Pine Bluff daily graphic., 1897-11-03


 aDead?''
 "Yes, it killed him. Itwas this way. He was in tho pyroteehnic branch of the dramatic arb and used to give shows at one of those imitation Goney Islands to be found on nearly every sand bar in dearly oser river tributary to the Mis- sissippl He had been the originator of sne fireworks feature at this place, and his phenomenal success had made him SD proud that he would sooner have died than had failure One Fourth of July he was going to give the gfandest dis play of his life, and the feature ill the biggest letters on the bill was q set piece, 100 feet high, with an enornous balloon loaded with fireworks to go up from tho top as grand finale. There were ten times as many people there that night as there had ever been, and my friend was feeling so good you could see it in his walk.
 Everybody was on edge, too, for the grand blaze of glory the management had been advertising Tor weeks and when. promptly at the hour of 10 o'clock, my friend stepped forth like < peacock to set off the great display with his own hand there was I round of ap- plause, followed by q dead silence as the audience sat breathless watching for the burst of blazing glory. But some how it didn t burst. The professor fired the train and retreated to safe place, but the powder wonldn' burn. Ittizzled and went cut instead. Once. twice, rhrice, it flzzled, sputtered and went out, and then the crowd began 10 growi and guy, as crowds always will, and the professor began to get wild.
 Several other attempts to set the piece eff were no more successful, and at last, with u smothefed scream of crazy rage, he shot up the ladder of tho tower to it's very top, where he had a platform stored with all sorts of in6am- mable and explosive things arranged to go off at the proper time He stood there d moment silhouetted against ths sky, tho crowd indulging in gibes and ieers. with now and then \ threat as t2 what he might expect if he would only come down to the ground. This was his NlllG Au EllQA N litAN 1A'ttANt ttC u tANts1N his audience, and ill a minute, and be- fore anybody had any idea what he would do next, he caught mp all armful of the explosives about him, fastened them to his clothes and hung wreaths and rings over his neck and shoulders, and, setting the whole thing alire, he swung out into the air in the balloon, which was already tugging at it's anchor.
 .'As the balloon shot up it was q ter rife sight, and the poor devil $ shrieks added to the intensity of the scene, al- ready lurid with red and blue lights. while the air was filled with all manner of bursting bombs and crashing explo sives. Women fainted, men ran help lessly about shouting, and still the baj' loon swept upward with its fiery freight and passenger, until, when it had reached Il point 1000 feet above the earth, it caught fire and the whole burning mass shot like il blazing ball straight to the ground.
 "You will be safe in netting those people never saw auch an exhibition as that before, nor will ever again i'll all pfODaDli1tys allu NHeu u Nas GNeti concluded the agent, the audience seemed to realize what the professor had done to please them, and they chip. ped in and built him monument where he fell, having on it, besides his name and the proper dates, no other in- Fcription except He striyed to please. "
 The dramatic critic was at least hall minute iu recovering his speech after the recital of this remarkable tale, and before he could ask any questions the sSvance agent had folded his tent like c.rcus and stolen away to the office of the next dramatic critic he had to call upon. Washington Star.