The Washington herald., 1906-11-11
Man Who Crossed Niagara
on BlOndin'S Back Dead.
THRILLING FEAT OF LONG AGO
Death of Harry COIcOrd at Chicago
Recalls the French Rope Walkers
Great Exploit in Crossing Niagara
River Carrying a MRn-BOth Nearly
Lost Their Lives at the Time.


Blondin carried on his back over rope
stretched across the river at the Falls
Of Niagara. Blondin died a few years
ago In London. For several years past
Harry Colcord has been well known on
the West Side in the neighborhood of
Madison and Halsted streets. He was
skillful portrait artist and his memory
remains in excellent oil paintings Of sew
eral well-known citizens.
The sensational aerial trip across the
Falls Of Niagara occurred Aug. IA, 1853.
II was repeated twice afterward. the
last time in the presence Of the Prince
Of Wales, now King Edward VII OF
England.
Even after the lapse Of such long
space Of time the thrilling memory Of
his experience ever remained vividly with
Colcord
THE thought of # haunts me as close
ly as if it happened yesterday" ne used
to say, "and dreams il all comes
back TO me. s % I sway from side TO
side and lay myself like a dead weight as
Blondin goes onward. step by STEP the
rope swaying and his balancing pole os-
cillating: again I see the shores black
with people and look down the swiTling
river. far below. until we seem 70 be
rushing up stream: again 1 descend from
his back and stand on the taut. yibrat
ing rope, and again 7 feel BlCndin stum-
BILE and sway as the rufflans try 10 upset
us. and I jump up in nervous terror and
cold persPiration.'
BIOndin's Great Feat.
BIondin had acquired international fame
by his wonderful feats on the tight rope.
He vas a native Of Calais. France, and
his real name was Jean Francois Grave
lette. At the age Of four he was sent 60
l. Ecole Gymnasium, and soon obtained
the name OF the boy wonder" His peO-
pie were poor and exacting, and they
made niIn work hard His daredevil feats
made him fascinating and renowned. he
was the first to throw a double somer-
sault on a tight rope-the first. and last,
and only one When he visited Niagara
he promptly formed the ambition Of cross
ing the river on the tight rope
The place chosen was opposite the Clif-
ton House, where the rope, a three-inch
manila, was stretched across TO place
called Whites pleasure ground. The rope
was in two pieces Of 100 feet each,
united by a long splice. Il hung at dis
tance Of 20 feet above the river and
sagged about fifty feet IN the center by
its own weight.
The performance was well advertised
and was a big money maker. About &c.,
600 persons were present. mainly attract
ed by the prospect OF seeing two human
beings going to probable and spectacular
death. Heavy bets were placed as 70
whether the two performers would sue
ceed in their feat or perish.
Harry ColcOrd. who agreed for a sub
stantial consideration TO be the man car
ried. was q native Of Att!ca, y. Y. He
was 81 years old at the time his muscles
had been tensed and hardened by rough
ing il for four years on an arctic whaler
and be weighed only 135 pounds. Blon-
din's weight was 40
The start was made from the Canadian
shore. Blondin wore his professional
tights his burden wore a conventional
black dress suit The balancing pole was
thirty feet long and weighed sixty pounds
The tight rope, taut as a violin string
was kept in place by guy lines stretched
al intervals Of twenty feet. save for
space Of forty feet in the center. Harry.
be sure to let yourself rest ali the time
like a dead weight on my back II I.
should sway or stumble on no account
attempt 10 balance yourself" This ad-
vice Colcord strictly obeyed.
PeriIous Work in Midair.
My first thrill occurred as we started;
over the pine trees, whose sharp tops
bristled far below US between the cliff
and the river, Il seemed far more terrify-
ing than out over the water. Ny heart
in
had absolute confidence in Biondin. and
I believed that he would get US across all
right. Our progress seemed to be dread
fully slow. The sight Of the rapidly
flowing river gave me a queer sensation;
it was that we were moving up il at a
great rate and going but very slowly to-
ward the opposite bank. Every now and
then, in order to give him a rest.
had TO get off Blondin's back and stand
behind him on the rope. steadying myself
with my hands around his waist while he
balanced with the pole.
Imagine the situation-getting down of
a mans back hundreds Of feet in the air.
feeling for and standing on a taut vibrat-
ing rope, and holding on 10 him, clad In
slippery tights. when the least false move
or loss OF presence of mind on the part of
one or other might plunge you both into
eternity And this getting on and of had
to be repeated seven times.
When We reached the middle Of our
journey. at the forty feet unsupported by
guy lines. BlOndin suddenly tottered and
swayed, and his balancing pole began fu-
riously thrashing up and down. He had
lost his balance and was unable to regain
it. He broke into a run. In that awful
arf h L.
self on me. and / lay like a dead weight
on his shoulders, to stay or fall with him.
When we reached the first guy line on
the American side he slipped on it. II in
stanuy broke, and the main rope, pulled
by the corresponding guy line, was jerked
sideways. This was the most critical
moment of all With his wonderful agility
he recovered himself in time and won
equilibrium enough to run to the next
brace Of guy lines. twenty feet away.
Get cTf, quick, he said and 7 obeyed. He
was like a marble statue; every muscle
was tense and rigid; large beads Of per-
piration trickled from him. 1t was then
most admired his wonderful grit and cool
ness. Neither by voice nor sign did he
manifest his knowledge OF the fact that
a dastardly attempt had been made to kill
us, probably by some INSCRIPTIONS gam
blers who had bet against our crossing.
Wild Cheers at Finish.
Again, 1 mounted his back, and as we
toiled up the slope Of the rope toward the
American bank we confronted an i'm
mense sea Of faces, intense with interest,
alarm, and fear. A band was trying to
play, but the wrought-up musicians could
only evoke discordant notes. AS we ap-
preached the brink there was an i'm
mense danger that the rush Of spectators
might crowd us over the cliff and others