The Canton advocate. [volume] (Canton, D.T. [S.D.]) 1877-1897, 1880-10-28
blow, and took this way ofbeing reveng

6neO, expecting somehow LLdt, OIlCc
the people below knew Of the fix was
in, they'd find some way or other of
getting me out of it. But when came
to think of it, not a bit Of way could
l hit on myself, an sure knew more
about chimneys than any one in the
place. Twas getting late, too; there
wouldn't be much more than half
hour Of daylight, an the wind was ris-
ing-I could hear it whistling through
the trees. By this time people knew
what had happened; and a crowd was
collecting; 1 could see them coming
from all parts, for of course l had a
view all about. l saw boy go up to
the doorof the counting an pres
emily Master Phillip came out, running
as if for his Life When he came, he
took command like, an began giving
directions; an the people who only
stared at first, now ran here and there
as he sent them. First they brought
out long ladder an fixed it on the
roof below the chimney I could have
told them that it was too short, know
ing as l did the length of every ladder
in the place; but somehow, although l
heard their shouts plainly, I could not
make them hear mine; it seemed as if
the voices went up, like smoke. Then
there was great delay while they went
for longer ladder; and this. too, didn't
reach half way. A man climbed up to
it, however, an called out to know had
l a lit Of string in my pocket that l
could let down. Not bit could find.
Master Phillip seemed to have gone
away by this time, but there was my
father among the crowd; an who should
l see standing next him an holding on
by his arm, but Katie They had for
gotten everything but their fright about
me, an he seemed to be talking to her,
an comforting her After bit 1 saw
Master Phillip again; he had big
thing in his hand, looking like pocket
handkerchiefs stretched over a frame,
an l saw that it was kite, an that
they meant to send string up to
me that way. But you never in all
your life saw such an unmanageable
kite. First twas too heavy, an then
twas too light, and then the time they
seemed to lose making tail to steady
it / heard afterwards, that part of that
same tail was made of bank notes
Master Phillip took out Of his pocket
when he could get nothing else quick
enough. He got them all back later,
for not a man, woman or child in the
place would have touched one of them
when they saw him using them in that
way. .s--.e "
When the kite did go up at last, the
wind was so high that they could not
manage it properly. 1t came very
near me once, an made Il snatch at
the string, nearly over-reaching myself
in doing so; but | missed it, and Just
then there came a terrible gust
of wind, the string broke, an the kite
was carried away, an stuck fast in the
branches of a big tree behind the
masters house. / looked over at the
clock to see how much time was left
me, an I found / could not see the
hands any longer; the darkness had
come on in the last few minutes. Then
l gave up all hope, for I knew could
never hold on till morning. tried to
think of death, and to make myself
ready for it, but I couldn't-not a
prayer OF a good word could l call to
mind, only going over an over again
in my head the way 'twould all happen
how the people would go away one
by one, how I'd be left alone in the
darkness an the bowling wind. an how
I'd not be able to hold on any longer,
an fall, an be found in the morning
all crushed out of shape. The poole
below seemed to have given up all
thought Of helping me now; an were
standing very quiet. Twas so dark
by this time that could not distinguish
faces at all; [ could Just make out
Master Phillip in his dark suit among
the white mill-men, an poor Katie.
She was crouching down on the ground
now, her apron over her head. All of
sudden, [ saw her leap up with a
great cry, an clap her hands, an call
out something. Then there was con-
fused sort Of shout, as if every one in
the crowd was saying the same thing at
the same time, an then Master Phil
lip, making sign to silence them, and
sang out in a voice that came up to
me above the noise of the wind
'.Take off your stocking and ravel it:
the thread will reach the ground"
At first didn't understand him, be-
ing dazed like but then the meaning
came on me like a message from heav-
en- got Off one Of my socks with
some trOuble-nice new ones they were
too, of Katie's own knitting, that she
had given me for Christmas bex-an'
with the help of my teeth loosened one
end of the thread. 1t gave readily
enough after that, an when I had a
good piece of it ripped, I tied my knife
to the end of it to make it heavy, an
let down, ripping more an more of the
sock as it went down. Then I felt it
STOP an presently there came a shout
telling me to wind it up again. Very
slowly and carefully I did it fear
ing the string would break, an when
the last bit of it came up, there was a
piece of strong Irvine which brought
the rope I had gone up by, an
then | felt that I was safe 1 managed
somehow to put it through the pully,
an haul UP the plank, an as soon as
they had fastened the other end to the
windlass below, they gave me the word
to come down. l was so numb an
stiff that | could not fix myself on the
plank, but L managed somehow to
cling to the ropes with my hands.
Down, down | came, every turn of the
windlass making the voices below seem
nearer, an nearer, and when I was
within few feet of the ground there
were dozen pairs of arms ready to
catch me, an a score of hands held
out to me. an a hundred voices to well
come me. An there was my father
waiting for me, an Master Phillip say
ing, "but for the girl he'd have been
up there still. Not one of the rest Of
US would have thought of the stocking;
twas the brightest idea I've come across
this many a day. She has saved his
life, Forde, and you can't refuse your
consent any longer" But when I
looked around for Katie, she was no
where to be seen. She must have
slipped off as soon as she saw I was
safe.
Master Phillip hurried my father
and mo nwev T diIn't o,,;to l,,on