The Caucasian. (Clinton, N.C.) 188?-1913, 1899-06-08
WIRE WALKING AT NIAGARA.


ventures At Niagara Falls. They be- |
gan with the feat Of Blondin. the fam
Gus French rope-waiker. who threw s
cable across the chssm in the samme.
OF 1859 and made his first trip across
on June 30th Of that year. He had
been refused permission to stretch the
wire from Goat Island to the Cana0-
ian side-the newspapers denounc.nG
him as a fool and fraud-and was
ure ground On the Canadian side. the
work. moreover, having to be done dur
Ing the night TO avoid interference
from the cautious residents.
Not many people witnessed Blon-
din's first crossing, the impression
insane or would fail at the last mo-
ment. When he had accomplished the
feat, the utmost amaZement was eI
pressed. which. however. was again
turned TO incredulity when he an
nounced that he would cross the wire
again, and this time with a man on
his back-Darry Colcourt, Blondin's
tuSlACsS Idhd6ct, d uldA " Glib hth6 ohS
hundred and fifty-fve pounds. The
feat was successfully accomplished on
the afternoon of August II, 1889, amid
roars OF applause from the multitude
| that looked on.
On August oath in the same year.
Blondin crossed on the rope chained
hand and foot. and on his return car
| ried with him cooking stove on
| which he made an omelette
In the summer OF the following year
he had the cable removed to a point
| below the suspension bridge, and i'm
Eediately over the whirlpool rapids,
where he gave several further exhibit
tons, one being on August ?, 1860.
when the Prince Of Wales and the
governor-generalo of Canada looked on.
Before BlOndin started, the Prince,
having looked at the wire and the
| rapids, became nervous, went to Blon-
din and begged him not to make the
attempt But the rope-walker smiled,
said it was not so dangerous as 1t
looked, and soon went across with
Colcourt on his back.
There have been many imitators OF
Blondin. In 1873 an Italian named
Bellini stretched a wire from opposite
the ferry landing to Prospect Park.
and three times he jumped from the
middle of the cable into the river and
swan to shore
Steve Peer, celebrated American
wire-walker, repeated Blondin's feat
on June %, 1887 in connection with the
Queens Jubilee celebration on the
Canadian size. He crossed in nineteen
minutes. A few nights afterward
Peer, while intoxicated, determined, sc
it is supposed, to repeat the perform.
ance, and unknown to any one went
out and climbed on the wire with the
result that next morning he was found
lying dead on the rocks below.
An exhibition of wire-walking tina
attracted considerable attention at thai
photographer, who used the same cable
that mad been used by Peer. Thi:
amateur rope-walker, thirty-eigh
years of age, had practiced almos
daily for some weeks on wir'
stretched sixty feet above the waite
of Toronto Bay, before he essayed tn
tremendous adventure which mad
Blondin so famous. This he under
took dressed in tights and moccasins
and carrying a pole twenty-five and
half feet long, weighing thirty pounds
He showed no uneasiness or nervous
ness, although slight unsteadiness O
the long cable caused him to pause fire.
quently to regain the balance that
l momentarily lost.
When he reached the center of tn
, gorge, this amateur lay down on hi
back on the wire, with his balancin
pole under him. Two hundred an
fifty feet below ran the furious rapids
ready to deyour him should he max
a misstep.
He did a number Of other DARN
G feats as he neared the other end Of tn
9 wire, and finally touched soil on th
American side thirteen minutes afte
he started. A few minutes later he re
appeared with hoop around hi
: ankles, and in this way walked out o
8 the wire about two hundred yards.