagement, and said that our
quarrels were nothing to him; that an
| agreement was an agreement, and business
was business that the performance drew
| crowds ~ viaitors and he inaistad nm it's