The Portland daily press. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921, 1879-02-14
The Facts About Sam Snyder.

We were all sitting out on the piazza in
front of Blyef's store, and Abner ByDg was
there, with his legs cooked mp against post
and his chair tilted back. Dr.. Murray was
RAINING his eye down the columns Of tbs coun-
ty paper, when he suddenly said:
an uE Es Ess Il hss hsss Ihyd Y Il us hs
whiskey from sawdustp
"rhat's nothing" said Abner Bype hipping
his thumb.
"How do you mo.s, nothing" asked the
doctor.
"Oh, It's old, awful old. knew that years
ago. Did you ever meet Sam Snyder?"
''No, never met him.
"Well, Sam was hard drinker-must have
rum by one means or another He had no
money and nobody to trust him or treat him.
So Sam somehow ascertained that whiskey
could be made out of sawdust, and do 20 know
what he'd do?''
WHAT"
"He'd get so drunk off fencs rail and
cross-cut saw that he couldn't tell cow from
a sugar cured ham. Put him near to wood
pile and sawbuok and let him alone, and be-
fore IL O'Clock he'd turn out the most delicious
mint juleps you ever tasted
"E ,sily done, was it?"
"Easily?" Why, one time his family tried to
keep him sober by putting him out on the roof
and keeping him there; and do you know what
Sam did? Got boy to tie a wash-boiler and
four feet of lead pipe to q string, and Sam
fshed 'em up, and in three days he had turned
every shingle into cocktails, and he fell thro ugh
into the garret ia such frightfal condition of
intoxication that they had to give him electric
shocks from fort, two cell battery to bring
him back to consciousness"
.sYou know this to bs fact do your
Certainly; 1 was there. Why, that man
acquired preference for liquor made from
wood, and three times, to my certain kuowl-
edge, be get mania a potu from consumption
of distilled pie-boards and potato mashers. BE
drank up four sets of chair legs; and on Fourth
of July, when his wife stopped his destruction
Of the furniture. he celebrated the day b. call
iug in three or four friends to drink a new kind
of energetic brandy that he'd just ma ie out of
q window sill and clothes-prop. Drink! Why
: sir pledge you my word, Snyder in a single
winter drank up smoke-house three wash
tubs and q front door. Nothing could stop
him when he got going:
'.Why did he prefer domestic utensils%
'He didn't There was wood out back OF
his house that belonged to his aunt. Sand
90 out there with meat saw or any kind OF q
saw he could get and in two years he had
stimulated his system with eight ches nut
b trees,
sspliugs of various kinds. Trimmed that grove
so that his aunt couldn't rent it to picnic par
| ties Nearly broke the old lady's heart, too.
sDid he kill himself drinkiug?"
'Well, not exactly. I'll tell you how ii was.
It seems that he was haunted for long time
with the idea that if be could distill the Pres
byteran Church steeple hs could turn out an
article that'd bear resemblance, somehow, tc
old apple BRANDY. Qleer, WASN'T it? But the
man was not exactly tight; his mind was DIS
essed. So one night he got on the roof OF the
church with ladder to steal the steeple. When
he got there-I dunno how 1t was but the ides
seemed to strike bin to taste the thing, may bt
20 sre If he was right about the flavor, and-ht
uust bsva been wild when he did it-he actual
Iv swallouao' .he weather cock. and there ht
stuck, whirline arr, ,"nd all night as the wind
stuck him. Dead? e was ueaoet IN mass,L ss1
Van Buren when they u' W saA0 "-u
/ DOWN. a;a haou
Gle swallowed the weather cock, uiu Ho'
mWs,, SI, .bs, swa,aowed u; Allow
as your whole ysrn," said Blyer
"You dob't doubt my verscity, hope?" said
Abner. "You do? Well, if yod have quar-
ter about you it will soothe my wounded feel
ings only want a -"
just at this juncture Byer kicked Mr.. Byne
off the porch, and Abner walked aRay to The
mex tavern with FAINT hope that III. bar eod-
! er might give his credit Que more chan a.
! Max Adeler. -