The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1898-01-23
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Tbs Narrouert Of the Scene ef .
Thrilling lneident.

AZ, trappings and the cheap appointments of
,ho famous Signor Salviatoria as single handed
and alone he prepared the paraphernalia for his
tchtropo performance which had brought him
bis glory would nave ever imagined that there
was lime or space In his busy life for q ro-
nance. The Signor was a peripatotic pcrambu-
lstor OF the rope, and his field Of performance
law in country,towns where It was his wont to
stretch his narrow pathway across o street
from roof to roof OF houses whose owners were
willing to extend th It privilege to him in OK
change for tickets TO "the Great and Only Me-
eatherian Concert which followed the outdoor
ambition. Yet no had a romance, and there
were in 1t those elements which ono greater
than the Signor Salviatorla might easily havo
orystallizcd into q melodrama that would have
stirred the applause of q thousand galleries.
.srhe greatest act lever DONE" he said with
%n.natural and easy disregard Of accent and syn
tax. II done in an Ohio town about ten years
AGO. 1 was doing my turn there for q week,
as Il was the county fair season, and | was fol-
lowing their trail like a sleuth, for they brought
people to town and helped my business. never
none too good. Tho third night Of my per-
Torrance. which was a half-hour: exhibition In
midair before the concert had begun. / had
gone up on the roof to git things ready. and
while I was pottering around snuggin' up the
rope and seeing that there wasn't any loose cogs
TO be dropping. I heard a scrooch up through
the scuttle hole leading to the roof and the next
second out popped q woman like one Of these
here jumping Jacks. II give mo n hard pull on
my nerves. but / few over to see what the mat
ter was. 1t was my landlady-and here I want
TO say that when I stop for any time In q town I
10 to a boarding house where 1 can get a rate
that won't break me. Got to do 1t In this line.
<.,,t .,iva n nil IN railroads and hp,ala
In this case l not only stopped at this board
ing house, but the landlady let me stretch my
rope from her roof to the roof of tho house
across the way, and as 1t was the main street of
the town, Il was convenient all the way round
for me. The only drawback was that the lady
had a half.crazy husband that never had done
anything for her when he had his senses. and
now she had to support him and take his abuse
of her every time he got q Jealous fit, which was
every time she had a new boarder that was
anything for looks and STYLE"
Signor Salviatoria stopped q moment at this
remark, stroked his little chin whisker, and
smiled retrospectively.
she had only been polite TO me because 1
had been polite to her, as any gent should be
when there is a pretty woman around, and the
landlady was the ~prettiest little woman, about
as big as a piece Of soap. 1 had met.
"As l was saying, when l got to her she had
slung the cover to the scuttle hole over it and
was sitting on 1t with her jaw set and trying to
stick her toes into the roof to help hold it down.
In q mighty few words sho told me her hus-
band was on the chase after her with a Ratchet
to kill her and .he.would BIO up from below In Q
minute. She wasn't as bad scared as I was.
for ! didn't have much experience in that kind
Of business and didn't know what to do. l
didn't have anything to defend myself or her
with, either, and the more 1 thought Of the stu
alton the more 1 begun to think how many
things there were that was moro dangerous
than walking a tight rope fifty feet above the
earth, and mo as innocent as a babe. The little
woman told me to bring q barrel half full OF
sand there was over in one corner of the roof
and we'd set it over the cover Of the scuttle to
hold 1t down. I done 1t as fast as 1 could. and
when we had the barrel there and about fixed
the crazy husband come slashing up with his
Ratchet. As luck would have It the sand fell
in on him and knocked him Off tho ladder be-
low and.the barrel got stuck In the hole. 30 the
little woman and me had a minute or two to
think, and she done the thinking. ,"n s'.
AR you afraid3' says she.
Some says I, nodding toward the Bcuttle
hole.
"I mean of met says she smiling.
Not much says l.
".Are you strongl' says she.
That's part Of my act says I, but not
against q crazy man with q hatchet,' says I,
wondering what she would do next and about
how long 1t would be till the crazy man was on
deck witt his tomahawk cleaning in the air.
Then says she, grab hold of me right
quick and carry me across the rope over to
Mrs. Peck's house SOS my husband won't get
at me with that axe
Oh L-l --a-. -~.u. l. ut--A~ A. = -
In a week. but when she said that my profes-
sional pride come to me, and without any moro
talk l reached for my balancing pole, and,
STOPPING down SO she could get on my back.
which she didn't like very much, I made a quick
run for the end OF the rope just as the crazy
husband come out of the scuttle through the
barrel and tumblcd down on the roof half
Bmothered with sand. l told her to hold tight
and do the prayin' for both of US and l thought
! could get her through safe. / don't know
how i ever got out on that rope with her on my
back, for that wasn't the way my profession
done business, but / got there, and as I shot
out with the woman clinging to me the people
In the street below set up such q yell as I never
heard before and l come near losing my bal
ance, for i knew, and they didn't, why this feat
ure that wasn't on the bills was being showed.
The crowd yelled about twice, and then all
VI o ouuuoh BOI D U Bull L COuIQ near the little
woman's heart beat. Anyway, I thought
could, but maybe 1t was my own. KNEW when
they done that the crowd had seen the man on
the roof with the Ratchet and recognized him,
for all the people in the town knew the kind
ora fellow he was. At the same time the crowd
got still something came to me telling me to
nerve myself, for the crazy man would cut the
rope and drop me and my load in the street,
10 be crushed into a shapeless mass, and ! came
near letting go. and dropping before / was
dropped. l couldn't see what was going on be-
hind me, and all the little woman knew she
was whispering to me to go ahead, because
we were safe II only kept my path. I didn't
know whether she thought about the man with
the hatchet or not. Likely she did. 1t wasn't
her TO mention II, though, under them circum-
stances.
while l was thinking about him cutting the
sope ! was getting along II toward the safe end
eS last as l could, the little woman hanging ON
tll she nearly chokcd me, but II didn't hut,
and l was standing IL beautiful. It's funny
now a man Will find pleasure In life when'thcre's
20 much In sight that amt, and / nearly forgot
ne man with the Ratchet thinking about the
little womans arms holding onto my neck as
second; then l felt a jar on the rope and |
Gfhoked and braced myself, forl was sure that
the crazy man WAS beginning to cut, and /
knew That three or four licks would he enouuh