Iron County register. [volume] (Ironton, Iron County, Mo.) 1867-1965, 1895-01-31

to splash anybody.
Ghe booming roar OF the flames in
the shaft of the stairs drew nearer and
nearer. It was OF no use to wait. Of
earthly help none could come. He
made up his mind that he would jump
then without more torturing delay.
But. when it came to the actual leap,
his limbs somehow failed him. He
seemed physically unable to leave his
seat on the ledge.
Bah. what a coward ann he cried,
fearing to leap into necessary death
with my face towards it. / suppose as
I have woman's nerve just now must
humor myself like woman"
He turned about, breasting the sill
| and lowering himself steadily down
till all his body hung against the
| wooden wall. suspended only by the
finger tips. And then he saw some
thing which caused such a revulsion Of
feeling that he was within an ace Of
relaxing his hold and being dashed to
rags in the street below.
Gradually, however, his muscles stiff
| fened again, and he drew himself up,
| and fell faint and trembling on the
| board floor of his bedroom Screwed
to the jamb of the window was a stout
| eyebolt; fastened to this was long
coil of rope. These things are the
ordinary accompaniment of American
hotel bedrooms anywhere above the
| first floor. and Carr had seen them
scores of times before. Nothing but
| the excitement and the scare under
| which he was laboring could have al
lowed him to forget them on leaving
his bed at the first alarm. Still feeling
sick and dizzy, Carr gathered himself
up from the floor, and with trembling
| fingers set about casting the rope from
its coil. The stuff tangled, and in his
hasty clumsiness he tied it into hard
| knots Time was wasted.
At last, however, the long snaky
length of rope was flung out of the
window; and, gripping it with hand Z
and legs, the fugitive started his de-
scent. He was no practised climber,
and the rough hemp ate the skin froL]
| his hands as it passed through them;
but such an inconvenience was only of
slight moment. A far greater danger
encompassed him. During his delay
| the fire had gained in strength and
fierceness, and torrents of yellow blaze
were pouring from dozens of the
| windows.
He had to pass through two of these,
and emerged at each lower side stified
| and blackened. But the rope remained,
hanging like thin black snake in the
heart of the licking tongues of fire, get
ting deeper and deeper charred every
moment How long would it continue
to hold him?
Fully conscious of his new peril. he
let the cord slip past him still more
rapidly, till it felt as though his hands
were being cut through to the very
bone by a red-hot saw; and then
it broke.
| He felt a numbing rush through the
air, EARRING thud as of ten thousand
earthquakes, suns shooting before his
eyes and that was all. OBJ
livion held him entirely.
':I'm not going to have any reporters
messing round him yet awhile, SO kind
ly git"
but, doctor. the mans coming nice
ly to his sen ses again now. I've seen
him open his eyes twice. 1 only ask
for four words from him, and if can't
work that up into a column of per-
sonal interview, never call me press
man again"
Sonny" said the doctor, grimly, ''if
you don't clear out of your own accord
you'll be put"
well. anyway, tell me his name,
and I'll throw you in a puff for that"
/ II don't know it."
sob, come, now, what was on his
clothes?"
| HE hadn't stitch on him when he
was brought in. He was as naked
as ham. And he didn't happen to
have an owners name tattooed upon
his hide
| The reporter jotted note. That's
rather a good turn of expression for a
scare heading-'Naked as ham, No
marks, you say?"
The doctor forebore from speech.
He took the reporter firmly by the arm
and led him out of the ward. At the
door he said: ''If you come here again
I'll break your leg and set it for you
myself
The press-man grinned and went.
Later on the doctor presented the
patient. over whom there had been this
controversy. with paper which con-
tanned a lengthy account of the fire;
and the patient marveled at the in
! ventive powers of Chicago journalists.
When. however, he came to the list of
the killed. about which there could not
well be any sentimental romancing. he
put the paper down with start. For
awhile he lay still with eyes fixed on
the ceiling. Then his glance descended
again and roved round the ward rather
guiltily. Finding that no one was no
| ticing him, he once more picked up the
paper. Yes. there it was, in uncom-
promising black and white. the third
in the list OF the killed: George I'll.
Carr. of Wingford. England" Curiosity
made him search further amongst the
columns. and he found the method of
his death described wit h grewsome adj
jectives and lurid headlines. This last
owned to being imaginative. as it men
toned that he had never been seen
alive after retiring for the night.
Yet it was not bad conjecture OF
what might have occurred to man
who was slowly suffocated to death.
Again the paper fiuttered to the
floor. and again Carr's eyes sought the
ceiling. He was thinking very hard
indeed. and couldn't quite make up his
mind to something. A course seemed
open before him, course which had
some drawbacks, but a multitude OF
good points. For one thing, it would
ease him forever of his wife. who had
tormented his love into something near
oh 70 af for