The Lakeland evening telegram. (Lakeland, Fla.) 1911-1922, 1916-12-05
II never thought of that"

soon as possible. The Tenth street
property which you and Eva own
Jointly must either be owned by both
as one or divided. To divide it would
be ruin. Come! Bestir yourself
"I'll see what can do" replied
Amos as he strobe away thoughtfully.
Amos and Eva lived in billy coun-
try that in part might be called noun
famous There was one place called
the Devils Climb because an ambitious
youth had lost his life trying to get up
it. Amos was driving past it one day
when he saw a man scaling it like a
cat. Indeed. while he climbed with
the agility of a cat, he seemed TO be
endowed with invisible wings. He not
only climbed. he flew. No part of the
cliff was so perpendicular that he could
not mount it, At times it seemed he
was about to fall backward and be
mangled on rocks a hundred feet be-
low, but he always caught, sometimes
on the edge of a landing above him;
sometimes he would draw himself up
sustain kitten. Yet up he went, sur
mounting every difficulty, till he reach
ed the summit, then turned and. as
Stunning a theatrical attitude, took of
his hat and waved it to imaginary per-
sons below.
AS soon as he had achieved his eX'
plot a group Of persons who had been
standing near began to shout and wave
to him to the music Of movie cam
era which had been set up near enough
for Amos to hear Then, the show be-
ing over, the players moved away.
Then Amos, looking about him, 81 =
things that he had not noticed before.
Several cameras were being removed
and placed in vehicles. A man on top
of the cliff was taking down sort
of derrick that had been hidden FROM
view. while one at the bottom was coil
ing a wire and taking apart an APP
paratus similar to that above. A man
was directing the transfers, and Amos
approached him.
"Thc man who climbed the cliff was
pulled up by wire. | presume" he
said
Just SO; ard donkey engine
There 1t is going into that wagon"
Gould l secure this paraphernalia
and these men to hoist me up there?"
81 reckon you can If you want to pay
for it,
| tsyyyl,ok x,-n,,ll most
"Well. reckon about hundred dol
lars"
"I'll pay you the hundred dollars Il
you'll permit me to choose my owl
time. Would need any practice?"
You could do a better job by having
had practice. but it isn't absolutel!
necessary"
| Amos paid the man $40 on account
and he agreed to be on hand with thu
apparatus set up the following after
noon at o'clock.
The next day Amos took Eva to rid
and directed his car to the Devil
Climb. On reaching point a fey
hundred yards from it Amos pulled u
|
cence, thus addressed her:
"You have thought proper to in
pugn my courage. You have intimate
that am nothing better than a worl
Of the dust. You have said that yO
wished some one for a husband VIII
would elevate, not drag, you to eartl
This, coming from one love bette
than my life. has blighted it. 1t is II
value to me. l am going to risk 1t
convince you that am man. not
coward"
Jumping from the car, he ran t
ward the Devils Climb. Reaching
point directly beneath 1t, he pause
and looked up. He was doing som
thing with his hands, but Eva cou
not discern what 1t was. He hooked
wire to a belt under his shoulder
Then he began to climb.
Great heavensw cried Eva. rs
going to try to scale that cliff"
Amos sprang lightly over the low,
rocks, which were comparatively cas-
to scale Then he reached a perpe
dicular rock higher than his head. J
sprang up, clutched it, and in anoth
moment stood upon it, The ascent no
became more difficult, but the mo
difficult 1t was the easier 1t seemed f
him. When he was nearing the
he stopped beneath straight up al
! down face in the rock and careful
placed foot in a cavity. Then cate
ing slight projection he placed {
) other foot on similar support.
was midway up the face Of the ro
S when he fell backward.
$ Eva gave a shrek loud enough
y wake the dead and covered her ey
= with her hands.
N In moment she took them aw
) and looked again. Heaven be praise
Y Amos had been caught by a scrub II
growing out of the face of the cliff.
4, Giving a spring, he seemed to
le back to the cliff slightly below I
r. rock from which he had fallen a
g proceeded to make a second attem
" to scale it.
# Eva shouted to him to stop. Whet
= er or not he heard her he paid no
tention to her. This time he succe
=, | ed I'm standing upon a narrow landj