Richmond dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1884-1903, 1886-08-21
A noLD MAN FROM BOSTON
To Meet Odium's Fate or share BRO
dies Fame.

To Meet Odium's Fate or share BRO
dies Fame.
A Boston telegram says; A young
man about twenty-five years of age, OF
rather slight build and modest demesn.
or, with q clesnly-shaven face, well
Drowned by long exposure to the sun,
and features indicative Of intelligence
above the average, walked briskly into
the Office Of the Globe this morning and
said that be would like 10 find some
one firm enough in his belief that young
Brcdie's feat Of jumping from the
Brooklyn bridge into the East river
could not bo excelled to accept the
wager offered in the following telegram:
RICHMOND, Me-, August IL.
10 Charles E. Bishop, Portland, Me-,
care Of Preble House:
Tell Boston Globe editor will wager
sl,OO0 you will drop fifty feet higher
than Brodie has yet and live.
DR.. J. II. HAMILTON.
"Dr. Hamilton is practicing ply
stefan Of Gardiner, Me-, and Is fully
able to stand by what he says" re-
marked the young man when the tele-
gram had been read. "When l read
of how Brodie dropped into the East
river, and what a great excitement 1t
created, | determined that would try
and see if ] could not do something
better. talked with my friends, and
they all sgreed that was fully able to
drop q greater distance than he did; SO
/ have come on to make the
attempt. ] am all ready now, and
will leave tonight for New York,
and unless ] am arrested and locked
I'D YOU will hear from me in q few
DAYS. Am not afraid to drop such a
fearful distance? Why, certainly not.
What is there to be afraid Of? do
not consider Brodie's drop as anything
remarkable. Inever dropped from the
Brooklyn bridge, but l have several
times Jumped off the Richmond coal
scissors into the Kennebec river, los
feet below, and never felt the slightest
bad effect from it. Brodie went down
a distance Of 100 feet; but he dropped
while | jumped, which of course makes
a great deal Of difference ; indeed, L
think it would be much harder to jump
! los feet than to drop 100 feet, because
in jumping il is much more difficult to
straighten out your body SO that twill
come down perfectly straight. Ofcourse,
if YOU don't come down straight, the
! charces are that you will get pretty
badly hunt.
II never had any trouble abou. COM
ing down straight, however, for l have
little arrangement which attends to
that. | attach couple Of iron clamps
20 nv feet, each weighing six aud a half
pcunds. and they are so arranged that
when strike the water they automati'
cally release themselves from my feet,
leaving me free to swim unincumbered.
Weights like these are amply sufficient
TO keep your legs down straight while
going through the air. You have to
take care Of your arms, however, and
YOU have got to DO very careful, too,
that you keep them down close to your
sides. If you once let them up you can
never get them down again so long as
YOU are in the air. ] have jumped into
The water from great heights so often
that have not the slightest fear"
what arrangements will you make
TO outwit the vigilance Of the bridge pc
lice ?" -,
"Oh, have some friends who vii
arrange that for me all right. But sup
pose | am caught, what does it amour
to? 1t can be nothing more than
r small fine or a short imprisonment
They cannot by any possible mean
| prove that l have any suicidal ih'eu
tions, for assure you have none, an
U.s never more desircus Of living tina
| am at the present time" .
uWhy doyou attempt such a feat?
"Oh, because l want to; that Is
? saw. | enjoy doing things of this kline
and IL | can make a little money gu
of it, why, l will not object. 1t seem
to me to be pretty easy way of maxim
! SO much money as Brodie has made OF
= Of his drop"
|. "You say that you intend to com
= down from height fifty feet aoo'
y from where he did,"
u "Yes, that is what want to do II
can find any body who will wager SON
}, money that I can't do it. Unless
u stand a chance ef making somethir
u out of it il would not pay me to 60
o the expense Of making the necessar
70 arrangements for dropping from tn
o height. But IL don't find snybot
who wants to risk money on me vi
~ drop from the bridge where Brodie d
=, any way. Ny idea is to make srrang
~ ments with Professor Allan to let II
" drop from his balloon, fifty feet abo
. >; the bridge. II will be very nice
~ drop from the basket Of balloon, o.
IS don't think that the authorities "
W find any way Of stepping me. ha'
-. q padded suit, which l shall wear, az
-. which will, l think, prevent me fro
l being injured. II is Of wool, cover
Us with rubber cloth. and fits my DO
-, ~ like a suit Of tights.
r "when Brodie made his jump
Nv don't believe he struck bottom as state
rer Where / pmped from the Richmo
i'm scissors it was thirty-four feet dee
m and have never yet struck bottom.
would quickly have known it had
done so. l think If / wanted to COZ