The Bossier banner. [volume] (Bellevue, Bossier Parish, La.) 1859-1952, 1886-12-23
FRENCH SMUGGLERS.
Some Shrewd Devices Which Have No
Been Surpassed Anywhere.

Been Surpassed Anywhere.
At one of the Paris barriers there
| exists museum of contrivances used
for the smuggling of liquors into the
! city which have been captured on vari-
Gus occasions by the employees of the
octroi. Here are piles of common
white plates, the top one of which on
being lifted off shows cylinder of tin
piercing the remainder of the pile.
Here are rolls of linen which are merely
few yards of stuff wrapped around a
| tin box fashioned to the requisite shape,
and with ends artistically finished off
with strips of linen set on end.
Here is the bust of india-rubber of a
make believe wet-nurse, who used TO
take her little charge out daily to
breathe the fresh air beyond the bar
riers. Here are two great blocks of
stone that on closer inspection prove to
be tn-lined boxes with artistically
ting ends. Here are three stout folio
volumes bound in calf, and labeled
1.-The Philosophy of Nations" With
these books under his arm pale, in
terest:ng-looking young student used
! to wander forth into the suburbs to
pursue his studies.
One day an inquisitive custom house
officer, grown suspicious from the fact
| that the youth always carried out the
same books to study, insisted on open
| ing one of these volumes. He found
| that the leaves had been nicely cut
away with a sharp knife to afford a
| secret niche for a square case-bottle,
which was filled with brandy similar
contrivance existing in each of the
other two books.
But the cleverest trick of all
was one which was very compli-
Gated and costly in its details, but which
must have paid handsomely, as it was
carried on for months without detection.
| A lady and gentleman seated in a
plain. respectable-looking coupe drawn
! by good horse, and driven by a
coachman in livery, were wont to drive
out to the Bois de Boulogne every after
noon, returning usually about dusk.
The gentleman was evidently an in
valid. He was always enveloped in a
fur-lined cloak with the collar raised
around his throat, and had fur cap
pulled down over his brows. while the
little that could be seen of his counte-
nance was of a sickly pallor. He was
always reclining in corner of the car
! riage, as if too feeble to sit erect, while
his attentive wife sat beside him, evil
IDENTIFY solicitous for his welfare, being
especially careful to keep his cloak
wrapped around him. The guardians
of the octroi saw the vehicle and its
inmates pass by them without suspi-
| cion
One day, however, after making the
usual inquiry: "Have you any thing to
disclose?" the custom-house officer, on
closing the door, struck the supposed
invalid foot
Il beg your pardon, sir,'' said the
officer.
! No response-not so much as an in
clination of the head. Rather surprised,
| the officer repeated his remark in a
louder tone, at the same time touching
the sick mans shoulder At that mo-
ment the lady and coachman leaped
| from their respective places and fled
away with surprising swiftness. leaving
in the hands of the officers the horses,
the carriage and the invalid, which last
was found to be made of tin and filled
with brandy-his face being most ar
tisticaly constructed in wax. The space
under the seat of the coupe and the
coachman's box were also reservoirs OF
tin, 50 that the smuggling transaction
of the party had been practiced on a
very extensive scale.-Tid-B BIS.