The Richmond palladium. [volume] (Richmond, Ind.) 1855-1875, 1872-11-23

notion of mine. l amt queer,
ir, but that woman's inquisitive-
less bothered me. I made up my
mind I'd get shut OF her and her ;
'pery-glass, if l had to sicken her.
SO / took good chance. where
there was an ugly place, and did
one Of those common circus tricks.
let go my hands from cross
beam I Was holding OH by the
hands, let myself fall some five
Ieet. and caught hold Of another
one below-an ugly kind Of look
ing drop. l couldn't hurt myself
anyhow, as there was scaffold q
little ways beneath. Where she
vas looking at me was most half |
a block, but heard her scream all |
that distance. She didn't use her !
opery glass any more. When /
was young that used to be one of
my jokes, Sir. You had better be-
lieve I am careful. Rope that
use, Sir, I look all over before and
after every job. When there is
any hanging work to be done, l
don't allow any body to put hands
on the scaffold I use; if it breaks
it amt nobody's fault but my own.
When q fellows dangling between
heaven and earth and all he's got
to hold him there is an inch, or
inch and a half and a quarter rope,
he is fool if he don't take his pre-
cautions.
It's not an unpleasant kind of
work to be up ever so high of a
Summers day. 1t may be swell
tering on the pavement, but up op
the steeple, working, come 8
mostly cool breeze, blowing all
the time. Then, in them undis-
turbed places, there are little bits
of grasses and MOSES that don't
grow down below. Then it's so
quiet, for the noise of the street.
cries, and the rumbling of the We
hicles comes up to you in hushed
and softened kind of way. Its
good pay, Sir, for the risks and
there are risks-for there aim,
none of the steeple-climbers a.
hasn't had their shocks now anG
then. It's only Summer work, fol
when the cold comes the chill
would freeze all the strength ou
of you, and when it blows hard W.
don't try it on neither. I've beel
ketched . half-dozen times in
: regular Summer storm, when Nv
been hanging from steeple with
out scaffold, ard it ain't nice Il
take. Yes; I have had some mar.
row shaves. Once it was a scat
fold. just as I had finished th
job it was the sitting up Of eros
on a new church-and l had screw
ed the bolts ali well in, was gel
ting my tools together. It's
kind of habit I have, whenever
am working up very high, to pas
: slip-knot of thin rope around m
waist, which secure to somethin
which l know can't give way, j
being an easy job, this ERE cross
hadn't used my rope much. Their
was wrench 1 had mislaid, whic
saw just out at the furthest en-
of the scaffald, 1 walked out to G.
it rather careless. The stuff mus
have been rotten for it went all
splintcrs under me, and / thong!
l was gone, and the fact is I di
say amen. The first thing know
ed l was hitched up under the arm
by my own rope and was hang cir
} quite comfortable. When | b.
, put the rope round me l new
knew; it was force of habit | SUI
pose. l got scare, but it "
over again in moment and
haven't given it thought sin
: that day. But once, Sir, "
> frightened, and / amt afraid
acknowledge it. Twas working I
; a church which had spire Of
0 shape which amt common. VIII
i kind CT architecture it is l ha
II been told, but forgotten. It GO
= up ever so straight, and en-
y with a kiad of swell, like
onion or a turnip and 1 bad
4 work en- the under side. r
4 party as was repairing de chur
u wasl,'t paid what the job was wor'
by tue congregation, and thin
n was being pared down fine. wal
o ed scafold, hut they would
3. stand the two or three extra da,
l work it woy Id have cost to rig
go l thought I'd DO it with only
Y, rope. 1t was the stating as b
l. been badly done, and the wind Y
d a ripping them of, 80 the work b
's to be patched up at once. 1t v
Z, mighty high up, and az tough
II job As l most ever worked on.