The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1893-07-02

people were made to slave hard every day
in order that the spoiled boy might have
the moon for his toy.
Gin a few days the first scaffolding
stood up as high as the tallest trees, in
lew weeks the structure was so high that
it was measured by arrow flights, in two
months t was so lofty that the top could
The lame of the wonderful wooden
tower that the Bandimba were
building was carried far and wide; and
the friendly nations round about sent
messengers to see and report to them
what mad thing the Bandimba were
about, for rumor had spread so many
contrary stories among people that
strangers did not know what to believe.
Some said that it was true that all the
Bandimba had become mad, but some Of
those who came to see with their own
eyes, laughed, others began to feel
anxious All, however, admired the big
ness. and wondered at the heigth of the
tower.
'In the sixth month the top of the
highest scaffold was 30 high than on the
clearest day people could not see half way
up; and it was said to be so tall that the
chief engineer could tell the day he would
be able TO touch the moon.
1.-THE work went on and the engineer
! passed the word down that in few days
more it would be finished. Everybody
believed him, and the nations round about
sent more people to be present to witness
the conclusion of the great tower, and to
observe what would happen. In all the
land, and the countries adjoining it, there
was found only one wise man who fore
saw that if the moon was shifted out of
/ its place what damage would happen,
( and that probably all those foolish people
in the vicinity of the tower would be
destroyed. Fearing some terrible calam-
ity, he proposed to depart from among the
Bandimba before it should be too late.
/ He then placed his family in a canoe,
and after storing is with sufficient
provisions, he embarked, and in the
night he foated down the river
/ Aruwimi. and into the big river, and
continued his journey night and day as
! fast as the current of the stream would
I take him-far, far below any lands known
to the Bandimba.
"a week later, after the fight of the
wise man and his family, the chief engi-
neer sent down word to the king that he
was ready to take the moon down.
! 50 1T is we'll replied the king from be-
low. 4 viii ascend, that | may see how
you set about it,
within twenty days the king reached
I the summit of the tower, and standing at
last by the side of the engineer, he laid
his hand upon it, and it felt exceedingly
hot. Then he commanded the engineer
to proceed to take it down. The man put
a number of cool bark coils over his
shoulder and tried to dislodge 1t; but as il
was firmly fixed, he used such deal OF
force, that he cracked it, and there was
an explosion, the fire and sparks from
which scorched him. The timber on
which the king and his chiefs were
standing began to burn, and many more
bursting sounds were heard, and fire and
melted rock ran down through the scat
folds in a steady stream, until all the
woodwork was ablaze, and the flames
scared onward among the uDrights and
trestles Of the wood in one vast pile OF
fire; ana every man, woman and child
was utterly consumed in q moment. And
the heat was SO great that it affected the
moon, and large portion OF it tumbled
TO the earth, and its glowing hot mate
rails ran over the ground like a great
river OF fire, so that most OF the country
OF the bandimba was burnt into ashes.
On those who were not smothered by the
smoke, nbr burnt by the fire, and who
ned from before the burning river, the
effect was very wonderful, Such of them
as We're grown up, maAs aud females.
were converted into gorillas, and all the
children into different kinds Of long
tailed mohkeys.''
The old man who told this story ended