The Scranton tribune. [volume] (Scranton, Pa.) 1891-1910, 1894-12-18

was blowing, bowling around that
cabin at eighty miles an hour. Last
year thought had heard wind. Now
| know that I had never heard wind
until that night. You can have no
conception of how it blew. 1t
was hurricane Toward morning
1t abated somewhat, and at day
| break, breakfastless, we resumed our
walk for the summit. We still
had a mile and three quarters of the
most difficult grade to climb.
We started out quite brlskly, consd-
erlng all things. We had gone about
quarter of a mile when to my utter
! dismay, l began to be very sick.
struggled against it with all my might,
but sick | was, and deathly sick, too.
1t was the great altitude that was af-
! fecting me. The cold was intense, and
the higher UP we went the harder blew
| the wind. Win we reached the top
/ they told us that the wind was blowing
at 100 miles an hour 1t blew strong
Mr.. Gregory and Miss st. Clair over q
number Of times Not to mention
strong CD Miss Cornish and myself,
Often we had to crawl on our hands
and knees. Miss st. Clair had to help
Miss Cornish; Mr.. Gregory had more
than his hands full with poor sick me-
/ The thought of my suffering makes me
weak yet. ] entreated Mr.. Gregory to
go on and let me lie down to die
really wished to die. | was so sick that
death would have been welcome. l
have heard people say, who have
| crossed the acean and been very sea-
sick, that to them at that time life had
no charm. 50 it was with me. Then,
too, l was in agony with the piercing
cold. The higher we went the more
intense was the cold the fiercer the
wind and the sicker | became. Mr..
GregOry's hands wre now so stiff with
the cold that it was next to impossible
for him to push me along To get down
and rub my hands in the snow was out
OF the question for me in my sick state.
Mr.. Gregory did it for me as long as he
could move his hands. Just little
while more and our hands would have
been frozen.
The Longest Mile.
There never was nor will be such an
other long mile and three quarters as
that was. We came to the conclusion
that there was no summit to Pixies
Peak. The last grade is a terribly
steep and long one, and when I saw, in
utter dispalr, ! threw myself on my
face on the frozen snow and walled:
"Oh; | can't! ] can'tw Patient Mr..
Gregory pleaded with me to make one
last attempt. This one grade finished
and we should be at the top. Then our
suffering would be over. We should
have warmth and rest. Do YOU know
what these words meant to us? |
forced myself up and on. At last, oh
happy, happy moment, We saw the sig
mai station. \ few more weary, weary
atCrs, and | was lying on the door sill.
Tncy carried me in, unable to speak or
move, but still conscious. IL was
quite a while before ! was able to do
anything but shrek with the awful
pain in my hands and face They
rubbed my face and hands with snow
and ice water, and in about a half an
hour ] was allowed to go to the fire,
Then | had first one chill and then
another. Indeed l had such severe
chills. and for so long time, that be-
gan to wonder if they ever would stop
or was i to spend the rest of my life
shaking. AS soon as Mr.. Caldwell saw
that | was alive, he and the telegraph
operator took shawls and went in
search Of the girls.
They found them at the foot Of that
lor:r steep grade-Miss ST. Clair rub,
bing Miss Cornish's hands with snow
Miss St. Clair was neither sick nor
freezing. She was only weak from bat
trng with that terrific hurricane
She surely is as tough as leather
1t is simply marvellous how
well she stood the trip. l really
expected the two men would bring II
both the girls either dead or dying
Imagine my amazement when | saw
Miss st. Clair coming in without an!
help. throw over both her shawls, CONF
, briskiy up to the fire, rub her hands to
gether and say: My! but isn't 1t cold
Do let us have some hot coffee and ;
warm breakfast at once" The though
OF breakfast made me shiyer Mis-
Cornish's hands were freezing whel
tLey brought her in, and she sulfere'
about as much as l did when they be
gan to thaw,
The black cook soon had hot steam
ing breakfast of coffee, hot rolls, frie'
eggs, mutton chops and fried potatoe
ready. BY the way, you may or ma,
not know that it takes two hours an,
a half to boil eggs on the Peak. Yo,
can put your hand into boiling waite
without burning. | tried it. Miss 81
Clair and Mr.. Caldwell ate heart
d. breakfast. The others of US scarcel
tasted anything. We paid IS for tn
breakfast. forgot to tell that we pai
: $1.25 each for sitting around the fire a
: the old cabin. 1t seemed cheap to u
then.
- Mr.. Caldwell had reached the top a
s p. m. the night before with his finger
, frost bitten. He has since had no feel
: ing at all In his fingers. Just befor
he came in sight Of the signal static
a stupor stole over him and he lay dow
in the snow. lie was just dropping oI
in the fatal sleep when he realized hi
danger and forced himself to go on, w
: had telephoned from the Saddle Hous
u telling him we should stay there a
. night.
a The Summit at Last.
1t was 73O a. m. Sunday when W
:, reached the top. We stayed there vi
n til the train came up at 1l.S0 a. m. wit
4 seventeen passengers, Only one wa
+ sick-a young lady. She was uncor
n scious most of the time she was Ii
there. Just as soon as the tral
!, reached couple of thousand feet lowe
altitude she was herself again.
=, Those who came up on the trai
. missed the grand scenery we had ha
early in the morning. Until $50 a. n
we could see nothing below us but sol