"A Boy and A Man"-James Ramsey Ullman

While mountain climbing, Rudi hears a voice from deep inside the ice and tries his best to help. Read this passage and then answer the questions that follow.

A Boy and a Man

James Ramsey Ullman

The crevasse* was about six feet wide at the top and narrowed gradually as it went down. But how deep it was Rudi could not tell. After a few feet the blue walls of ice curved away at a sharp slant, and what was below the curve was hidden from sight.

“Hello!” Rudi called.

“Hello—” A voice answered from the depths. “How far down are you?”

“I’m not sure. About twenty feet, I’d guess.” “On the bottom?”

“No. I can’t even see the bottom. I was lucky and hit a ledge.”

The voice spoke in German, but with a strange accent. Whoever was down there, Rudi knew, it was not one of the men of the valley.

“Are you hurt?” he called.

“Nothing broken—no,” said the voice. “Just shaken up some. And cold.”

“How long have you been there?”

“About three hours.”

Rudi looked up and down the crevasse. He was thinking desperately of what he could do. “Do you have a rope?” asked the voice. “No.”

“How many of you are there?”

“Only me.”

There was a silence. When the voice spoke again, it was still quiet and under strict control. “Then you’ll have to get help,” it said.

Rudi didn’t answer. To get down to Kurtal would take at least two hours, and for a party to climb back up would take three. By that time it would be night, and the man would have been in the crevasse for eight hours. He would be frozen to death.

“No,” said Rudi, “it would take too long.” “What else is there to do?”

Rudi’s eyes moved over the ice-walls: almost vertical, smooth as glass. “Have you an ax?” he asked.

“No. I lost it when I fell. It dropped to the bottom.”

“Have you tried to climb?”

“Yes. But I can’t get a hold.”

There was another silence. Rudi’s lips tightened, and when he spoke again his voice was strained. “I’ll think of something,” he cried. “I’ll think of something!”

“Don’t lose your head,” the voice said. “The only way is to go down for help.”

“But you’ll—”

“Maybe. And maybe not. That’s a chance we’ll have to take.”

The voice was as quiet as ever. And, hearing it, Rudi was suddenly ashamed. Here was he, safe on the glacier’s surface, showing fear and despair, while the one below, facing almost certain death, remained calm and controlled. Whoever it was down there, it was a real man. A brave man.

Rudi drew in a long, slow breath. With his climbing-staff he felt down along the smooth surface of the ice walls.

“Are you still there?” said the voice. “Yes,” he said.

“You had better go.”

“Wait—”

Lying flat on the glacier, he leaned over the rim of the crevasse and lowered the staff as far as it would go. Its end came almost to the curve in the walls.

“Can you see it?” he asked.

“See what?” said the man.

Obviously he couldn’t. Standing up, Rudi removed his jacket and tied it by one sleeve to the curved end of the staff. Then, holding the other end, he again lay prone and lowered his staff and jacket.

“Can you see it now?” he asked. “Yes,” said the man.

“How far above you is it?” “About ten feet.”

Again the staff came up. Rudi took off his shirt and tied one of its sleeves to the dangling sleeve of the jacket. This time, as he lay down, the ice bit, cold and rough, into his bare chest; but he scarcely noticed it. With his arms extended, all the shirt and half the jacket were out of sight beneath the curve in the crevasse.

“How near you now?” he called. “Not far,” said the voice.

“Can you reach it?”

“I’m trying.”

There was the sound of scraping boot-nails; of labored breathing. But no pull on the shirtsleeve down below.

“I can’t make it,” said the voice. It was fainter than before.

“Wait,” said Rudi.

For the third time he raised the staff. He took off his trousers. He tied a trouser-leg to the loose sleeve of the shirt. Then he pulled, one by one, at all the knots he had made: between staff and jacket, jacket and shirt, shirt and trousers.

He pulled until the blood pounded in his head

and the knots were as tight as his strength could make them. This done, he stepped back from the crevasse to the point where his toes had rested when he lay flat. With feet and hands he kicked and scraped the ice until he had made two holes. Then, lying down as before, he dug his toes deep into them. He was naked now, except for his shoes, stockings and underpants. The cold rose from the ice into his blood and bones. He lowered the staff and knotted clothes like a sort of crazy fishing line.

The trousers, the shirt and half of the jacket passed out of sight. He was leaning over as far as he could.

“Can you reach it now?” he called.

“Yes,” the voice answered.

“All right. Come on.”

“You won’t be able to hold me. I’ll pull you in.”

“No you won’t.”

He braced himself. The pull came. His toes went taut in their ice-holds and his hands tightened on the staff until the knuckles showed white. Again he could hear a scraping sound below, and he knew that the man was clawing his boots against the ice-wall, trying both to lever himself up and to take as much weight as possible off the improvised lifeline. But the wall obviously offered little help. Almost all his weight was on the lifeline. Suddenly there was a jerk, as one of the knots in the clothing slipped, and the staff was almost wrenched from Rudi’s hands. But the knot held. And his hands held. He tried to call down, “All right?” but he had no breath for words. From below, the only sound was the scraping of boots on ice.

How long it went on Rudi could never have said. Perhaps only for a minute or so. But it seemed like hours. And then at last—at last—it happened.

A hand came into view around the curve of the crevasse wall: a hand gripping the twisted fabric

of his jacket, and then a second hand rising slowly above it. A head appeared. A pair of shoulders. A face was raised for an instant and then lowered. Again one hand moved slowly up past the other.

But Rudi no longer saw it, for now his eyes were shut tight with the strain. His teeth were clamped, the cords of his neck bulged, the muscles of his arm felt as if he were being drawn one by one from the bones that held them. He began to lose his toeholds. He was being dragged forward. Desperately, frantically, he dug in with his feet, pressed his whole body down, as if he could make it part of the glacier. Though all but naked on the ice, he was pouring with sweat. Somehow he stopped the slipping. Somehow he held on. But now suddenly the strain was even worse, for the man had reached the lower end of the staff. The slight “give” of the stretched clothing was gone, and in its place was rigid deadweight on a length of wood. The climber was close now. But heavy. Indescribably heavy. Rudi’s hands ached and burned, as if it were a rod of hot lead that they clung to. It was not a mere man he was holding, but a giant; or a block of granite. The pull was unendurable. The pain unendurable. He could hold on no longer. His hands were opening. It was all over.

And then it was over. The weight was gone. There was a scraping sound close beneath him; a hand on the rim of ice; a figure pulling itself up onto the lip of the crevasse. The man was beside Rudi, turning to him, staring at him.

“Why—you’re just a boy!” he said in astonishment.

Rudi was too numb to move or speak. Taking the staff from him, the man pulled up the line of clothes, untied the knots and shook them out.

"Come on now. Quickly!" he said.

Pulling the boy to his feet, he helped him dress. Then he rubbed and pummeled him until at last Rudi felt the warmth of returning circulation.

"Better?" the man asked, smiling.

Rudi nodded. And finally he was able to speak again.

"And you, sir," he said, "you are all right?"

The man nodded. He was warming himself now: flapping his arms and kicking his feet together. "A few minutes of sun and I'll be as good as new."

Nearby, a black boulder lay embedded in the glacial ice, and, going over to it, they sat down. The sunlight poured over them like a warm bath. Rudi slowly flexed his aching fingers and saw that the man was doing the same. And then the man had raised his eyes and was looking at him.

"It's a miracle how you did it," he said. "A boy of your size. All alone."

"It was nothing." Rudi murmured. "Nothing?"

"I-I only-"

"Only saved my life." said the man.

For the first time, now, Rudi was really seeing him. He was a man of perhaps thirty, very tall and thin, and his face, too, was thin, with a big hawklike nose and a strong jutting chin. His weather-browned cheeks were clean-shaven, his hair black, his eyes deep-set and gray. And when he spoke, his voice was still almost as quiet as when it had been muffled by the ice-walls of the crevasse. He is-what?Rudi thought. Not Swiss, he knew. Not French or German. English, perhaps? Yes, English.... And then suddenly a deep excitement filled him, for he knew who the man was.

"You are Captain Winter?" he murmured.

"'That's right."

"And I-I have saved-I mean-"

Rudi stopped in confusion, and the Englishman grinned. "You've saved," he said, smiling, "one of the worst imbeciles that ever

Literary Analysis

Conflict with Nature What is the moment at which the conflict is most intense?

pummeled pounded; beat

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---Critical Viewing

What details of this photograph might inspire Rudi? Explain. [Speculate]

walked on a glacier. An imbecile who was so busy looking up at a mountain that he couldn't even see what was at his feet.

Rudi was wordless-almost stunned. He looked at the man, and then away in embarrassment, and he could scarcely believe what had happened. The name of Captain John Winter was known through the length and breadth of the Alps. He was the foremost mountaineer of his day, and during the past ten years had made more first ascents of great peaks than any other man alive. Rudi had heard that he had come to Kiirtal a few days before. He had hoped that at least he would see him in the hotel or walking by in the street. But actually to meet him-and in this way! To pull him from a crevasse-save him.... It was incredible!

Captain Winter was watching him. "And you, son," he asked. "What is your name?"

Somehow the boy got his voice back. "Rudi," he said. "Rudi Matt."

---Reading Check What surprises Captain Winter about Rudi?

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"Matt?" Now it was the man's turn to be impressed. "Not of the family of the great Josef Matt?"

"He was my father," Rudi said.

Captain Winter studied him with his gray eyes. Then he smiled again. "I should have known," he said. "A boy who could do what you've done"

"Did you know my father, sir?"

"No, unfortunately I didn't. He was before my day. But ever since I was a boy I have heard of him. In twenty years no one has come to the Alps and not heard of the great guide, Josef Matt."

Rudi's heart swelled. He looked away. His eyes fixed on the vast mountain that rose before them, and then he saw that Captain Winter was watching it too.

Unconsciously the Englishman spoke his thoughts. "Your father was=" He caught himself and stopped.

"Yes," said Rudi softly, "he was killed on the Citadel."

There was a silence. Captain Winter reached into a pocket and brought out an unbroken bar of chocolate. "Lucky I fell on the other side," he grinned.

He broke the bar in two and handed half to Rudi.

"Oh, no, sir, thank you. I couldn't."

"When I meet a boy your age who can't eat chocolate," said Winter, "I'll be glad to stay in a crevasse for good."

Rudi took it, and they sat munching. The sun was warm on their thawing bodies. Far above, it struck the cliffs and snowfields of the Citadel, so brightly that they had to squint against the glare.

Then there was Winter's quiet voice again.

"What do you think, Rudi?

'Think, sir?

"Can it be climbed?"

"Climbed? The Citadel?"

"Your father thought so. Alone among all the guides of Switzerland, he thought so." There was another pause. "And I think so too," said Captain Winter.

The boy was peering again at the shining heights. And suddenly his heart was pounding so hard that he was sure the Englishman must be able to hear it. "Is-is that why you have come here, sir?" he asked. "To try to climb the Citadel?"

"Well, now-" Winter smiled. "It's not so simple, you know. For one thing, there's not a guide in the valley who would go with me." "I have an uncle, sir. He is-"

Literary Analysis

Conflict with Nature How does the detail about Rudi's father influence the view of nature in the story?

---Critical Viewing Based on what you've read, what supplies and equipment do you think these climbers might be carrying? [Apply]

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"Yes, I know your uncle. Franz Lerner. He is the best in Kurtal, and I've spoken to him. But he would not go. Anything but that, he said. Any other peak, any route, any venture. But not that, he said. Not the Citadel."

"He remembers my father-"

"Yes, he remembers your father. They all remember him. And while they love and respect his memory, they all think he was crazy." Winter chuckled softly. "Now they think I'm crazy," he added. "And maybe they're right too," he said.

"What will you do, sir?" asked Rudi. "Not try it alone?"

"No, that crazy I'm not." Winter slowly stroked his long jaw. "I'm not certain what I'll do," he went on. "Perhaps I'll go over to the next valley. To Broli. I've been told there is a guide there-a man called Saxo. Do you know him?"

"Yes-Emil Saxo. I have never met him, but I have heard of him. They say he is a very great guide."

"Well, I thought perhaps I'd go and talk with him. After a while. But first I must reconnoiter some more. Make my plans. Pick the route. If there is a route."

"Yes, there is! Of course there is!"

Rudi had not thought the words. They simply burst out from him. And now again he was embarrassed as the man looked at him curiously.

"So?" said Captain Winter. "That is interesting, Rudi. Tell me why you think so."

"I have studied the Citadel many times, sir."

“Why?”

"Because-because=" He stopped. He couldn't say it.

"Because you want to climb it yourself?"

"I am not yet a grown man, sir. I know I cannot expect-"

"I wasn't a grown man either," said the Captain, "when I first saw the Citadel. I was younger than you-only twelve-and my parents had brought me here for a summer holiday. But I can still remember how I felt when I looked up at it, and the promise I made myself that some day I was going to climb it." He paused. His eyes moved slowly upward. "Youth is the time for dreams, boy," he murmured. "The trick is, when you get older, not to forget them."

Rudi listened, spellbound. He had never heard anyone speak like that. He had not known a grown man could think and feel like that. Then Winter asked:

"This east face, Rudi-what do you think of it?"

"Think of it, sir?"

"Could it be climbed?"

Rudi shook his head. "No, it is no good. The long chimney2 thereyou see. It looks all right: it could be done. And to the left, ledges"

2. chimney deep, narrow crack in a cliff face, large enough to climb into.

reconnoiter look around

---Reading Strategy Making Predictions What prediction about the captain's search for a guide can you make based on Rudi's remark about the route?

---Reading Check What do Rudi and Captain Winter discuss?

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he pointed-"they could be done too. But higher up, no. They stop. The chimney stops, and there is only smooth rock."

"What about the northeast ridge?"

"That is not good either."

"It's not so steep."

"No, it is not so steep," said Rudi. "But the rocks are bad. They slope out, with few places for holds."

"And the north face?"

Rudi talked on. About the north face, the west ridge, the southwest ridge. He talked quietly and thoughtfully, but with deep inner excitement, for this was the first time in his life that he had been able to speak to anyone of these things which he had thought and studied for so long.... And then suddenly he stopped, for he realized what he was doing. He, Rudi Matt, a boy of sixteen who worked in the kitchen of the Beau Site Hotel, was presuming to give his opinions to one of the greatest climbers in the world.

But Captain Winter had been listening intently. Sometimes he nodded. "Go on," he said now, as Rudi paused.

"But I am only-"

"Go on."

And Rudi went on ...

"That doesn't leave much," said the captain a little later.

"No, sir," said the boy.

"Only the southeast ridge."

"Yes, sir."

"That was the way your father tried, wasn't it?"

"Yes, sir."

"And you believe it's the only way?"

"Yes, sir."

Captain Winter rubbed his jaw for a moment before speaking again. Then-"That also is very interesting to me, Rudi," he said quietly, "because it is what I believe too."

Later, they threaded their way down the Blue Glacier. For a while they moved in silence. Then Captain Winter asked: "What do you do, Rudi?"

"Do, sir?"

"Are you an apprentice guide? A porter?"

Rudi swallowed. "No sir."

"What then?"

He could hardly say it. "A-dishwasher."

"A dishwasher?"

---Critical Viewing Based on what you've read, how could this equipment be helpful to a mountain climber? [Analyze]

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"In the Beau Site Hotel. It is my mother, sir. Since my father died, you see, she is afraid-she does not want-" Rudi swallowed again. "I am to go into the hotel business," he murmured.

"Oh."

Again they moved on without speaking. It was now late afternoon, and behind them the stillness was broken by a great roaring, as sun-loosened rock and ice broke off from the heights of the Citadel.

When they reached the path Rudi spoke again, hesitantly. "Will you please do me a favor, sir," he asked.

"Of course," said Winter.

"Before we come to the town we will separate. And you will please not tell anyone that I have been up here today?"

The Englishman looked at him in astonishment. "Not tell anyone? You save my life, boy, and you want me to keep it a secret?"

"It was nothing, sir. Truly. And if you say that I have been in the mountains, my mother and uncle will hear, and I will be in I trouble." Rudi's voice took on a note of urgency. "You will not do it, sir? You will promise-please?"

Winter put a hand on his shoulder. "Don't worry," he said., "I won't get you in trouble." Then he smiled and added:

"Master Rudi Matt-dishwasher."

They walked down the path. The sun sank. Behind them, the mountain roared.

Literary Analysis

Conflict with Nature What does the detail about Rudi's occupation suggest about a conflict in the novel that is not with nature?

Review and Assess

Thinking About the Selection

1. Respond: Would you like to know Rudi? Why or why not?

2. (a) Recall: Who are the boy and the man referred to in the title of this story? (b) Analyze: Explain how the title might also be used to describe two sides of Rudi.

3. (a) Interpret: Captain Winter says, "Youth is the time for dreams." What is Rudi's dream? (b) Infer: Why has Rudi been unable to fulfill his dream?

4. (a) Recall: What advice does Rudi give Captain Winter about climbing the Citadel? (b) Generalize: How might giving Captain Winter advice help Rudi solve his own problem?

5. (a) Infer: What problems would climbing the Citadel pose for Rudi and Captain Winter? (b) Contrast: Explain how their problems are different. (c) Make a Judgment: Whose problem is more difficult to solve?

6. Take a Position: Should Rudi be allowed to climb in spite of his mother's fears? Explain.

James Ramsey Ullman

(1907-1971)

Born in the shadow of the mountainlike skyscrapers of New York City, James Ramsey Ullman developed a love for climbing that made him feel more at home in the Himalayas of Tíbet than on New York's crowded streets. Although he personally did not climb Mt. Everest, he was a member of the first American expedition to the mountain.

Ullman was also a talented writer who worked as a reporter and wrote fiction and plays. He combined his love of climbing and his writing skill in Banner in the Sky, which won a Newbery Honor award. Five of Ullman's books became films, including The White Tower, River of the Sun, and Banner in the Sky.

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