| Show his life for duty last of all they told the story of old captain and the holyoke dam a story known to every diver it beems there was a leak in this dam and the water was rushing through with so strong a suction that it seem ed certain death for a diver to go near enough to stop the leak yet it was extremely important that the leak be stopped in tact the saving of the dam depended on it bo capt conk ling who as in charge of the job in deuced one of his divers to go down and reluctantly the man put on his suit but insisted on having an extra rope and a very strong one tied around his waist that for asked to help get my body out it the life line breaks said the diver go on and do your work replied conkling who had little use tor sen ciment it happened exactly as the diver feared he was drawn into the sue tion of the hole and when they tried to pull him up both hose and life line parted and the man was drowned but they managed to rescue his body wibb the heavy line just as he had planned then conkling called for another diver but not a man responded they said they t that kind of fools all right said the captain in his businesslike way then go down myself and stop that hole and ha called the men to dress him at this time capt conkling was 75 years old and had retired long since from active diving but he was as strong as a horse still and no man had ever questioned his courage in vain they tried to dissuade him stop that hole said he and I 1 don t want extra rope either he kept his word he went down and he stopped the hole but it was with his dead body and day ome where in the holyoke dam lie the bones of brave old capt conkling in cased in a full diving dress helmet hose and life line burled in that mass of masonry no man ever dared go down after his body from cleveland moffett a careers of danger and daring the century company |
