184 History of Gutta-Percha Witlie,

 

six poles, a foot from the thick end; after which
he connected the poles with the tree, each by a
hooked rod and its corresponding staples, when
the tops of the poles just reached to the first fork
of the elm. Then he nailed a bracket to the tree,
at the height of an easy step from the ground, and
at the same height nailed a piece of wood across
between two of the poles. Resting on the bracket
and this piece of wood, he laid the first step of a
stair, and fastened it firmly to both. Another
bracket a little higher, and another piece of wood
nailed to two poles, raised the next step; and so
he went round and round the tree in an ascending
spiral, climbing on the steps already placed to fix
others above them. Encircling the tree some four
or five times, for he wanted the ascent easy for
little feet, he was at length at its fork. There he
laid a platform or landing-place, and paused to
consider what to do next. This was on the third
evening from the laying of the first step.

From the fork many boughs rose and spread—
amongst them two very near each other, between
which he saw how, by help of various inequalities,
he might build a little straight staircase leading up
into. a perfect wilderness of leaves and branches.
He set about it at once, and, although he found it
more difficult than he had expected, succeeded at
last in building a safe stair between the boughs,
with a hand-rail of rope on each side.