The true northerner. [volume] (Paw Paw, Mich.) 1855-1920, 1880-08-13

looking down, until my job was finished,
an was putting up my tools. Then,
all of sudden, heard rafting noise.
an looking over, / saw the plank gong
down very fast. called ont, " Huiio,
there send that up again, Will you
but the only answer L got was loud
laugh. for ali the world like silly Jerry
the naturals and sure enough there he
was. standing by the windlass jumping
an clapping his hands.
I looked about for the man whose
business it was to manage the windlass,
lint not n sign of him was there, an IN
minute heard the rattle OF the puiiey
again, an saw that the rope was running
through it i'll the wrong direction. L
made a grab ut it, but twas Jerked out
of my hand, an before L could catch 1t
again the end had slipped through, an
there L was, more than 100 feet from
the ground, not knowing how III the
world / was TO get down, an jerry
dancing an capering below, calling out
Come down and thrash me now, Mr.
Forde, won't you ?"
Then / remembered that Il few days
before L had found this boy annoying
Katie. an had given him cut with
switch / had III my hand. He had skunk
away without a word 1T the time, but 1t
seems he remembered the blow, and
took this way of being revenged.
Well, Mt first | was scarcely fright
ened. expecting somehow that, once the
people below knew of the fix ] was III,
they'd find some way brother OF getting
me out of it. But, when L came to
think of it, not bit of way could L
hit on myself, an sure L knew more
about chimneys than any one else in the
place. Twas getting late, too; there
wouldn't be much more than another
half hour of daylight, an the wind was
rising-I could hear il whistling through
the trees.
BY this time people knew what had
happened, an crowd was collecting; l
could see them coming from all parts,
for of course / had view of all about /
saw a boy go up to the door OF the
counting-house, an presently young
Squire Philip came running out-run-
ning as if for his life. When he came,
he took the command like, an began
giving directions, an the people, who
had only stared at first, now ran here
an there rs he sent them. First, they
brought out long ladder, an fixed it
on the roof below the chimney. | could
have told them that twas too short,
knowing as / did the length of every
ladder in the place but somehow,
though i heard their shouts plainly, L
could not make them hear mine; 1t
seemed as if the voices went up, like
smoke.
Then there was a great delay while
they went for a longer ladder and this,
too, didn't reach half way. A man
climbed up it, however, an called out to
that could let down. Not a bit could
1 find. had had big ball only the
day before, but l had taken it out of my
pocket an put it on a shelf at home. l
took off my braces an fastened them an
my pocket-handkerchief together, but
they didn't near reach the top of the
ladder, so that plan had to be given up.
All this time the wind was rising, an
was getting numb with the cold, an
stiff an cramped from being so long in
the one position. There was big clock
right over the gateway just opposite,
an l saw that it only wanted 20 minutes
OF 3; it would be nearly dark at 8, an
once the darkness set i'll, what little
hope L had would be gone.
The young Squire seemed to have
gone away 10y this time, but there was
my father among the crowd an who
an holding on by his arm, but Katie
They had forgotten everything but the
fright about me, an he seemed to be
talking to her an comforting her. After
a bit saw the young Squire again. He
had big thing in his hand, looking
like pocket handkerchiefs stretched over
n frame, an | saw that it was kite, an
that they meant to send string mp to
me i'll 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 after that part of that same
tail was made of bank-notes Squire
Philip took out of his pocket when he
could get nothing else quick enough.
He got them all back later, for not Il
man, woman or child in the place would
have touched one of them when they
saw him using them in that way.
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 a snatch at the
string, nearly over-reaching myself in
doing so; but L missed it, an just then
there came terrible gust of wird, the
string broke, an the kite was carried
away, an stuck fast in the branches of
a big tree behind the proprietor's house.
/ looked 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 on till
morning.
/ tried to think of death, an to make
myself ready for it, but couldn't-not
prayer nor good word could 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 i'll the dark
ness an the bowling wind, an how
at last I'd not be able to hold ON