River Falls journal. [volume] (River Falls, Pierce County, Wis.) 1872-2019, 1879-06-26
MAYS TERRIBLE SUSPENSE



Charles MAY and his brother Robert. III
the spring of 1870, offered 10 pass 60,000
railroad ties down the Arkansas from the
mountain source. He says: "Our offer was
accepted, when we started into the upper
entrance of the canon with large skiff pro-
vided With six days provisions and POO feet
of rope, with which, by taking a running
turn around some firmly planted object, We
could lower our boat a hundred feet at
time. In this way at the end of three days,
having set adrift many hundred ties, we
reached the entrance to the Royal Gorge.
Here we discovered that an attempt to de-
scend tho first waterfall with two
in the boat was certain destruction,
and to return was impossible Ac
cordingly 1 determined to lower my
brother down the fall in the boat, distance
of 200 feet gave him the rope and let him
take the chance of the canon life seemed
more certain in that direction) while would
risk my physical ability to climb the canon
wall, which was about 1900 feet high.
About 10 O'Clock in the morning, / shook
hands with my brother, lowered him III the
boat safely to the foot of the fall, gave him
the rope and saw him no more. Then throw
ing aside my coat, hat and boots, and strip
ping the socks from my feet, l commenced
my climbing way, often reaching the height
of one or two hundred feet only to be com
PEELED to return to try some other way. At
length, about four O'Clock in the afternoon,
/ reached height upon the smooth canon
wall of about a Thousand feet. Here my
further progress was arrested by shelving
ledgs of rock that jutted out from the canon
side foot or more. To advance was with
out hope to return, certain death. Reach
ing upward and outward, grasped the rim
of the ledge with one hand and then with
the other, my feet slipped from the smooth
side of the canon, and my body hung sus
pended in the air thousand feet above the
roaring waters of the Arkansas.
At that moment | looked downward 10
measure the distance / would have to fall
when the strength of my arms gave out.
singing sensation crept through my hair as
my eyes caught the strong root of a cedar
bush that projected out over the ledge, a hit
tie beyond nay reach My grasp upon the
rim of the ledge was fast yielding TO the
weight of my person. Then / determined
to make my best effort to raise my abody nd
throw it sideways toward the root so as to
bring 1t within my grasp. AT the moment
of commencing the effort / saw my mothers
ace as she leaned out over the ledge, reached
down her hand and caught me by the hair.
Stranger, my mother died while yet young
woman, when I and my brothers were small
boys but remember her face. l was sue
cessful in making the side lap of my arms,
when l drew myself upon the ledge and
rested for time. From here upward my
climbing way was very laborious, but less
dangerous, ! reached the top of the canon
Just as the sun was sinking down behind the
snowy range. and fastened to our camp at
the mouth of the canon, where l found my
brother all safe. Charley said he, have
you had your head in fl our sackF 1t was
then discovered that my hair was as white
as you see it now"