Walking was included in the athletics approved by the Girls' Branch and
the girls of Central High did not have to wait for the athletic field to
be put into condition before they took part in this most accessible and
perhaps wisest of all physical exercises.
Many a famous athlete has kept himself in perfect training for years by
little more than a straight-away walk of a few miles each day. Walking
brings into play more muscles than almost any other exercise--and muscles
that are of "practical" use, too. Mrs. Case had planned for eight walks
during each school year for both her elementary and advanced classes.
For the younger girls the longest walk was not over three miles. The
advanced girls, however, after training by much walking on Saturdays,
were advanced steadily from two, to three, then four, then six, then
eight, and finally to a ten mile walk. Only those girls of the
sophomores, juniors and seniors in the best physical condition were
allowed to take these longer walks.
On the Saturday after "touching day" of the M. O. R. came the first of
the two mile walks to be carried out that season. The girls gathered at
the schoolhouse at two o'clock and Mrs. Case looked them over carefully.
"Miss Morse, I cannot approve of those shoes. I have told you before
that any girl is foolish to wear high heels and attempt to keep up any
pace in walking," was the athletic instructor's comment.
"But, Mrs. Case! these are only Cuban heels," cried poor Jess.
"That makes no difference. Some girls might be able to wear that heel
with comfort. Not you, Miss Morse. Your instep is not high enough. You
are cramping your foot. First thing you know your arches will begin to
fall. Then you will know what suffering is, young lady. It is bad
shoeing that makes so many people suffer from 'flatfoot.' Haven't you a
pair of comfortable shoes in your locker?"
"Yes, ma'am," admitted the girl who followed the fashions so
assiduously.
"And what's that on your face, Miss?"
"P--p--powder!" stammered Jess, while some of the other girls giggled.
"Well, powder on one's face may be all right if one has a greasy, coarse
skin. But I did not think your complexion was of that nature. Take a
little of it off, please. We don't wish to attract any more attention
than possible going through the street. Next thing, I suppose, some of
you girls will begin to use rouge--pah!"
Some of the other girls rubbed their own cheeks and noses on the sly.
And some smiled knowingly at Lily Pendleton. Lily's face to-day was
almost as highly colored as that of her chum, Hester. But Hester's
complexion was naturally red and coarse, whereas ordinarily Lily had no
more color than the flower for which she was named.
Mrs. Case chanced to overlook Miss Pendleton's rosy cheeks, however, and
they filed out of the school house, Mrs. Case walking with the last
girl.
Laura and Jess were ahead, for they knew the route selected. There was
no attempt in any of these walks to make fast time; nor did the
instructor allow them to stroll. The idea was to go at a comfortable,
straight-away pace, and to rest when tired. The pace was that at which
the least active girl could walk comfortably.
At the resting points Mrs. Case usually gave little lectures upon the
exercise, or discussed questions of athletics, or informed the girls
upon historical points or public buildings which they passed. This day
the route lay down the hill, across Market Street, and out through the
east end of the city.
At the corner of Rowan Street they passed a big open lot where boys were
flying kites. There was a brisk wind and one youngster was just putting
into the air a kite which the girls watched for a few moments. But there
was something much more interesting going on a couple of blocks beyond.
There had been a heavy thunderstorm during the week and lightning had
damaged the steeple of St. Cecelia's Episcopal Church a few feet below
the apex. How much damage had been done the masonry could not easily be
learned without making a close examination and the fire insurance
adjuster had sent a professional steeple climber to make it.
Quite a crowd had gathered in the square to watch the work of this
expert, and as the girls came up the steeple-jack had just passed out at
the belfry at the foot of the spire. Two men came with him to set up and
hold a ladder which reached some distance up the steeple.
The man mounted this ladder very quickly. At the top he passed a rope
around his body and around the steeple, and then began to work upward.
It looked like a very dangerous feat, and the girls were all interested
in it. He mounted steadily and soon reached the place where the
lightning had struck. Here his progress ceased and he seemed to be
trying to adjust the rope.
"He's stuck!" exclaimed Jess. "Don't you see?"
"Oh, I guess not," returned Laura.
But seconds grew into minutes, minutes slipped away, and still he seemed
unable to move, and the anxious spectators below became more and more
apprehensive.
Finally from his giddy height the man was seen to pause and wave his
hand, as if signalling to the men at the foot of the ladder. But they
were sixty feet below him and it was evident that they did not hear his
words at first. Finally they seemed to understand, and one of them came
down inside the belfry and joined a group of men in the porch of the
church.
The girls had crossed over to the porch and could hear all that was
said.
"I told you he was stuck," said Jess, excitedly.
And it was a fact. They learned that the steeple-jack's rope had caught
in a crevice where the lightning bolt had forced the stones apart, and
he was unable to move up or down. His signal was for help, but the men
did not know what to do. Many schemes were hastily suggested; but nobody
could climb the steeple to aid him, and how to get another rope up to
him was a problem that nobody seemed able to solve.
The man was in a serious predicament. One of the onlookers--a tall old
man with a flowing white beard, became much excited.
"That's Colonel Swayne," whispered Hester Grimes. "He is one of the
church wardens."
"We must aid the man. He cannot stay in that position long," declared
Col. Swayne. "He'll fall out of that sling. Come!" he added, addressing
the crowd in the square. "I'll give ten dollars to anybody who will
suggest a practical method of getting the man down."
The girls were so interested that the walking exercise was forgotten for
the time being. They gathered around Mrs. Case, and some of them began
to cry.
"The man will fall! He'll be killed!" was the general opinion.
But Laura had separated from the other girls and in a moment was running
across the square. Nobody noticed her departure. She disappeared around
the corner and in ten minutes returned with two or three boys in tow.
One of the boys carried an immense kite.
"Colonel Swayne!" cried Laura, from the outskirts of the crowd, "if you
will let us try, I believe we can get a line to that man on the
steeple."
"What's that, young lady?" demanded the old gentleman, quickly.
"You will pay the boys for their kite if it is lost, won't you?" the
girl asked.
"Of course we will!" exclaimed the warden. "I see your scheme. You're a
smart girl. Can you get that kite up here in the square, boys?"
The boys said they would try. But it was Laura who advised them upon the
direction of the wind, and how to raise the kite properly. She had flown
kites with Chet more than once.
They tested the wind, selected the point from which to fly the kite, and
the increasing crowd of spectators watched with breathless interest.
Slowly the kite left the ground and rose above the treetops. The wind
was steady and it rose faster and faster as they paid out the line.
Finally the kite was above the steeple.
The steeple-jack understood what they were attempting, and waved his
hand to them. The kite-string was manipulated so as to bring it within
the man's reach. He grasped it, and a cheer went up from the crowd.
[Illustration: THE KITE STRING WAS MANIPULATED SO AS TO BRING IT WITHIN
THE MAN'S REACH.]
But there was more to follow. Laura had sent one of the boys to a store
for a hundred yards of clothes line. This was attached by one end to the
kite string, and the man on the steeple cut the kite loose and drew up
the clothes line.
When he held the heavier line a piece of stronger rope was attached to
the clothes line and that was raised, too. Down fell the coil of clothes
line, and they saw the steeple-jack rig himself a new sling, by which he
soon descended to the ladder, and by the ladder to the church roof and
safety.
The crowd cheered when this was accomplished, and Colonel Swayne broke
through the throng about Laura.
"You are certainly a quick-witted girl," he said, shaking her by the
hand. "You are her teacher, are you?" he added to Mrs. Case. "Humph!
from Central High, are you? Well, if all your young ladies are as
quick-witted as she it must be a pleasure to teach them."
He placed a ten dollar gold piece in Laura's hand, and Laura whispered
to Mrs. Case that she wanted to get away quickly from the spot.
"Those other men are coming, too," she whispered. "Let's go before they
all want to shake hands. Do, do come away, Mrs. Case!"
The athletic instructor laughed and nodded, and Laura and Jess took up
the line of march again. But when they were well away from the crowd,
Jess began to laugh.
"Who says we can't get money from Colonel Swayne for our Athletic
Association?" she cried. "What a smart girl you are, Laura!"
"I'm going to give this ten dollars into the treasury. And it won't be
the last money I get from Colonel Swayne for the same object--now you
see!"