Lesson 35 Television Day: Blondin
The great acrobat, Blondin, was very famous in the 19th century. He used to walk on a tight-rope the Niagara Falls. On September 8th, 1860, a crowd of about 300,000 people gathered at Niagara to watch Blondin carry a man across! Three men had offered to go with him, but they failed to appear, so Blondin asked his manager, Mr Colcord, to climb on his back. Colcord agreed to do this so as not to disappoint the crowd, but he was terrified. The crossing was very difficult because Colcord was heavier than Blondin thought. After he had gone a short way, Blondin had to stop in order to rest. He asked Colcord to get down. At first Colcord refused, but at last he had to. He clung to Blondin's leg and the rope in order not to fall. Blondin had to stop six times during the crossing so as to rest. Sometimes the rope swung as much as 40 feet! At last both men crossed safely. The crowd sighed with relief-and so did poor Mr Colcord! |