Oxford Democrat., 1903-09-08

| He fell 1rtth 10 through crushing space
and clouds of blinding Udpor.
arrived upon the stage In time to
see, but not to take part. The char
acters were already grouped for the
play, which might become a tragedy
| It was too late for me to interfere with
the performance had known how. AS
Skitters and | walked up past Table
rock he pointed ahead toward the
wooded shore that borders the Cana
dian rapids We looked across wild
waters. and saw even at that moment
two men come suddenly out OF the
bushes close by the river and bend over
something which lay between them on
the ground. THAT'S he" said Skitters'
"and the professor, old crank! He's SO
dead afraid his suit may get hurt. He
doesn't care so much about the man."
For the inventor also. 1t seemed, was
In the cast, and his part was to put
Westerman in and afterward to let
him out again, not so publicly. an easy
thing to do with nobody very near A
car on the trolley road had stopped
some distance away. and the people In
| It were staring suspiciously and with
that half hypnotic bewilderment which
a mystery causes "See 'em rubber,
Skitters said complacently. They
think this Is genuine. Well be in the
papers tomorrow" He turned and
started back to look to his arrange
ments, for he had q boat all ready on
the lower waters to assist In the decep-
ton. Westerman had instructions to
hurry down along the bank and be
ashed out Of the stream below. and the
press agent would do the rest.
But Just above the point where one
enters the elevator met Curley Bow.
ers, and his eyes were alight with
strange excitement. "He swears he's
goin' to do 1t; he swears he's goin' to do
lItw cried the lad in something between
terror and delight, "an' nobody knows
but me-" We stood in line with the
cataract and stared at 1t rather blank
" while the spray drenched and the
roar deafened us. Before us we could
see the point where the precipice re.
treats and forms almost funnel. the
epex of the so called Horseshoe fall.
Volume of water was what Westerman
desired, and out there the water wall
was green with depth where the lakes
vent toppling down. There are hours
IF the day when the Canadian shore
appears almost deserted. and this was
one Of them. The few people walking
labout seemed like little puppies. We
Yourselves seemed puppets in a stage
scene, and with that scenery! The
whole business was unreal. with those
two burly figures up the river bank,
the little silent people in the trolley car
looking on and Bowers and l the while
obliged to move along deliberately,
keeping up appearances, and to know
that matters were out Of our control.
All day the sky had been cloudy, but
now at sunset the sun came out and
showed off the green and white OF the
crumbling waves that moved from
above past the islands in endless pro-
cession and threw long shadows down
to the vortex. The swimming suit lay
motionless upon the rocks, and Wester'
man had disappeared. "Oh, he'll never
dare" said to Bowers and turned to
look after Skitters, but just then the
boy clutched my arm and pointed.
saw but indistinctly. 1t seemed to me
as though an empty suit had been
pushed into the current by Its inventor,
but Curley Bowers. with keener eyes,
had dropped upon one knee, straining
fiercely forward, and he cried: He'll
try it! He'll try It! BY heavens. he's
comm down"
For IL moment the clumsy. misshapen
form seemed to lie motionless In the
water. Then 1t stirred and made a
stroke or two, and with that the cur
rent caught 1t and whirled 1t forward,
pitching and stumbling, through the
waves. As though in mockery the fiv-
er played with it awhile and drove 1t
down against that reef Of rocks which
show above the water parallel with
, shore. When we saw the German
; clutch at these and lie there 1t seemed
to us that 1t was not too late and that
he might yet be saved. For perhaps
the space Of two minutes he rested
!, against those rocks. and he may have
heard our shouts of encouragement.
But who can guess what was going on