Clarksville weekly chronicle. (Clarksville, Tenn.) 1873-1890, 1873-08-16

WIZ oO VI oIC. liz Uul
he got so weary of passing dishes to
me, and looked SO desperate, | got un-
easy. He said he had spells sometimes.
that took the form of emotional insan-
ity, and limited about knocking the
stufhhg out of some one. [ suppose
he referred to Sam SCOTS turkey. [
also noticed Mr.. Scott leaning against
post at another table watching me-
He looked disheartened, and his eyes
grew moist as he saw his choicest vi
ands disappear, and thought-can one
man get away with all that food and
only pay me two and a half day?-
Will there be anything left for the d.
rectOrs when he leaves? The chief
cook, with his neat white cap on his
head, knife in one hand and fork
in the other, stood in the doorway be-
hind me and glared on me with scowl
of hatred and wonderment. He had
used up all the chickens and vegeta-
bles and had sent for more. He had
killed another beef and sent for tub
of eggs and more butter for hot cakes,
and thought that the stage must have
brought lots of people, when some one
told him it was only that sick looking
skeleton from Nashville. He glared
at me and then sunk back into the
arms of the pastry cook and with a
great sob he murmured: "Fadder
Abraham, take dat child into your
buzzum and keep him fru de season !;
he's gwine to break up dis heah hotel.
Tired nature demanded rest. Isought
my couch and slept Scott wants me
to drink six glasses of water before
each meal. He thinks wont have so
much room for victuals if | do this.
Next day my friend and | with two
young ladies started to visit that ro-
mantle spot called stone door. Nature
here has tried to see what she could
do. Imagine rugged cliff hundreds
of feet above the valley and towering
almost to the clouds-a natural bridge
over chasm in the rock so deep you
can scarcely see the bottom of it, and
yet so near that you can jump across
it. 1t looks as if thunderbOlt or an
earthquake had shivered the mountain
and sundered it in twain with one
mighty blow. We all took a look from
the edge of the cliff and then started
down pathway to explore the wonders
below. My friend and partner is
full of fun and enjoys himself huge
ly. He had been to the place before,
and the lady in his charge was hand
some, sparkling and brimful of fun and
merriment, and she had such magnifi-
cent eyes that fairly blazed with mis-
chief. My lady friend was quiet and
of diffident disposition, and listened
to me with quiet attention as | told her
of the wonders had seen of towering
rocks and wonderful caves, and enlarg-
ed on the beauties of nature, as dis
played in her handiwork. Half way
down my friend suggested that we see
how far we could go on the ledge
There are two narrow foot paths on
the face of this cliff, where daring ones
can go to quite distance, by following
a narrow ledge of the rock and hold
ing on with your eyelids, as the saying
is, and by taking very dainty and care
full steps. Then, if your nerves are
strong, you can enjoy a magnificent
view-iust as if any one could enjoy a
view standing on a shelf on the face of
stone wall, two hundred feet above
terra firma and sixty feet below the top.
To walk on these lodges requires cool
head, sure foot and strong grip, and
lots of nerve, and they are really dan
gerous, and at no place are they per-
fectly safe, and yet young ladies who
would be afraid to climb good sized
fence will set the nerves of timid
man on edge with their reckless dar-
ing, and glide along in places where if
their papas and mammas could see
their darlings perched up near heaven,
and a long ways from earth, on a mar
row ledge of rock, only a foot wide,
they would screech with horror, and
yet hardly day passes before some
plucky young lady has gone over both
lodges, and they think nothing of it
all caused by drinking chalybeate wa
ter My mamma would have squalled
could she have seen her darling-that's
me-trying to straddle huge boulder
that was in my way; and | had to pass
it. My friend went first, his lady next.
Then | came next and was followed
by my lady friend. thought when
beauty leads who is afraid to follow /;
| shuffled along; | was careful where
| put my no No. rs; | saw the earth
receding from me and could look down
at the tree tops. l began to think L
was getting most too high up in the
world, and the path was getting mar
row and the sky was getting nearer
very fast. 1t was fearful to 90 ahead
and just as bad to go back. Should |
stop and say the wood ticks annoyed
me so or pretend that some one had
called me, and | must go back. Oh,
no, | must go on, could not go back.
My lady friend thought | was awful
slow, so did [, | did not want to take
another step. The view was mag
nifcent. She wondered what view |
spoke of, as | seemed to be glued to
the rock and had my back to the view.
| asked her if she had seen enough.
She said no, she had not, and she was
going as far as the other lady. There
was no hope; must go On and lose
my hold and give up. Ny partner got
disguised, so she glided by me and soon
was wrestling with those rocks and the
narrow pathway, and with cool dar-
ing that appalled, me. / thought of
that song, "Thou art so near and yet
SO far. Rock of ages cleft for me