The daily phoenix. [volume] (Columbia, S.C.) 1865-1878, 1868-12-11
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Tho story OF . Nsrrpss ls sscsEe.
a correspondent of the Journal 0,
The Telegraph writes from Portland,
Maine:
"In the month of April, 1867. q
fearful gale sprang up one Sunday
night, which prostrsted the telegraph
wires between Portland and Bangor,
in most discouraging manner. TAX
ing crew. of men with the necessary
materials. / started from Bangor on
the early train, dropping man at
the stations as we went along, to foot
it back and mend the break. 1 saw
some fifty breaks within seventy-five
miles, besides numerous crosses and
trees on the wires. When I arrived
at Lewiston, something over 100
miles from Bangor, ran to the Of
foe, and found it was o. K. to Port
land. I at once telegraphed repair
.1ian Pierre to take the train and go
through to Waterville, without stop
ping, and I %cn!ll meet him on his
arrival there. This Pierre was mo-
del repairman--always ready and
willing, and not only anxious to do
two mems work in day, but gene
rally did it. I had just time to jump
on a freight going East; and, as luck
would have it, business was light
that week on the road, and I pressed
the conductor and engineer into SER
vice. They stopped the train at every
break and helped me repair, and,
when the regular passenger train
overlook us near Waterville, I jumped
on board, apd in few moments
found the wires we're o. X. to Water
vile. AS soon as possible, I obtained
q hand Lear, and hiring a couple of
Frenchmen to propel it, started with
Pierre for night raid 1t happen
ed to be bright. moonlight night,
the only one during that whole moon.
about midnight we were between
Clinton and Burnham. The French
men were clearing heavy tree from
the wires, and Pierre was some dis
tance in advance, on top of pole. I
was near by, endeavoring to extricate
the wire from mass of roots in
which it had become entangled, when
/ was startled by cracking in the
woods, like the stealthy tread of
some heavy animal on the dry twigs.
Involnntarily grasping my hatchet, T
stood with ears and eyes open, and
as I peered around I caught sight of
what seemed, to my excited imagina-
ton, to be two black heads, slowly
and cautiously appearing above the
clump. I thought to myself, here
ls O situation for the father of a
family! It was of no use to run, for,
as it appeared to me, then, there was
the bare (bear) fact of eight legs
against two; but as the black heads
emerged and their bodies came into
view. saw that they were not bears
at all, but two good sized boys. The
next instant / was Mortified by seeing
them raise their guns and take deli
berate aim at Pierre, who was away
mp on the pole, quietly attending to
his business, and unconscious of the
danger which menaced him. Like
lightning it flashed into my mind
that they took him for bear, and I
gave yell which must have aston
ished all who heard it. It had the
desired effect, however, and I came
out of the woods and explained to
the boys that it was human up
that pole, and that objected to their
giving him q double dose of blue
pills, as / did not think his diaphragm
would stand it.
NPierre was in high state of
wrath when he discovered how near
he had come to having his connec-
ton broken, and he delivered q small
speech from his cedar pulpit, which
was anything but complimentary to
the moonlight huntsmen. He ad-
vised them to go back to their musk
rat-hunting, and not attempt to shoot
bears with homeopathic pills. The
boys apologized to the best of their
ability and fitted.
cit was a narrow escape, but we
could not stop to moralize. We kept
on with our work and made twenty
miles that night, removing some fifty
trees from the wires, and mending
numerous breaks At half-past 10 q.
m. i, we had the satisfaction of feeling
the current both ways. and knowing
that the wires were in working condi-
ton through"
A NEW WAY TO TRsr L1QUoR. A
( man travelling entered tavern, and
40 u l. L