Waterbury evening Democrat., 1888-08-18
ON THE VERY BRINK.
Ned Armstrong's "Jolly" Rioa on
 an Tce-Cake.

"Say Hal, let's go and see them dyzamit- ing the ice"
 Where is it, and what's dynamiting, any way9"
 Why, over there behind the railway bridge they're blowing up the ice witt dyn- amite. Kind of powder, you know, oI-g ten times worse, father says. Must be @an to see it going of. Come along. A lot of the fellows have gone over already"
 All right, Ned. Just hold on untn put my books in the house, and then I'm with you"
 And the school-books having been disposed of, the two boys hurried away to the rail way bridge.
 The Rideau river had risen, overfoved its banks, and invaded the village of Ne-7 Ed inburgh. Running streams too de:p to cross except in boats had taken the plsce of the streets; instead of yards the people looked outupon muddy ponds in whose swirl. ing waters chips, logs, boxes and barrels fioated about and only the buildings stood above the water; all else in that neiGhbor- hood was submerged, and Hal Roberts, ,who, in company with the "Bodleys" ha1 just been doing Venice thought that all Ne7y Ed inburgh now needed was half a doze1 gon- dolas and Doge's palace to be g little Venice on her own account.
 To Hal and Ned the flood seemed fine fun, especially since from their homes being on the high ground they were not made un- comfortable by it, and they watched it's progress with great interest. For a whole week the water had been steadily risaag as the hot spring sunshine blazed away at the ! immense snow drifts which lay along the river banks. Had it not been for tSe ice the water would have run off all right | enough, and gone roaring and sp]ashing g | over the Rideau Falls into the broad Ottawa. But the ice was so thick and solid that it melted slowly and the river-ped being full | of it the water was quite damned up, and could not get away. At last some Sright person had thought of blowing up tf1s ice | barrier with dynamite, and eager 70 try any thing the poor flooded folk had jumped at the idea, and were putting it into execu- tion.
 | A number of men were at work when | breathless with running Hal and Ned ap- peared upon the scene; and this was the way they went about it. With long sharp | crow-barS they drilled deep hole into the | ice-foe some distance from the edgs, the | dynamite cartridge was slipped cautiously | in with the detonator and fuse attached, and then every body having made o7 to a safe distance, the charge was exploded, a dull heavy concussion filled the air, the ice sprang Eigh out of the water and fell back | in fragments, and great cracks showed l themselves in the once solid ice-feld After l that the men had only to push and pr- a lit tie in order to send huge pieces off iEto the current that was rushing fiercely dorm its confined passage, where they were Dorne l rapidly along until they leaped over the Falls into the Ottawa below.
 Intent and excited the two boys watched the work for some time, crowding In close when the holes were being driven, taking { last peep at the cartridge, that looked SC innocent but could do so much damage, as the man slipped it carefully into it's place then scampering off to safe distance oI the warning being given, and shouting with delight when the explosion took place and the ice splintered up into fragment. with rattling crash. Then as the grea jagged cakes were detached from @he mail body, and sent sailing away, the boys woul, follow them down piece, each selecting one and playing at racing with it until 1t wa time to get back for the next explosion.
 Hal was so delighted with the proceeding that he could have watched them the whol afternoon; but Ned soon began to tire, and t cast about for some variation in thei amusement Now there was not a nor rash, headstrong boy in the whole villag than Ned Armstrong. No other rlngleade ln 1eatS or darlng or mlschle1 was neeoe when he made one of the crowd, and thi afternoon as he watched the big ioe-cake floating oh! so moothly and swiftly dow the current, it flashed into his mind-ho'
 jolly it would be to have ride on cae c theml What splendid raft it would make
 In view of the danger any ordinary Do
 would not have entertained the idea for
 moment. It was nothing short of madnes:
 But Ned was not an ordinary boy. You coul
 hardly have offended him moro than by hin
 ing that he was. To be out of the orsinar
 was his pride and delight.
 "Say, Hal," he burst out suddenly, "rv got it. The best fun you ever had h you
 hfer
 "Whst is iti" answered Hal, eagerly "Whv. to have a rida nD ouA of thoc