The Arkansaw traveler., 1884-07-05
OLD JOHNS STORY.

One of the largest streams that flows into Lake Erie on the south side takes its rise in the hills of Cattaraugus county, New York. After a winding course of fifty miles through beautiful country it reaches the flats that surround the vil- iage of Irving. Back from the pier, on the white Jumping ridges of sand, are a half dozen tumble down wooden shan ties. one of which has been turned com pietely over by down-the-lake blizzard. At one end of the ridge of the roof of the largest one of the shanties is an old brick chimney from which the smoke curls up lazily morning aRd evening as if protest ing against enforced exertion. The fire from which the smoke comes is kindled in cracked stove, with brick-colored top, by old John Heresy. who for thirty years has haunted the creek-as a fish erman he says. Others tell different story.
 John is little old man with bushy eye brows that do not conceal very keen black eyes. His dress IS combination of odds and ends of sail-eloth and flannel sewed together with a palm needle. While seated the other day on spar from schooner that was wrecked of the dunes last winter, he took of his peaked old felt hat, squinted of toward the Can ada shore of the lake, where Sugar Loaf hill was just visible as a small blue lump on the horizon, and then said: There's not creek on the south shore of the lake where more smuggling has been done than Cattaraugus here. You should have been here during the war. 
 enough when the duty was lowered on whisky. Never a man got caught save once, and that was an acci- dent that came from fooling with a woman. His name was Gib Smith, a big, fine-looking Yankee, who'd been to the banks fishing, and had set dn { nets for sturgeon in the Hudson before he came here. However he got here don't know, but 1t was in the fall of the year, and he stopped on farm up near the village. There he began building boat, working at it off and on during the win ter, and when spring came, he'd about the neatest fishing boat you ever saw. He started in flshing all square when the season opened, but the first week some of the boys showed him how to catch something better than sturgeon or white fish either. He took to tke new busihessi like duck to the water, and his Yankee ways made him the luckiest one of the gang. The way the business was man. aged was to fsh along regular with night lines and gill nets until some night it would blow up thick and dirty. You'd see the rollers coming in the mouth of the creek there against the current more than thirty feet high sometimes.
 When Glib began to get some money ahead, what does he do but fall in love with the daughter of an old Presbyterian deacon up at Silver creek-Fayette they called it then. As luck would have it one of the revenue officers from Dun- kirk was courting the same gal He was a smart young chap, too, and ambitious to make his way in the service, as well as to capture the heart of the pious young woman at Fayette. To help himself out in more ways than one. the officer laid himself out to catch Glib with a cargo of whiskey, for he knew Gib was at it. The two used to meet at the deacon's house of a Sunday evening, and whether the girl favored one or t'other neither could tell.
 There hadn't been any calm in the lake that year, and business was good down here during the latter part Of January, but in February 1t came off warm, and never a bit of wind did we get until the first Sunday in March. mind the day we'll. It came up muggy-like in the morning. withoutla breath of wind, but the clouds were getting thicker all the time, and signs of favoring Providence were plenty. Gib came down to the shanties in the afternoon, had a look at his boat, told his partner he thought he oughter look after their night lines about , o'clock, and then he started for Fay cite. He had hadn't more than got there when it began to blow, and the first dashes of snow began to swirl around the shanties, and the sand up theie began to dnft about like 90 many snow-fakes.
 "At the old deacon's Gib met the revenue officer. He and Gib were as agreeable as could be, of course, until about o'clock the revenue chap opened his eyes with astonishment to hear Cib speax of going home. The government agent was too smart lad to think that Cib had left through fear of defeat in the suit for the lady's hand, and fifteen minutes later the young lady was more astonished than ever by the sudden de parture of her other fellow. He said as he went out: If Cib has business to- night, 90 have I.'
 It was nigh on to daylight next mom- ing when the man on watch at the window up there saw the flash of a gun out on the lake. and hastened to set range lights up on the dunes and on top of the shanty. The snow wasn't falling any more then, and when he got back what should he see, of throagh tAs gloom, but two sails, instead q ene, and the one asaern . big oae, too. 1hea he saw . flash oa the ons assen thaG was aaswesed, hy another from the boat ahead. The revenue cutter was after Gib. and 10 mistake, and Gib was showing fGht. The cutter had been lying to undss elose-reeSed sail, though, and could not gee the canvas on quick enough b intercept Gib. Then Cib did what no one had tried before. He showed his helm to port and headed