Dodge City times. [volume] (Dodge City, Kan.) 1876-1892, 1881-07-21
Perils OF Lightning.Roi Men.

Eyes" chimed in the manufacturer
of lightning rods who sat by, lit is
risky some times. The worst Job | ever
had done was the rodd NJ of the Cen
trail PRESBYTERIAN Church in Fifty-sev
enth Street, near Eighth Avenue.
They wouldn't have it done when the
steeple was put up, when il would have
been easy, but after the lightning had
given them one light touch, then they
wanted it fixed up Immediately. 1t
would have cost 800 to put up scaffold-
ing to do the work safely then, but
they would not pay that added sum, or
ANYTHING like it. The best they would
do was twenty-five dollars, and il was
puzzle to know how we could do it for
that. J. b. Turner, the most daring
and expert climber in the business,
probably, took the job. He went up
the inside of the steeple rs far as he
could. forty feet from the roof, and
there poked out through two holes a
couple of scantlings, on which he fast
ened board. On that board he set up
a couple of scantlings with cleats
nailed across them like 4 ladder, nail
ing them On as he went up, and mailing
other scantlings on to the ends OF those
when he got to the top. There was 10
possibility of fastening that ladder to
the steeple until he got up where the
steeple was so slim that he could throw
a rope around it and tie il. 1t was
simply leaned against the smooth-slated
side of the steeple. a puff OF wind or
a careless movement ont of balance
would have hurled him down. In that
way he worked his way up sixty feet
from the point where ne started his
ladder-about 100 from the roof, and
say $50 from the ground. 1t makes my
blood run cold to think of it. | wouldn I
have attempted it for anything in the
world But he did it safely, liked the
rod. took down his ladder again, and
fastened the states inTeniously from the
inside over the holes made for his
scantlings. leaving all as good as be-
fore. This was in September, 1878,
Another time Turner had to go up
to put a lightning rod on chimney
stack up town. 1t was necessary to do
the work on Sunday, SO as not to inter-
fere with the firing up OF the works.
When he got there on Sunday morning
the chimney was full of gases and smoke
from the fire still bedded down below.
and almost red hot. They threw water
ON the fire and waited several hours.
but still the heat was intense and the
gases sitting. To get up he would
have to ascend inside the stack by iron
bars. like staples. fastened in the wall
all the way up, after the fashion of 4
ladder. He wrapped rags around his
hands so that the bars should not burn
them. and started. Half way to the
top he felt his forces giving way. The
gases and heat were sitting him. He
Just managed to descend without fall
ing. After a long rest he tried it again.
The walls were still so hot that the rags
on his hands crumbled. When he got
TO the top, LOO feet from the ground, he
had barely strength enough left TO
throw himself on his breast on the edge,
with his head and arms hanging over
in the fresh air outside. and his legs
dangling inside. There he hung for an
hour before he could move. Then he
hauled up tackle, made it fast, hauled
up the rod, attached il. lowered the
ldchle. descended INSIDE lhe stack again.
and the job was done. But it was at
the risk of his ~. Y. San.
The ''sweet girl graduates" of
Russia are having hard time of it.
General lgnatieif has issued an order
directing all letters received at the Rus
sian Colleges TO be opened by the head
of the establishment and handed over
TO the girls TO whom they are addressed
only in the event of their containing
nothing of revolutionary character.
The "heads of the establishment will
be allowed to pass love letters; but they
are particularly cautioned to exercise
vigilance over these. las Nihilists may
be expected TO attempt to convey their
sentiments in the language of love"