Spirit of the age. [volume] (Woodstock, Vt.) 1845-1913, 1899-11-04

extended to balance himself, the mau
stepped from ruug to rung, conf
dently but carefully-so carefully
Below him, fer four hundred feet,
was nothing but thin air and then
pressed brick pavement. But the man
did not see the pavement, nor yet the
white faces gazing up AZ him in awful
silence, lie saw only the end of the
ladder, but few feet distant, and he
walked steadily forward.
And those below, with hushed breath,
made never a sound, but watched,
with strainlnG nerves, that wee black
speck move slowly across that treach
erous bridge aud safely stand at last
Oh the roof of the Board of Trade
Building.
Then the tension relaxed, and
cheer. long and loud, arose--a cheer
which sounded faint and far of to the
man on the roof, who quietly dragged
the ladder after him, allowing it to
slide along the edge OF the cornice UNI
til he reached point Immediately
above the pedestal upon which the
lion stood. Then he lowered one end
and, quickly descending, stood beside
the gigantic metal figure.
lie paused and removed his shoes.
for there was tin beneath his feet and
he dare not make the least noise foi
| fear--
At this instant woman appeared at
little square window on the twentieth
story, the sill of which was scarcely
foot above the pedestal. Her face was
marked with the lines of rt-break-
ing anxiety.
The crowd held it's breath, ana
scarcely murmur arose from the up
turned faces as the man crept stealth
lily along the pedestal, close to the
body of the animal, until he reached
its massive head, while the woman at
the window stood motionless and
dumb, watching him with psllid face.
Then for an instant--an age IT
seemed to those below-he stood very
still, casting his eyes upward, as
though in prayer. Silently, slowly, he
lowered himself to his knees, to his
elbows, to his face, until he lay prone
upon his breast on the narrow edge
of the PEDESTAL then, with his
left hand firmly clasping the uplifted
paw of the lion, he let his right hand
fall with a sudden and powerful grip
upon something white and motionless
which lay, like thing that is dead,
at the feet of the Misunderstanding
which gave sudden, convulsive
gasp, but could not move. so tightly
did he hold it. In moment more he
stood erect, the little white bundle
casped close to his breast.
Then the man waved his hat to the
cheering thousands. who grew wild
with joyous excitement, for against
his rough, brown face was pressed the
soft, pink cheek of little girl--a
little girl in white dress, who,
wandering in her play, had passed
! through the open window, out upon
the dizzy pedestal, and, stretching
at length at the lions feet, had fallen
asleep and had slumberel peacefully
far above the dust and the noise of
the city, uumindful alike of the
staring, excited crowd, and the silent
River of Death, which glided so near
so very near.
And yet moment longer fingered
the wd--lingered until they saw
the man pass the little girl through
the window and lay her in the arms of
her mother, the wife of the janitor of
the building, whose apartments con-
tanned the square window which
opened ont upon the pedestal.
But to this day the janitor's little
daughter has never learned the name
of the boy in the sailor suit.-Phila-
delphia Saturday Evening Post.