Fayetteville observer. [volume] (Fayetteville, Tenn.) 1850-1966, 1880-08-26
The Young squire seemed Il

1ue young squire seemed u
have gone away by this time
but there was my flther among
the crowd an who should / see
! standing next him, and holding
} on by his arm, but Katiei They
had forgotten everything buI
J the fright about me, an he
seemed to be talking to her
an comforting her. After &
bit l saw the young squire a.
! gain he had n big thing in his
hand looking like pocket-hand.
kerchiefs stretched over a frame
am [ saw that it was Il kite
an that they meant to send q
string up to me in that way,
But you never in all your life
saw such an unmahageable Kite.
First twas too heavy, am then
the time they seemed to lose
making a tail to steady it! i
heard after that part Of that
same tail was made of bank
notes Squire Philip took out of
his pocket when he could get
nothing quick enough. He got
them all back later, for not a
man,woman orchid in the place
would have touched one of
them when they saw him using
them in that way. e
When the kite did 60 up at
last the wind was SO high that
they could not manage it prop
erly. 1t came very near me
once, an L made a snatch at the
string, nearly yover-rcaehing my
selfIin doing SO; bnt | missed it,
an just then there cameIa terri
bic gust of wind, the string
broke, an the Kite was carried
away, an stuck fast in the
branches of big tree behind
the proprietor's house. L look
etl over at the clock to see how
much time was left me, an /
found that [ could not see the
hands any longer; the darkness
had come on in the last few
minutes. Then / gave up all
hope, for | knew / could never
hold ontill morning. Ea III; n.
.EI tried to think of death, an
to make myself ready for it, but
/ couldn't-not prayer nor a
good word could | call to mind,
only going over am over again
in my heal the way 'twould all
happen-how the people would
go away one by one, how I'd be
left alone in the darkness and
the bowling wind, an how at
last I'D not be able to hold on
longer, an fall, am be found in
the morning all crushed out of
shape. The people below SEEM.
ed to have given up all thought
of helping me now, an were
standing quite quiet.
Twas so dark by this time
that / could not distinguish the
faces at all; l could just make
out Squire Philip in his dark
suit among THE white ml1lmen,
an poor Katie. She was crouch
ing down on the ground now,
her apron over her head. All
of a sudden | saw her leap up
with a great cry, an clap her
hands, am call out something.
Then there was Il confused sort
of shout as if every one in the
crowd was saying the came
thing at the same time an then
Squire Philip, making sign to
silence them, put his two hands
up to his mouth, am sang out in
a voice that came up to me a.
bove the noise Of the wind:
"Take off your stocking and
ravel it; the thread will reach
the grounl." 9
AT first | didn't understand
him, being dazed like, but then
the meaning came on me like
a message from heaven. l got
off one of my socks with some
troublc-nice new ones they |
were, too, of Katie's own knit
ting, that she had give me for a
Christmas box-an' with the
help of my teeth l looscned one
end Of the thread. Itgave read |
lily enough after that, an when
/ had a good piece of it ripped
I tied my knife to the end Of it
to make it heavy, an let it drop,
ripping more an more of the
sock as it went down. Then l
felt it stop, an presently there
came a shout telling me to wind
it up again. Very slowly an
carefully l did it, fearing the
string would break, an when
the last bit of it came up, there
was a piece of strong twine
lied 10 the end of it. The twine
in its turn brought the rope l
had gone up by, an then | felt
that ] was safe.
/ managed somehow to put it
through the pully, am to haul
up the plank and as soon as
they had fastened the other end
to the windIass below, they gave
me the word to come down.
I was so nnmb am stiff that |
could not fix mvself on the plank.