Sharp County record., 1888-08-23

dear boy. smuggled' The youth has
been hoaxed by his tobacconist. He is
smoking native tobacco, with a flavor
ing of cheap Turkish or Egyptian
And the ladies?'
The ladies are born smugglers.
They think it no harm to defraud
Uncle Sam. They will hide jewelry in
their hair; wrap laces around their
bodies; pack their husbands cigars
among their petticoats. The common
est device Of the feminine smuggler is
the false-bottomed trunk. In a box
filled apparently with cheap ginghams
and calicoes may lie the finest dress
that Felix can produce. >
Are dress-makers the principal
culprits?"
"Tailors are just as bad. Their GUS
toners compete with them. Tag goes
to Rag at the club and says: You're
going to London, old man. Bring me
back six pairs of trousers from Poole. "
| All of Rags club friends give him a
similar commission. Rag has to bring
back about one hundred pairs OF
trousers. He divides them among his
trunks. With a small douceur he gets
them safely through the custom-house.
Hence Snip, the tailor, would be ruined
if he did not smuggle, too"
"And the wine merchant
"Wine merchants find it harder.
And besides, why smuggle if you can
adulterate? Pure wine is only known
to those who live near the vineyards
And the picture-dealers?'
Their smuggling is merely erasing
the name of the painter or otherwise
disfguring the work until it has passed
muster. No; the leading smugglerS,
as l said, are people of fashion. They
smuggle instinctiyely. No matter how
rich the man, he loves to bring over a
few diamonds surreptitiously. No
matter how honest the woman, she
loves to fill her trunks with new
dresses for her friends" "
Has smuggling as a trade died
out?"
Not at all. VIII Watch, the bold
smuggler, is not as daring as he used
to be. But he still plies his trade in
sailing vessels on the coast. | have
seen ladies of the highest social rank
in summer resorts of Jersey receive
visits from women bringing silks and
laces which the purchasers knew to be
smuggled, Their husbands would say
Take care, my dear 1t means a
humping fine if you are caught.
Wen risk it, they would reply. we
make profit enough by the transaction
to cover far more than the fine. >"
Where do the Jersey smugglers
live?"
They have cottages on the shore
bleak huts which seagull would dis
dain to alight upon. remember how
we raided Jim Alden's place-'CaSSo
wary Jim they used to call him. We
saw him enter the hut with three com
panions, all carrying bundles of SNUG
gled cigars. We broke into the hut
but Jim and his friends were gone
Where? There was an Outhou5e con
nected with the hut. 1t was as empt,
as the hut itself. 1t had no article o
furniture but a seaman's chest. Their
was no trace of hiding place"
How did the smugglers escape"
81 sent my men away, bidding then
make as much noise as they could
Then | waited in the dark; waited 10
hours; waited as silent as death, A
last | heard scratching. The sount
came from chest in the clubhouse
The bottom of the chest was lifted
Cassowary Jim's head appeared. Th
coast is clear, boys, said he. | waited
for no more. | escaped in the dark
ness
What happened?'
1--WE raided the hut next morning
The bottom of the chest concealed ;
trap. The trap led to a subterraneal
vault. There we found stores Of cigar
and gallons of the best French brandy
Are these hiding places cOmmon?'
"Quite common. One of them W,
opened by a ring in a stable. Ih'
horses had been tethered to that rims
for years, and nobody had suspected
what was hidden behind it,
And are the tragedies of smuggling
as frequent as of old?'
mo, | only witnessed one real trag
edy. That was at Bar Harbor, Me
Among our revenue officers was ;
Young fellow named Harry, handsom,
and bright, who had run away from
home, somewhere down South. W,
had heard that family of smuggler
had lust settled down in Bar HarbOr
and we were on the watch for tn,
head of the family, whose name W,
never knew. 1t was an awful night
Through the storm l could see tn,
forms of women standing on the rock
of Mount Desert.
s.\Vhat were they dOinp?N