Vermont phÅ“nix. [volume] (Brattleboro, Vt.) 1834-1955, 1905-08-18

down to the shelf below and removed INV
shoes. Barefoot, l succeeded in reaching
the place where he had first struck.
There lay his hat, a mute token OF the
Tragedy, so SILENT so sudden, so awful,
which had taken place. BY the time /
! hau reached the third redstained ledge
| which he struck in falling l discovered
| that II would be impossible for me to get
| where l could even see his body, and 1
began to think about my own safety
Discarding everything which could en-
cumber me, l tried to regain the lost
ground. For a long time IL was impossi-
bic to advance an inch and l was about
to give up the struggle, when l noticed
narrow shelf two feet above me, which
seemed to extend clear around the main
rock. Below me was the gorge Above
me was the sky. My only hope was the
shelf Did 1t grow narrower or wider?
My fate depended upon that answer.
With my arms stretched fiat against the
rock, and my face close TO the wall. 1
began siding along to the right. But The
shelf became narrower; my heels pro-
Jected over the dizzy gorge. Still 1 con-
tlnued to advance slowly and painfully.
I'LL suddenly the sound of falling water
burst upon my ears. Little by little my
slX-lnch path widened, and l was enabled
10 move degree faster, but an over
mastering desire to look behind me was
threatening me with imminent danger
Calling all the remnants of my will power
into play, / succeeded in momentarily
controlling this awful desire, to crafty
which would have meant instant death.
inc sound of gurgling water became
palmer. l was nearing a waterfall and
in moment more the fail itself was in
sight.
There was but one thing possible to do
That waterfall must be surmounted. Into
the icy water l crawled and UP, right
under the falling stream. The rocks were
OF shale and l reached up, grasping a
projecting point of one, by means of
which drew myself up to a higher shelf
But this ledge was in the direct path
OF the falling water and my limbs were
fast becoming chilled. / knew continuous
motion was necessary, so by holding to
the rocks along the stream l managed to
drag myself up some thirty feet higher,
where further advance was apparently
stopped by perpendicular wall nine feet
high which barred my way Even in the
face of this difficulty, my nerve did not
fail me. worked loose some small stones
which piled to a height of about two feet
just under the falls, and found that by
standing on this pile l could just reach
with the ends of my fingers a small pro-
Jectlng rock. Securing as firm a hold as
l could l swung my feet clear of the stone
pile to a point about eighteen inches
higher, and by continuing to push my
self up feet first, and making use of the
able to stand upright on a small shelf of
rock only a little distance from the one
from which my late companion had been
hurled to his death. l was by this time
thoroughly soaked, and shivering with
cold. My fingers were blue and pinched,
my whole body numb; but l felt with a
sensation of infinite thankfulness that as
Bailey had said, If l could attain that
ledge, the worst was over"
looked at my watch. 1t was just four
o'clock. 1t seemed an age since / had
started on my appalling climb over the
perpendicular face of the monster cliff
after Bailey had vanished, yet only an
hour had been consumed. The distance
to the top of FL Captain was yet two
hundred feet, but the mountain from
the point where l was, is covered with
small bushes vines, and rocks, and in an
incredibly short time as compared with
my previous efforts, l stood upon the
summit, $500 feet above the level floor
of the valley but beyond the grim clutch
of death. The top of Ell Captain is nearly
level, and after searching for some time
for sign or mark that would aid me in
discovering a trail to the valley, l found
a blazed tree, and following the direction
indicated soon came to an Indian trail
which led to Eagle Peak, where l struck
the main trail to Yosemite Falls The
distance from the blazed tree to the camp
is fourteen miles, but the trail was good,
ana made rapid progress. reached the
valley at seven O'Clock, just three hours
from the time l had stood on a narrow
ledge, clinging like a fly to a sheer wall
of granite, and having expected for hours,
to be dashed, a whirllng atom, on the
giant rocks below.
When l was able 1 reported the awful
accident, and was ready to lead party
to the scene of the tragedy that same
night, but the idea had to be abandoned.
At $50 o'clock on the morning Of June G
1 started back over the ground, in COM
pany with nine others, and at eleven
o'clock reached the top of the gorge at
the point where / had come out the day
before. We had brought seven hundred
feet of rope with u.s. but finding 1t twenty
feet short, We obtained piece from a
pack saddle, and so were enabled to reach
the remains of my friend. The heroism
of ]. A. Smell of Calistoga and of H.
Spaulding and F. Curry of Pala Alto, who
permitted themselves to be lowered over
the great cliff, deserves to be commence
rated.
When we again reached camp, my
nerves suffered a complete collapse, from
which they have not yet recovered. They
will not be put to the test again. Others
may attempt to scale Ell Captain. have
climbed my last crag