The Roanoke times. (Roanoke, Va.) 1897-1977, 1897-12-18
FIGHT WITH EAGLES.
a PAINTERS EXPERIENCE ON THE
FACE OF A PRECiPlCE.

Frank l.. Van Ness. who is now o nor
trait Painter i'll this city, onco had All UNI
usual experience. Mr. Van Ness saws no
Is not likely to forget the first and only
sign no ever painted, for it was while
putting patent medicine advertisements
on the face of u prccipicc in the Adirondack
mountains that he matlc a too intimate nc
quaintance with a colony of American
eagles.
My adventure in tho Adirondacks &C.
Cured several years ago. said Mr.. Van
Ness, but remember it just us well ms
II 1T were only yesterday. had gone to
kccnc Center, little town III the noun
tains OF western New York, with friend
to do some skctching from nature Some
OF tho mountain scenery there is very fine,
ana we wanted to take advantage of it
during the warm vacation months There
was then no railroad Mt Kccno Center, but
"a stagecoach line ran from tho town to
Westport on the banks of Lake Champlain
about 30 miles away. So wo had an ideal
location. Ono day there camc to the littlo
hotel where wo wcro stopping the agent
or well known patent medicine COM
pany. He was accompanied by two sign
painters and NO were informed that these
two men were going to paint sign on tho
face of precipico about 900 fee. high,
which was located about half way between
Kcenc Center and WcStport. The Dreci-
pico was high in the mountains and in
plain view of tho stagccoach line, which
wound around lower down and almost
two miles away.
The medicine people were sharp enough
to know that If they could have a sign
painted on that stone wall in letters large
enough to DO read from stngecoaches pnss-
ing by 1t would he great card for them.
So two painters were brought out to do
the job. The agent took them out to the
prccipice. They took one glance down the
$40 feet of perpendicular rock and abso-
lutcly refused to go down the fnoe of tho
mountain to paint tho advertisements
The medicine man came back to the hotel
bcrating the men and wishing nc could
find somebody who would tackle the job
told him l would do it il he could make
sufficient induccmcnt.
1.-The agent offered Inc 5000, and we each
posted q forfeit of $50. The two paintors
who declined to mako tho descent agreed
to handle the ropes in letting me down,
and ms soon rs l was ready wc made our
way to tho prccipicc l looked over tho
edge, and I'll acknowledge tho prospect
looked pretty scary About 200 or 800 feet
down there were projecting lodges, and
here and there on the lodges bald eagles
had their nests. And thcy wore good big
eagles too-none of your owl size
The men tied strong ropes to the spruce
trees growing at the top of the prccipicc
and the other ends of tho ropes woro tied to
big basket, into which l climbed with
my bucket of paint Then they dropped
the basket over tho cliff and let me slowly
down until was about 125 feet from tho
top, which had calculated was about tho
point where | wanted to begin painting
h,,l ,.' IL ,1..sz
bic with the eagles, but to be on the safe
eide had tnkon a club and revolver with
mo An the basket. Well, the first day tell
you those bald old fellows made it mighty
hot for me. My basket hadn't any moro
than stopped In It's descent when tho birds
set up q terrible racket far down below
me. They scrccched and screamed as if
they were holding terrible Indignation
meeting. 1 watched them for minute or
two, but rs they didn't appear to be fgur-
ing on committing assault and battery I
dipped tho big whitcwash brush was
using into the paint and started to work.
y minute or two lator l thoughG l heard
swish In the air, and looking up saw II
big cnglc TINT looked about tho size of
an ostrich swooping down on me- He
was so close that 1 didn't have time to
grab cithor my club or revolver. 1 made
IL pass ut him with my big brush rs he
came down. l hit him IL kind of a ulnnc-
ing lick, and l think got little paint In
his eye or in his mouth for he sat down
or ledge for minute and made queer
motions with his head as if he wcro try
ing To get tho paint out of his eye or
mouth.
Thcn another caglo came to his assist
anco, and the two began gyrlting around
in my neighborhood in II manner that I
u
and went to hunting, so to speak I shot
at them timo or two, but ditln rs seem to
do much damage. Again ono of them flew
above me, and, folding his wings to his
sides, camo down with swoop. If he in
tended to hit me squnrcly his aim WASH {
any bcttor than mine. shot Mt him and
missed, and he opened II wing that knocked
my hat OFF as ho shot past me- Then the
other one came at me with q scream of
rage. But, rs good luck would have it, 1
blazcd away with my revolver and hit
him, and he flew back wounded to tho
family below. None of the eagles came
very close after that but kept UP an IL
termittcnt firing to let them know that
proposed to hold the fort. 1t WAS the time
of year when the young eagles were in the
nests, and the old ones probably feared that
L had como to rob them. They either
learned that my mission was peaccnble or
else l scared them out, for they did not
bother INC at all after the first day.
Even without further molestation from
the eagles had pretty big job on my
hands. The men had to pull me up and
down quite distance, for made the sign
letters % feet high Each letter, Ms Il
whole, was IL feet wide and the lines of
the letters 314 in width BY ropes an
chored far away from the point from which
the basket WAS suspended tho men pulled
Inc in tho direction had to travel along
tho faco of the precipicc to continue the
nnintinn Thn rock ON 1vhich l ,rnc mint