The Portland daily press., 1895-03-02


alley. 1t was fairly steep. We started IN
the snow-shoe track, but we didn't stay IN
it half a second. At the first little turn We
dashed straight on through the bushes. as
powe1lpss to steer or stop the thing, as II II
had been a wild locomotive. The bushes
and deep snow stopped US, ON the le'cl'
Had there been no level, we shoulu ha'e
SLID STRAIGHT INTO TIE ATLANTIC
OCEAN.
We demolished the improvised tobogean
with very little comment. There was little
to be said. The great and glorious idea vas
a dismal failure. But the enthusiast de-
clared finally that he should slide down
standing up. Away he went like streak.
leaning back on bis pole and frant1cally
trying to steer around turn. If he hadn't
upset and mixed himself up with those
skees. they would infallibly have scared
Off into space with him. much as Maxim S
flying machine does when the requisite
speed is reached.
He tried it again and broke the borrowed
rake handle like twig. Grimly determined
he rushed to the old buildings on the tol in
search of pole that would hold him. The
other two took their skees in their hands
and began to walk Gown. They had no
ceeeded short distance when they heard
exultant shouts rapidly approaching behind
them.
THE ENTHUSIAST WAS COMING.
They could see him through the trees
soaring around the curves and yelling eyery
second. But he was not standing up. Oh
no! He was squatting astride of a stout
pole. so low that the tails of his ulster
dragged Oil the snow, but he had matered
those runaway skees. He came dashing
straight at them, down an incline as steep
as the roof of house. With teeth gIinly
set and every muscle strained he pulled on
the upper end of that pole, while the lover
end. set deep into the snow by all the
weight and strength of his body, sent up a
shower of frozen spray behind him, and it
was doing the work too. 1t was making the
descent of that mountain on skees posi-
BILE and Wildly enjoyable feat, though at
a tremendous
SACRIFICE OF THE DIGNITY AND POE
TRY
| of posture. genera ascribed to the skeeist.
| However, as the enthusiast afterwards re-
marked, that glorious downward flight.
seated upon pole, with pressure of 5U0
pounds to the square inch, gave him as
much authority. as the poet could have lad.
to talk about ssthe thrill of life along the
KEEL
The others were soon mounted on stout
poles and struggling to master this new
lsmethod of sketing. They all finally
reac he'd the end Of the steep part at the
site of the half way house alive and breath-
less and exultant. But it was not contin-
uous fight. There were Interruptions. loo
great speed on a curve on the edge Of a
ravine would lrat to temporary abandon
ment OF The ssets and he seeking Tor shfe-
ty deep in he bosom of the mighty s. ow
drifts. There are
DRAWBACKS TO A QUADRUPLE SOMER-
SAULT,
| when at the same ime one al ches a eliIlrse
of runaway skee gliding out o. sight d2wn
side ravine like a frig htened rabbit.
Luckily the skee caught in clump of sap
lines and the waist-deep wallow aftes it
WAS only 100 yards or SO instead of a lalf-
nile. as it might easily have been.
When no 500-pound pressure to the square
inch became $50, we soon learned TO Hlacs
the right hand on the pole in the rear OF 1.-the
body and by pressing down on that lant
pulling up with the left hand in 'front.' the
skees could be braked even better and The
a aforesaid pressure reduced TO sonnet ms
less than 800 pounds-a great relief.
From the halfway house o tho foot Of The
mountain, the flight WAS simply dream o.
joy. There was Il mile Of gentle slopbs il
the gorge and down he moderately d eel
inclines below. With the experience g,fneC
on the seml-prec1pices abnye we gfdeG
down that heavenly nile will perfect
control of speed and direc ion. None OF the
slopes
INDUCED A PRESSURE ON THE POLE
of over 200 pounds to tho square inch (thest
calculations all by the fertile brain oil
the enthusiasm and we finally sped Gown
the pasture, through the CUTE, across til,
road and put down brakes in the farm
house door-yaro in little less than half al
hour from The time left the top. We
!. were nearly two hours going up. We al
vowed that on second lIial. with som,
sort of a seat on the poles Ito distribute the
aforesaid pIesSure) we could come dowI
those two miles of mountain slopes in II
minutes at least.
Though it YVES almost dark when we
reached the farm house and the thermome
ter was several degrees below Zero lit wa,
IA below the next morning)
We WERE REEKING WITH PERsPIRA
TION
and glowing with the heat and the exulta
. ton. because of our tremendous struggl,
with old gravitation and our victory owe
: him.
Our fingers. because of the desperate grip
ping of the pole, were stiff and lane il
every joint and could be Strengthened onl,
with aching and difficulty. Another pecu.
liar effect of the struggle was confined L
the big man of the party. On arrival a
the farm house he soon made the discover,
that his undertaking. instead of per
forming its normal function. had becom
a hard wad under his arms, though VIII Ell
and how and wherefore this thing oc curr Q,
he was ut a loss to explain.
NONE OF US COULD SLEEP
that night until the small hours of til,
morning. partly because of the stron
coffee. out mostly because whenever w
subsidized into doZe. we would start I'M wild
awake, hercely gripping an imaginary pol
9 and desperately steering around a suddeI
I turn on the brink of Il precipitous ravine.
E. H. e.