The Republican. [volume] (Oakland, Md.) 1877-current, 1896-12-03


the death at my feet, nor the utter
danger of the slightest motion. How
long this weakness lasted know not;
l only know that the unspeakable hor-
ror of that first period has come to me
il waking dreams many and many a
day since; that have long nights of
that deadly fear; that to think of the
past is to stand again on that narrow
foothold, and to look around on the
earth is often to cry out with joy that
it widens away from my feet.
Suddenly these words flashed to my
brain: Are not two sparTows sold for
& farthing? And one of them shall not
fall on the ground without your Father
Fear not, therefore; we are of more
value than many sparrows." Ny
faculties so strained, l seemed to hear
the words Indeed, often yet think
that did truly hear a voice utter them
very near me.
Instantly hope arose, consciously des-
perate indeed, but 1 became calm. re-
sourceful, capable, and feeling unac-
countably aided. Careful not to look
down, | opened my eyes and gazed far
| away over the bright sea. The rippled
pillows told that a light outward breeze
had sprung up. Slowly, and somewhat
more distant, the two briggs moved
toward the horizon. Turning my head,
[ could trace the narrow stone of my
! footing to where my rope dangled, per-
haps 300 yards distant.
! 1t seemed to hang within easy reach
of the cliffs face, and instantly l re-
| solved and as instantly proceeded to
work toward it. No time remained for
| hesitation. Night was coming on. l
reasoned that my comrades thought me
killed. They had probably gone to
| view the new condition of the precipice
| from lower station, and on their re
| turn would haul up and carry off the
| rope. | made move toward it. Try
to think of that journey!
Shutting sidewise very carefully |
had not made five yards before l knew
that I could not continue to look out
over that abyss without glancing down,
and that | could not glance down with
out losing my senses. Imagine trying
to move sidewise-incapabe of closing
your eyes, forced to look down, from
end to end 300 feet. Imagine you've got
| to go on or jump off! Would you not,
in an ecstacy of nervous agitation, fall
to your knees, get down face-first al
full length, clutch by your hands. and
with shut eyes feel your way? Ilonged
| to lie down and hold, but, of course, that
was impossible.
The wall at my back made it worse.
The cliff seemed to press outward
against me. 1t did, in fact, incline
very slightly outward. 1t seemed to
be thrusting me off. Oh, the horror
edge of precipice, and the implacable,
calm mountain apparently weighing
| you slowly forward.
! l knew that with my back to the wall
1 could never reach the rope. I could
not face toward it and step forward, SO
narrow was the ledge. Motion was
| perhaps barely possible that way, but
the breadth of my shoulders would
| have forced me to lean somewhat more
outward, and this l dared not and could
not do. Also, to see a solid surface be-
fore me became an Irresistible desire. !
resolved to try to turn round before re-
suming the desperate journey. To do
this had to nerve myself for one steady
! look at my footing.
In the depth below the myriad sea
fowl then rested on the black water.
which, though swelling more with
the rising wind, had vet an unbrolen
surface at some little distance from the
precipice, while farther out it had be.
gun to jump to white-caps, and in be-
| meath me, where | could see, it dashed
and churned with a faint, perVading
roar that l could barely distinguish. Be
fore the descending sun a heavy bank
of cloud had arisen. The oceans sur
face bore that appearance of intense
| and angry gloom that often heralds Il
storm, but, save the deep murmur going
| out from below my perch, all to my
hearing was deadly still
Cautiously l swung my right foot be-
fore the other and carefully edged
around. For an instant, as my shout.
der rubbed against the rock, | felt that
| must fall. did stagger, in fact, but
the next moment stood firm, face to the
beetling cliff, my heels on the very
edge, and the new sensation of the
abyss behind me no less horrible than
that from which l had with much
difficulty escaped. l stood quaking. A
delirious horror thrilled every nerve.
The skin about my ears and neck, sud
denly cold, shranli convusively.
Wild with fear, l thrust forward my
head against the rock and rested in
agony. a whir and wind of sudden
wings made me conscious of outward
things again. Then mad eagerness to
climb swept away other feelings, and
my hands attempted in vain to clutch
the rock. Not daring to- cast my head
backward, | drew it tortoiSe-like be-
tween my raised shoulders and, chin
against the precipice, gazed upward
with straining of vision from under my
eyebrows.
Far above the dead wall stretched.
Sidewise chances gave me glimpses of
the projecting summit-coping. There
was no fear in that direction. But the
distraction of scanning the cliff-side
had given my strained nerves some re-
lief; to my memory again returned the
promise of the ALMIGHTY and the CON-