The Bossier banner. [volume] (Bellevue, Bossier Parish, La.) 1859-1952, 1885-10-08
1T WAS ONLY BLACK SAND.
Thrilling Experience of q Captain on ths
Erie Canal.

Thrilling Experience of Captain on the
Erie Canal.
A New England skipper, a shipping
clerk and the Captain of a canal-boat
sat On the lee rail of a Goldfish schooner
and discussed the decline of the Ameri-
can merchant marine. The clerk was
wise in fine points of law, the skipper
was filed to overfowing with wrath
against the land-sharks at Washington.
and the Captain assented with cheerful
readiness to the most conflicting of
opinions. The clerk wanted to reform
Congress by congressional legislation.
the skipper was on the point of blowing
up the Capitol with dynamite, and the
Captain conceded with both opinions by
remarking that either remedy, if sue
cessfully carried into effect, would pro-
duce astonishing results. Still. he ven-
tured to suggest, it would be measure
of precaution to use gunpowder instead
of dynamite, as gun-powder in even the
shotgun of the South was more deadly
than all the dynamite in the British
isles.
''But it's so dangerous to handle"
said the skipper.
'How SOP" inquired the clerk, who
had handled uncounted tons of explo-
sives.
You never can tell it from black
sand"
There was silence for several minutes.
Then the Captain spoke.
''Is black sand particularly danger.
ousT' he asked.
mighty dangerous
| How so?n asked the clerk, with a
tinge of humiliation for his ignorance.
"When you're down on the Chinese
coast, and you load up your guns with
| black sand in mistake for powder to
repel an attack by pirates, you're always
sure to be murdered, because the black
sand will not 90 off
Wont it?" asked the Captain. in a
tone that.implied that it would.
Il never heard" said the skipper.
The clerk was dumb through newly
found Ignorance.
''You see that scar" said the Captain,
pointing to red ridge across his cheek
''Well, give us the story" urged the
skipper.
1T was years ago." began the Cap.
tain; | was running fast packet line
on the Erie canal from Albany to Buff
| falo. had a beautiful boat and four
fast horses every few miles. We carried
the mail and always had big load of
passengers. One trip we took on board
lot of small barrels labeled black
sand. One of the barrels was acci-
dentally broken open, the cover lost.
and quart or so of the black sand
scattered about the hold The barrel
was set out of the way near the wine
cask, and apparently was forgotten.
At dinner time some more wine was
wanted by some of the passengers, and
| went down to draw It from the
cask. AS the hold was dark | took a
broken piece of candle for light
Scarcely knowing what l did | stuck
the candle upright in the BLACK
sand, and sat down on the fool
to draw the wine. | had been III
all night and was very tired, ano
some how or other fell asleep. l mus
have shut off the faucet while asleep
for when awoke the wine pitcher wa:
filled and the faucet closed. As
reached out my hand to take up the
candle saw a sight that froze m,
blood with horror. While | had slep
the candle had burned low and was OF
! the point of flickering out. In another
instant the flame would reach the pow
! der-for of course it was powder, ant
no black sand-and blow boat, crew
and passengers to atoms. died /;
: thousand deaths in an instant. I wa
paralyzed with fear, and could onl,
. wait with staring eyes for the end
! Death was already at my throat. TIL,
. sound of laughter in the cabin cam,
strangely to my ears. They were feast
! ing in the face of a terrible death. A
.. last the end came; the light flickere,
for moment, fiared up for the las
time, and then
8 And then?' whispered the sk;ppe
i, and the clerk with breathless interest.
And then went out As it wa
: nothing but black sand for molders
use, nothing occurred beyond the up
setting of the pitcher of wine as I fel
forward in faint"
"But the scar?n asked the clerk.
, "Kicked by mule; usual way wit
, canal men. IN Y Times.
|