The Arkansaw traveler., 1886-03-27
Itl.tcn for 7Ne Arkansa,c Trarl.r.
EFFECTS OF IqaGIVaTION.
By John R. Winery.

ask that you put the truthful parts in
 italics, only, it would exhaust your stock
 of that type, for it is all petritied truth
 In 1868 left Little Rock to take com
 mand of United States vessel then at
 work in the upper Missouri Before
 leaving l requested John McGuire-mv
 room mate-to ship me by express my
 fowling-pieee, which left in his charge.
 when l should so notify him. After
 reaching Omaha l wrote him 10 send it
 on, said fowling-piece was No and
 fully six feet long He knowing little
 about such ware, ordered carpenter to
 make a box in which to ship it The car
 penter. knowing less, made a box the
 whole length of the gun, without un-
 stocking it. This made box six feet
 long, eighteen inches by eight inches at
 the large end, and tapering down to eight by eight at the other When Me
 saw the amount of vacant space in the
 box a bright idea must have struck him,
 for he gathered up all the ammunition on
 hand, consisting of ten sacks of shot. of various sizes, and put them in to fill up space, and for what reason know not
 he placed therein four quarts of whisky.
 This brought the weight of the box up to some three hundred pounds, and SO expressed it. When I was ready to leave Omaha the package had not ar rived and 1 instructed the agent there to forward it to St. Joe. On arriving at the latter point it had not reached there, and the same process was repeated at four other points below, tue last point
 being Lexington. Before reaching there our machinery became disabled, and We
 had to lay up at Missouri City for re pairs, While there received word that several thousand dollars of government money had been sent us to Lexington
 l left the vessel, and proceeded to that point by rail and there found my gun, and there my troubles began. The original express charges were heavy enough, but each reshipment had aug mented them until they amounted to a grand total of thirty-six dollars
 paid them, and had the package sent over to the passenger office 1t was then nearly dark, and the bus was about ready to start across the rivar b,- farr,, bnat ra,noet.l d.. conductor to take my box along. After looking at, and "hefting' it, he remarked. " It is too d-d heavy; besides, do not like that kind of freight" When. asked him what objection he had to its character, he replied that it might cause disturbance But on seeing him to the extent of two dollars. he agreed to take it along; just then the
 bus drove up, and, assisting the driver we got it safely on top During this process several ladies inside began crawling out, remarking that they did not want to ride in stage carving a corpse on top" This was my first inn pression that my box very much resem- bled coffin, and it took the strongest kind of assurance to convince them that 1t was nothing more than a harm Jess package of hunting gear On cross Ang the river we found small station house at the terminus of short branch road that lead up to a station on the North Missouri railroad Here we found the train awaiting us, and when all were aboard, except myself and package, I asked the baggage-master why he did not put my baggage aboard. He replied that he did not carry corpses as baggage" protested, tried to explain that my box was all the bag gage had, and described its contents. But he only held his nose and said that VI that game was played out" and tine train moved off There I was It was then dark. I requested the station agent to allow me to store my goods in side, but he remarked that they would keep better out in the cool" so he shut and locked the door, and went back across the river on the bus l might remark that there l was again. could not cross the river and leave my goods, so l suspended the box against the building, and as it had begun to rain l crowded up alongside of it to give us both what scanty protection the caves would afford. I re- mained there several hours, when there came the sound of human voices and barking dogs. They proved to proceed