The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1884-03-05
WITHIN AN INCH OF HIS LIFE.
4 Lawyer Who Fo0lishly Crept Out
Over Niagara.

"Did you ever hear of mans
standing on top of Niagara Falls
without losing his life?" asked Mr..
G. P. Sherman, yesterday. well,
1 did. Y on have heard of the mag.
nificent ice bridge below the falls.
Having business at Buffalo I ran up
to look at the go'ge. The ice, which
had poured down from the upper
lakes, piled up at the foot of the
Horseshoe and froze under the
spray. 1 clambered over the bridge,
and, going up an the Canadian side.
went dow q under the Horseshoe fall
into the Gave of the Winds. What
superb stalagmites and stalactites
of ice there were there, reaching
from roof to floor, with the thun-
defing curtain of the fall between
US and the light.
"After l had recrossed the river
by the suspension bridge crossed
the bridge above the American fall
| to Goat island, which was covered
with snow and deserted. The shrub.
berry AMI trees near the falls were
coated with ice,-in places, on some
of the trunks, several inches in
MISUNDERSTANDING as if they had
been cut out Of marble or were the
ghosts of dead trees. Wandering
| scrOs. the island, crossed over to
the Three Sisters and, by means of
a jam of great blocks of Ice, out to
the old canal-boat, past which the
water was rushing swiftly.
"GOiDg back to Goat island, l
went down to the foot-bridge to
Terrapin rock, where the old tower
used to stand, and out on the rock.
| When I got there l observed that q
quantity of ice, covered with snow,
had by some means become fixed
upon the projecting rocks on the
edge of the Horseshoe fall, beyond
the rock where stood, forming a
bridge on the extreme edge Of the
fall about a hundred feet long by
perhaps ten or fifteen feet Wide. In
stantly the desire to 60 upon this
bridge and look over the fall seized
me. l dug out stone from the
snow as heavy as could lift, and,
stepping out as far as dared, threw
1t with all my force on the bridge,
which stood firm, the stone sticking
fast in the snow. Then | ran back
to the island and broke off good,
stout staff, and, coming back to Ter
rapin rock, commenced the rather
/ try ing journey.
"The snow which covered the ice
was itself covere with thin coats
ing of ice, which broke benz ath my
feet. thus giving me good foot
hold, and as to my head was sure
of that, as I had thoroughly tested
its anti dizziness the preceding sum.
mer en- shipboard and among the
Swiss glaciers and precipices. Prod
Dig my staff or alpenstocS heavily
into the snow before me to try the
way, | walked out until / had
reached about the middle Of my ice
bridge. aud then l stopped to look.
The sight was the grandest and the
most swe-inspiring I have ever be-
held. As l locked up the river
the curve of the On-c0ming water
seemed almost as high ss my head
and, steadying my eye upon some
floating particle, the whole mass
seemed coming down upon me witt
an irresistible power that must in
evitably carry me over the brink
and into eternity; but, with a swift
kissing rush 1t swept under me
leaped out, and, with horrible
roar, plunged into the awful chasm
J whence huge clouds of spray, like
the smoke of its torrent, ascend.
ing. swept back and over me.
"Steadying myself by my staff
sank quietly upon my knees, thel
stretched myself fiat on my stom
ach and looked down over the fall
You can imagine what I saw
When the spray would clear aws.
the water, rushing go swiftly as t
appear to be drawn into lines AM
furrows, and springing out unde
my very face, could be seen TO fal.
at first solid, greeDIsh mass
then b oxen into foam, into
chaos which the eyes could not pei
citrate. l could feel my bridg
trembling with the rush of water
and realizing that any momen
might see it and me following tn
descending food, arose, took on
look up and down-a look to last flo
a lifetime-and retraced my steps
AS l had passed the rock I hs
thrown on the bridge, l could nc
resist the temptation Of dislodgin
it, and seeing it whirl away owe
1.-The linI1id rraci nioa y, Phila6ainhi