It was very trying to a little bit of a chap of ten years old, you know quite fresh to the job; and though Barkby give me lots of encouragement, without being too chuff, it seemed awful as soon as I got hold of the bars, which was quite warm then, and began feeling my way, hot, and smothery, and sneezy, in my cap, till I give my head such a pelt against some of the brickwork that I began to cry; for, though Id done plenty of low ones this was the first high chimbley as Id been put to. But I chokes it down, as I stood there with my little bare toes all amongst the cinders, and then began to climb.
Every now and then Barkby shoves his head under the cloth, and Go ahead, boy, hed say; and I kep on going ahead as fast as I could, for I was afeared on him, though he never spoke very gruff to me; but I had heard him go on and cuss awful, and I didnt want to put him out. So there was I, poor little chap Im sorry for myself even now, you know swarming up a little bit at a time, crying away quietly, and rubbing the skin off my poor knees and elbows, while the place felt that hot and stuffy I could hardly breathe, cramped up as I was.
Now, you wouldnt think as any one could see in the dark, with his eyes close shut, and a thick cap over his face, pulled right down to keep the sutt from getting up his nose you wouldnt think anyone could see anything there; but I could, quite plain; and what do you think it was? Why, my mothers face, looking at me so sad, and sweet, and smiling, through her tears, that it made me give quite a choking sob every now and then and climb away as hard as ever I could, though my toes and knees seemed to have the skin quite off, and smarted ever so; while I kep on slipping a bit every now and then, for I was new at climbing, and this was a long chimbley, from the housekeepers room of a great house, right from under ground, to the top.
Sometimes Id stop and have a cry, for Id feel beat out, and the face as had cheered me on was gone; but then Id hear Barkbys choky voice come muttering up the floo, same as Ive shouted to lots o boys in my time, Go ahead, boy! and Id go ahead again, though at last I was sobbing and choking as hard as I could, for I kep on thinking as I should never get to the top, and be stuck there always in the chimbley, never to come out no more.
I wont be a sweep, I wont be a sweep, I says, sobbing and crying; and all the time making up my mind as Id run away first chance, and go home again; and then, after a good long struggle, I was in the pot, with my head out, then my arms out, and the cap off for the cool wind to blow in my face.
And, ah! how cool and pleasant that first puff of wind was, and how the fear and horror seemed to go away as I climbed out, and stood looking about me; till all at once I started, for there came up out of the pot, buzzing like, Barkbys voice, as he calls out, Go ahead, boy!
So then I set to rattling away with my brush-handle to show as I was out, and then climbs down on to the roof, and begins looking about me. It was just getting daylight, so that I could see my way about, and all seemed so fresh and strange that, with my brush in my hand, I begins to wander over the roofs, climbing up the slates and sliding down tother side, which was good fun, and worth doing two or three times over. Then I got to a parapet, and leaned looking over into the street, and thinking of what a way it would be to tumble; but so far off being afraid, I got on to the stone coping, and walked along ever so far, till I came to an attic window, where I could peep in and see a man lying asleep, with his mouth half open; then I climbed up another slope, and had another slide down; and then another, and another, till I forgot all about my sore knees; and at last sat astride of the highest part, looking about me at the view I had of the tops of houses
and up under me came a rush of hot smoke that nearly suffocated me right off; when I gave such a horrid shriek of fear as Ive never forgot neither, for the sound of it frightened me worse.
It didnt sound like my voice at all, as I kept on shrieking, and groaning, and crying for help, too frightened to move, though Ive often thought since as a little twisting on my part would have set me loose, to try and climb up again. But, bless you, no; I could do nothing but shout and cry, with the noise I made sounding hollow and stifly, and the heat and smoke coming up so as to nearly choke me over and over again.
I knew fast enough now that I had come down a chimbley where there had been a clear fire, and now some one had put lumps of coal on, and been breaking them up; and in the fright I was in I could do nothing else but shout away till my voice got weak and wiry, and I coughed and wheezed for breath.
But I hadnt been crying for nothing, though; for soon I heard some one shout up the chimbley, and then came a deal of poking and noise, and the smoke and heat came curling up by me worse than ever, so that I thought it was all over with me, but at the same time came a whole lot of hot, bad-smelling steam; and then some one knocked at the bricks close by my head, and I heard a buzzing sound, when I gave a hoarse sort of cry, and then felt stupid and half asleep.