Show THE EIFFEL TOWER The Wonderful Work Now Approaching Ap-proaching Completion A VERY VIVID PENPICTURE The Impressions of a French Journalist Who Was Perhaps as Near Heaven as lie Ever Will Be The construction of the Eiffel tower approaches ap-proaches to completion Tho platform of the third stage at the height of 2SO metres is nearly achieved and in a few days the campanile and the lantern which serves to crown the gigantic work of M Eiffel will be put in place Making the ascension at the present time seeing the workmen at their labors at the dizzy height of 2S0 metres 840 feet assisting assist-ing in the raising of tho enormous pieces riveted above the third stage has appeared interesting to a Parisian reporter who has thus recounted his impressions Mr Eiffel waited upon us in the little maisonette that has been erected at the entrance en-trance of the work yard serving for the offices of the several bureaus of construction construc-tion We arc in all about fifteen tourists There are also some dames who did not care to mount any higher than the socond stage Mr Eiffel presented me to the guide who accompanied me to the floor of 275 metres Four or five parsons who had already made the ascension had provided themselves them-selves with caps with ear lappets and fur gloves It appears that hats of a high form offer to the wind A PRIZE UXFOUTUNATE TO THE OWNER without gloves the intensely cold iron causes aching fingers In Indian file preceded by M Eiffel and the guide we entered in the right pillar which discloses to view one of the staircases stair-cases The 30 steps which lead to the first platform plat-form arc easy to climb This staircase has been well co icted for tho convenience of the public lll Eiffel has counselled me to imitate his gait He mounts very slowly the right arm to the hand rail balancing the body from one hip to the other Profiting Profit-ing by this springing motion we climb with moderate effort e h degree Here the slope is so inclined that we can converse with ease while climbing and no person is out of breath on arriving at the landing of the first stage The first aspect of this vast surface is that of the workyard of construction in the bustle of labor Four pavilions are being erected at the same time These are the foundations of a Flemish brewery a Russian Rus-sian restaurant an AngloAmerican saloon and bar and a Louis XIV cabinet The cellars of these pavilions will have fifty eight metres of space At the hour of repast re-past this vast terrace will accommodate 4200 inhabitants quite an aerial city At one side the windows of these restaurants restaur-ants open upon the large square which encloses en-closes the interior by the four basic pillars of the tower At the other side the diners dominate the promenade which makes a balcony overlooking over-looking Paris The city has already taken the immobility of a panorama LIFE AND MOVEMENT CEASE The silhcu ttes of the passers and the fiacres make in tho street little spots of ink very black very clear We leave here a part of our companions to engage a dozen of us in the small stair tfoeeal t i case which h will not be open to the public This has a circular ascent And one is seized with a surprising sensation at each turn of vision and the rapid mounting of the horizon The Troctisrs descends The massive sombers of the Bois de Boul ogne enter into a corner of Paris pushing the city towards the east And all at once the staircase makes a halt We have come to the stage of 120 metres The first objects ob-jects which strike the eye are the hand cars mounted on rails A circular railway is installed upon these heights for the convenience con-venience of the workmen This village is i however less important than the other below be-low The only manifestation of life and tho presence of mankind here are three constructions of unequal height a pavilion for the steam engine for hoisting material a shed and a caboose where the workmen who labor IN THE ELEVATED REGIONS descend daily to make their repast It is here much colder and the air is keener l than it was little while ago The thermometer thermome-ter registers one degree below zero The suffering from the cold is tenfold augmented by the squalls of wind which assail us In the staircase the cold iron has caused such a suffering in mv fingers that I have essayed to mount with mj hands in my pockets without holding on to the rail but tho wind tossed me about so that I was obliged to cling again to the cold rail and shelter my face from tho blinding hail with the other arm Thus during a quarter of an hour I toil upward wlthout regarding the prospect I 13 not see anything but tine paletot of M Eiffel who precedes me We do not talk any more The hailstorm ceased as we arrived at the platform of 200 metres called the Ilanchcr intermcdtarc In revenge the wind increases and is keener It seemed to me incoming upon this platform that the legs are a little feeble The vertigo I No The fotique THE FLVKUT OF TUB WIND and also the surprise of this impression well known by aeronauts The immensity of space It is truly at this height that one I enters into the upper deep The four members of the tour crowning and meeting together give to this platform the appearance of an apex to a balloon The atmosphere the glaring light assail us at all the four cardinal points And in the absence of any construbtions for shade the sensation of one has for the first time suspension and isolation But it becomes necessary to break away from these contemplations if one wishes to arrive au fail before nightfall At the moment of putting our feet upon the iron spiral staircase one perceives that it is not attached to anything tho summit Therefore There-fore it oscillates under the feet This suddenly sud-denly cools the ardor of some of the ascen sionists to the Planchcr intermcdiarc r THE EVENING IS COMING OX they say there is nothing more to see abovo than we have already discovered below They are gone Four of us remain M Eiffel M Richard the constructor of the meteorologic apparatus then the guide and myself There are no more floors nor b conies The ladders are placed upon the iron joists which overlap the spaces between They are secured at the top by ropes One must not regard anything to the right or to the left His attention must be directed only to the ladder he has before and above him After climbing the third ladder we attain the platform of 275 metres This is the plaje where the machinists are framing in tower at the present time There are about a dozen men in all seemingly lost in space As well as they can they shelter themselves from the biting windy blast by screens of aid cloth And it is their lot to receive I many rude assaults AT THE MOMENT OF OUR ARRIVAL F they are about to drive a rivet The large but is all fiery red from tho portable forge I They apply it in the hole which is to receive ceive it and the heavy forge hammers are i l wielded upon its head in a shower of I sparks I was approaching tho abyss for regarding regard-ing the distance below and I instinctively f laid hold of a rope to steady myself which seemed to hang ready to my hand Immediately Imme-diately this cord yielded to my hand and descended under my touch Lachezl lachezl let go I let go 1 cried M Eiffel This is a pullev rope I should have told you that it is a rule with the workmen never to lay hold of a cable for support I was all obedience very quickly and had lost all ambition to approach the edge to look below my feet On the contrary rather as a reassuring sensation I directed my attention to the distant hills which surrounded sur-rounded Paris while their summits were still bathed in sunlight tho shadows descended de-scended upon the city i At the momont when we were disposed to descend our guide directed our attention l to a car which penetrated into the work yard of the tower Hold said he these are the last pieces which belong to this stage Tomorrow they will bo up here This is equivalent to saying to you that be fjreong we shall have finished the tower Translated from a French journal for TIE HERALD by George Hamlin |