West Virginia argus. [volume] (Kingwood, W. Va.) 1877-1946, 1885-12-04

your nose. Heavensl what a hubEub
there was. Every soul. worked up rs
il was TO intense excitement seemed 20
have n voice in hat shriek that arose.
Before | knew what TO do there gas a
wild cutlery about my ears. aud n lot Of
people brushed past me. No one knew
what was the matter. and in the ranic
some imp cried FIRE.! 1 will never
forget the rush. | tried TO speak, but /
was hustled against "A wall. Knocked
down. trampled on by adozen feet. and
by the I mo l got up the house was al
most clear.
Turn on the gasr ! yelled, hoping
that some of the hands would hear me.
and waS making for the meter closet
when stumbled against some one. i
heard a voice. and "A man almost drag
ging "A wOma brushed past me We
were near the door, and n glimmcr of
light from the lamp outside fell on
them. Never will ! forget tire face of
the young woman | saw revealed there
the face of the woman who had bocn
in the box. | never saw the ike with
fright and agony. Involuntary | lent
n hand to help her outside. But she
turned from me-turnel TO the man b.
1Abk hNA IN ~ WIZ fOhlb Ahtha lOnf
above the hubbub: Save him! Save
him! o, God! 1t is my brotherl'
Then a strange thing happened.
The man beside her stood stock stlll.
But only for "A moment The next i'm
stanth he had left her and dashed into
the auditorium. ! went after him bu'
IL was ali dark there and still. Only up
above. nea the ceiling. | heard a
strange. scrambling noise, and a clatter
of glass where the big chandelier hung.
| was out in "A iify aud cropping aboul
for the gas-meter closet. / found il
open, and as | felt about me | was
suddenly pushed aside and a voice
cried out:
"a rope here. Give me a rope
There is one there
81 had seen n coil on the floor, and J
knew whoever had asked for it haC
found it, when, a moment after. heard
footsteps hurrying away and hea't
something dragging behind him. Blu
didn't stop. | turned on the gas, RAJ
inside and had the gas Jets flaming NJ
as | entered the auditorium again.
what a sight wa there! Up nea
the ceiling, holding by n hand to o
shattered gas fixture and likely to droT
at any moment, with open mouth and
staring eyes, Snowy was hanging
And just above, climbing along a bean
"A sort of beam that ran up to N
apex in the primitive little hall. was
man with a rope dangling from him
How he got up ] car not tell. | have
seen featS in my day, but holding to tina
rafter and getting along it beat any
thing ! have ever witnessed. Well. he
reached the top, got hold of the gas fix
tures, slipped down, and quicker than
can tell you he had the rope about tn,
trapeze performer, and there were tn,
two hanging up there by q brass rod
that might give way at any moment.
l could hardly breathe rs | saw the rope
swinging down and the man trying to
fasten il about something in the lantern
in the roof. He seemed TO hold on by
n single hand and climb with his feet
about the brass rod as though it was p
stout pillar. In another .momen'
Snowy sank down and fell; but only a
few yards. After that | saw the other
end of the rope slip up, and slowly, too.
and down came the body gently TO the
ground. In a minutes time the other
man was coming down the rope hand
over hand, and soon he was ,tandinc
beside me, putting with eXcrtion and
pale Us death. 1t was only then ]
looked at Snowy At first i thought
him some one else. / didn't know the
man. His black hair was fairly white
and there was hat look of terror on
his face that has never left it since.
That is his story"
"And who was mis- r~escuer7" asked
the reporter.
The Young naval fellow. The lover
of his sister. She had recognized i'm
the trapeze performer her vagrant
brother whom her father drove away
from home, and the young fellow had
seen her faint ut the sight of him, and
witnessed the meeting | had seen my
self that moonlight night. As l said.
he was a very spitiire, and became
downright mao with jealousy. She had
never told him who the strange per
former was until the lights had gone
out, and let Snowy in mid-air taking
that awful leap"
and how came the lights to 90
out?" asked the reporter.
Can you ask? / do not know my
self who put them out, as for that. But
/ have always thought that % man who
proved a hero that night, narrowly es.
capped being a murderer. l have never
asked Snowy what became of his sis
ter and the young man. / do not even
know if they were married. L do
know that Snowy was V recon-
ciled at home, and | know that the re
suit of that nights work gave him the
name he bears. IN y. TeIeOTnDl.