, 1890-04-09
4 STORY FROM INDIANAPOLIS.


Hauled by = Huge Cat Fish.
The Ananias club welcomed Patrol.
man Brady back from New Orleans as
he walked into tho clubroom the other
night,
New Orleans Isl right smart place, y
said the patrolman, land has under
gone many changes since | last saw it.
/ visited New Orleans about seventy
years ago. l was only 80 years old
then, but / remember everything re-
lating 10 my trip with great distinct
nees. We didn't have any mile a min
ute vestibule trains, o did we have
any smash ups or rotten trestles nor
jumping Off OF tracks on bad curves.
My first trip was made down the river
on n fiat boat called the Duke of Or
leans She was a square bowed fiat
bottom craft that was capable of great
speed, but was so confounded lazy that
about three miles an hour was the
best she would do in n high wind and
fast current. We were floating down
the Mississippi one bright summer day.
| was steering on the front end of the
boat. Suddenly | perceived something
ahead of US directly in the channel.
What's that. JackF | yelled to one
Of the men for'ard. Without looking
he shouted back:
"a snag,' responded Jack. Throw
your tiller hard to larboard and you'll
miss it, Just then the supposed snag
disappeared for an instant and then
bobbed up again n few hundred feet
down the river. | was not satisfied,
and calling one Of the boys t o take the
sweep vent TO the bow of the boat.
/ saw at once what the object was. II
,,..s .,u.,v-r ltun,tl,v To-. sE. 49,
Lend US n hand here, boys |
shouted.
What is the matter, Jimf asked
one OF the crowd.
Catfish, was all 1 said. But that
was enough. The crew, with pale
faces, began buckling on life preserv.
ers, for "A collision in midstream with
"A Mississippi river bull catfish is no
triiling affair. | did not propose to
give up our boat so easily, and draw
ing n pistol, fired ut the approaching
monster. / saw the bullet strike his
mailed back and fall Off into the mud
dy water. The fish was lashing the
water into foam, and its eyes were
fastened with "A wicked glare on our
frail craft, There was not much time
to lose. \ few moments and we would
be lost. Then | thought of something.
The fish was within fifty feet of ouI
boat %Snatching the anchor | hurled
IT at the approaching terror. True to
my aim, the heavy iron struck the fish
on the lower jaw. Thinking evidently
that it was something good to cat, the
fish attempted 10 swallow the anchor,
but the iluSes caught in his gullet,
and lcaping half way out of the water.
the huge hsh turned and started down
stream, Quick as lightning | gave the
anchor rope three turns around the
sampson posts, and rs il pulled taut
We began to nov through tho water
with great speed. The now frightened
fish made the most desperate efforts to
release itself. The anchor was evi.
IDENTIFY luccrating its throat and it must
be suffering great pain. First to one
side, then to another, down tp the bot
tumof the river, then spriuging five or
SIN feet IN the air, cavortcd the fish.
IIv yellow water was blood streaked
foam nom bank to bank, and the
waves rolled up the bank with u wick
ed swish. AS may well be imagined.
Il craft was moving through the
water in a terrific manner Sometimes
we would sail through the air, two
feet above the bosom of the river, and
f,tAil w wv lttl btlOM tho surface
Talk about your lightning express and
fast ycstiOula trains-they are snails
compared 10 the speed wo were going.
"All ut once smoke began issuing
from the starboard side Of the boat. x
new danger confronted us. We were
going SO fast through the water that
the friction had set our craft on fire.
Some of the men organized Il bucket
brigade i%nstautcr and soon had the
flames cNtinguished, but they were
kept busy putting out the fire tina,
was continually starting in different
parts Of the hull. When the bottom
caught the firemen had 10 bore holes
through the flooring in order 10 pouf
water on the blazel Why, gentleIuen.
there was such u terrible friction thai
tho water was scalding hot-so hot
that for twenty feet on each side of the
boat we could boil eggs and potatoes
by simply throwing them overheard.
The suction was so intense that what.
even we threw into the water would
remain close TO the boat and u cook
got dinner that way. Why, he boiled
Il ham in the river in exactly seven
minutes. All we had to do was to
throw the stuff in, keep time on it, and
then haul it out with II long pole. We
went past Memphis SO fast hat the
boiling river furnished steam for all
the factories in town for over two
hours. ! think | am safe in saying
That we were towed by that fish for
fully fifteen hours.
1t was the fastest ride | ever tocl,
and | have had several fast rides in my
time. As | say, We had been dashipg
along for about fifteen hours, when
suddenly the anchor rope broke.
When it snapped 1t made u report like
the explosion OF u ten pound cannon
on a Fourth of July morning. Re
lieved of his drag weight, the ash dart
cd ahead and was soon out of sight,
Our boat had such Roadway that she
RAJ two hundred miles before stop
ping. A ilatboat, you understand, is
not fitted up with automatic brakes,
and we had no way Of checking her
speed until the momentum was ex-
hausted. 1t is a mighty lucky thing
for us that tine rope did break. Habit
not parted we would have been scalded
TO death, sure. The heavy three inch
oak plauks out of which the boat was
built were worn down to the thinnest
Of tissue paper. We were going SO
fast that the water acted just like a
jackplane on the wood. A few hours
longer and the boat would have been
a mere bunch of shavings, and in the
boiling water we would have suffered
a horrible death. indianapolis News.
Pursuit. and Pos.e.aoa-
Bessie-De Garry tried to kiss Miss