Daily Yellowstone journal. [volume] (Miles City, Mont.) 1882-1893, 1884-08-24
ON NiAGARA'S BRINK.
A Philadelphia Lawyer Tells asw
He Crept Dat On IN lee Prejee.

He Crept Dat Q. a. lee Prsjee.
Philadelphia Press
"Did you ever hear of Q man stand.
ing on top Of Niagara falls without
losing his life ?" asked Mr.. C. P. Sher-
man yesterday. We'll, did. You have
heard of the magnificent ice bridge be-
low the falls. Having business at Buff
falo ran up to look at the ice gorge.
The ice, which had poured down from
the upper lakes, piled up at the foot of
the Horseshoe and froze under the
spray. / clambered over the bridge,
and. going up on the Canadian
side, went down under the Horse
shoe fall into the Cave of
the Winds. What superb stalae-
mites and stalactites Of ice there
were there; reaching from roof to
floor, with the laundering curtain of
the fall between us and the light. After
had crossed the river by the suspen-
sion bridge I crossed the bridge above
the American fall to Goat island, which
was covered with snow and deserted.
The shrubbery and trees near the falls
were coated with ice, in places, on some
of the trunks, several inches in thick
ness, looking as If they had been cut
out of marble, or were the ghosts Of
dead trees. Wandering across the
island, / crossed over to the Three
Sisters, and, by means of jam of great
blocks Of ice, out to the old canal-boat,
past which the water was rushing
swiftly.
Going back to Goat island, I 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 I observed that quantity Of
ice, covered with snow, had by some
means become fixed upon the project
ing rocks on the edge Of the Horseshoe
fall beyond the rock where I stood,
forming bridge on the extreme edge
of the fall. and about 100 feet long by
perhaps ten or fifteen feet wide. In
stantly the desire TO 90 upon this
bridge and look over the fall seized me.
I dug out n stone from the snow as
heavy as l could lift. and. stepping out
rs far as / dare, threw il with all M
force upon the bridge, which stood
firm, the stone sticking fast in the
snow. Then ran back to the island
and broke off a good staff, and, COM
ing back to Terrapin rock, commenced
the rather trying journey. The snow
which covered the ice was itself covered
with o thin coating Of ice, which
broke beneath my feet, thus giving me
good foothold: and a. to my
head, / was sure Of that, % / had thor
oughly tested It's anti-dizziness the pre-
ceding summer on shipboard and
among the Swiss glaciers and precipices.
Prodding my staff or alpenstock heavily
into the snow before me to try the way,
/ walked out until / had reached about
the middle of my ice bridge, and then
stopped to look. The sight was the
grandest and the most aws.inspiring
/ have ever beheld. As I looked up
the river the curve on the on-coming
water seemed almost o. high % nv
head, and steadying my eye upon some
floating particle, the whole mass seemed
coming down upon me with an ire
sistible power that must inevitably
carry me over the brink and into
eternity, but with swift, hissing rush.
1t swept under me. leapsd out. and With
q horrible roar plunged into the awful
chasm, whence huge clouds Of sprsy.
like the smoke Of Is torment ssssud-
ing. swept back and over NJ