The Waxahachie daily light. [volume] (Waxahachie, Tex.) 1894-current, 1909-10-05

bundled up and resumed our noun
tain march. Had the writer known
what was in store for him he would
have remained in Fortune Valley or
returned the way he came But there
was another property to be eXamin-
ed and to get to it involved the
crossing of other mountains equally
as high as those over which we
came The climb was laborious, ted
ious and awful, but as compared to
the descent it is not to be consider
ed When we reached the summit we
ate our last meal for that day and
until noon the next. We started our
descent and this was strictly case
of they went ont not knowing
whittier they went" The mountain
sides were perpendicular bluffs for
miles and miles with canyons pene-
trating into them at regular inter
walls. Our decision was to enter
canyon and go down that We final
" succeeded in getting into can
yon, or arroyo containing running
water and perpendicular walls. All
went well until we came to water
fall some sixty feet high; to get
down that seemed out of the ques-
lion unless we Skinned" around the
bluff To do this would be to hang
on and work our way around and
down about thirty feet below to
shelf and from there down into the
canyon again. The Mexicans took
the lead and soon were at the bot
tom OF the canyon telling us how
to come. Mr. Henderson next at
tempted it and succeeded, then all
called for me to come on. | started,
knowing that the least slip of my
foot meant to be dashed to death
below. but | had been over so many
places where the same results would
have followed the least slip of the
foot that / was beginning 10 get
used to it, The two MeXicans and
Henderson stood at the bottom of
the canyon below me touching ell
bows and watching me, assuring me
that if | fcll they would catch me.
| was fully forty feet above them
pcking my footholds and catching
to whatever assures | could find in
the bluff or twigs growing there
"
of a rock as large as a good sized
barrel to steady myself, when to my
borrow and dismay it gave way and
rolled down the bluff | lost my
balance but caught twig and held
on and was saved. | cried out to the
men below to look out, but they
could not scatter quickly enough and
the rock crushed itself way down
among them carrying other rock
with it and when I looked down
saw one Of our guides, or Mexicans
buried benath the mass. A thrill Of
deep sadness took possession of me
at the thought of that poor fellow
who had stationed himself there tt
save me from death, had | fallen
and thereby had met death himself
The two men got him out, spread
his blanket over him and then turn
ed their attention TO me still hang
ing suspended some thirtyMfee
above them The huge rock ac
left a shelf-like hole in the bluff be
low me and by careful jump
landed thereon and soon reached the
bottom. We now turned our atten
ton to our guide, and as he opened
his eyes | murmured a profounc
thank God" He had fallen into {
creyice and the large rock had no.
, touched hAn, although it was or
top of hing but a smaller rock hae
hit his head and knocked him UNI
conscious He was considerably
bruised but able to resume the jour
ney which we did one half hour la
ter AS We left the falls, Mr.
Henderson remarked this Is burn
can't 20 back up the canyon If We
want to- and 'twould be impossible
to climb that bluff out OF here Blu
we had no idea we would want tC
20 back that way, so without fur
, ther comment we proceeded down
, the canyon between two perpendicu
lar bluffs hundreds OF feet high, bu
} only about twelve or fourteen fee
apart in many places-a mere cracl
in the mountain We travelled les:
than one half mile when we came
, TO another fall; this was not Sc
, high as the one above but gettine
, but it was impossible. On one
side of us the wall of the canyon
, rose perpendicularly many hundred!
, OF feet, but on the other side while
not perpendicular were almost sole
rock and sleeper than than an,
house roof ever seen in our country