The Tiffin tribune. (Tiffin, Ohio) 1868-1887, 1870-07-07
BTRR9EEgS IN THE AIR.
The Steeple Climbers at their Hazard.
Gus Work.

''NOt for milIion-not for Cincin-
nati-nOt for all the gold in the world
would anybody ret me TO 20 up there.
If / should undertake the like OF that
I'd fall and smash, sure | would.
Those men ought To be well paid for
such risks Such expressions one
might hear on Fourth street, Satur-
day, from broadway tu Central av-
enuc, which is certainly long enough
at a distance, and, doubtless, from
many an upper story window both
north and south OF this line, which
commanded view of the tall steeple,
whose heaven-pOinting finger Is two
hundred and ScVcnty-five feet above
the base of the church. Yesterday
morning and yesterday afternoon
be heard from the quarters above
named. The asSeverItiOnS were
sometimes vigorously qualified, al
ways strong, and in some eases cvi-
IDENTIFY backed by strong emotions.
The eye of the speakers were direct
ed upward. The lockers often held
to bannisters, Il hit of railing, Il door
facing or a window guard, ami fire.
quently drew short breathS.
The focus of these multitudinOuS
eyes was man climbing the Spirc Of
the First Presbyterian Church. In
fact, three men We're engaged in the
ascent, but the one who for the time
was i'm the balance between life and
death commanded the sympathy of
the crowd. These same three brave
fellows made the ascent of the Cathe-
dral spire, only few days since, and
one of them stood on the tip-tOp of
the cross that terminates that beauti-
full bit of architecture, two hundred
and twenty-five feet above terra
firma. There the feat seemed Won
derfui, and so it was, but far less time
was required in accomplishing it than
in the present instahcc. Any one
who has seen the two spires need not
be told the reason.
Saturday afternoon the ascent of
the First Presbyterian Church spire
was commenced. Yesterday at half
past twelve o'clock it was completed.
Eighty-five feet below the tip of the
index finger in which the spire culmi-
mates, a scaffold was built from the
topmOst louvre windows in the Octa-
gonal portion of the spire on the side
facing Fourth street. The platform
of this afforded n base of operations.
A sixteen foot ladder was placed upOn
it and leaned against the spire. One
man stood at the base of this, the
other assembled it, flung rope around
the spire and fastened the top of the
ladder. Down came our climb
er like a squirrel, took up another
sixteen-foot ladder to the top of the
first, spliced it with ropes, and made
the two as one, with the top resting
against n heavy ring mOlding. How
that was done was q wonder, all the
more starting when one considers
that in the splice the top of ladder
number one had to be pulled two
feet from its resting place against the
spire. The top of this secured, the
bottom of another ladder was lashed
to the middle of the spliced one,
while its top, in line perpendicular
above its base, touched the big rim
the severe point of the as
cent. While the people below be-
held and trembled, the little man
straight to the top of this
trembling, unsteady ladder, and LASH
ed it fast. From now on the ascent
was perpendicular, but the worst was
over. One after another was added TO
the long line of ladders until six were
joined together, and the top of the top
most was on q level with the knuckles
of the great golden hand. This was
at noon yesterday. n
rest and dinner was taken.
After noon our steeple climber
went to the top of the tOpmOst lad
der, stepped upon the golden knuckles,
stood upright, held to the index fin
ger with one hand, and reaching up
with the other, put his hat upon the
top of the lightning rod, and there
left it while he came down and crept
into the steeplc. The people below
were too much awed to cheer. Ex-
pressions Of wonder and admiration
for the almost sublime performance
were frequent and hearty. The OBJ
jcct of all this, was to replace n rusty
rod by new one. The feat
is not to he seen three times in Anne
rica, for it is said the United States
has but one higher spire.-CiHciR
natl GdzCtte.