St. Tammany farmer. [volume] (Covington, La.) 1874-current, 1890-04-12

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opened the door leaving the key there
and forgetting to take it out again unit
the time came for the door to be locked
Tho door was closed and the Outsid,
guard was inside, II was at once pro
posed that we should lock the door and
run away with the key. This was done
but When we had gone some distance
from the school-house it occurrei
to US that We would not see the ful
Of the people trying to get out be
cause by that time we would have to b,
at our homes, for, of course, our respect
i've parents always thought that We
were staying quietly indoors tax
ing care of the residence while
they were away. They had M
idea that the country was beinl
devastated by . lot Of young vagabond.
whom they thought were safely and
quietly in bed. 1t was therefore neces
sary that we should get home and get te
bed before the homecoming time of the
lodge people. At last one boy said:
Lets smoke 'em out. We can start
fire underneath one of the windows,
and when they smell the smoke they
will think that the school-house is on
fire."
This was looked on as great proposal.
We pulled out a lot of shavings and put
few sticks on top of them, and some
body struck match and away it went.
But the wind, it happened, was blowing
away from the school-house, and the
smoke did not envel0p the building.
Every thing was as dry IS finder. and
before we knew it the line Of shavings
that ran to the big pile had taken fire
and set the heap under the school
house ablaze. We were all appalled,
at this result, but were perfectly help
less. Nobody thought Of running
and putting the key in the door and
giving the alarm. The chances are that
if we had thought Of it we would have
sacrificed our parents rather than given
ourselves away. But Is the smoke now
rushed out on all sides from under the
school-house, we heard q wild cOmmo-
tion inside, and we ran until we were
out of range Of the light which the fire
was causing. We expected to see some
body come out Of the window and then
try to open the door, but no such action
was taken. Some strong man simply
stood back and kicked the door out and
let the shrieking, terrified people es-
cape.
1t looked as If the schOol-house was
doomed, but the very fact that SO many
were there was the saving Of the cdifice.
A line of pals was run to the swamp
and one to the nearest we'll, and al
though the flooring underneath was
burning, it was burning slowly,
and after . couple Of hours
Of hard work, during which the
women helped, if l may say it. man
fully, the conflagratiOn was extinguish-
ed. LOng-handled rakes were obtained
and the smoldering pile Of debris under
meath was scraped out and water thrown
on it. and, although the schOol-house
smclled of smoke for many . day after
that, no great damage was done.
We boys, of course, were home and in
bed long before the first of those who
had been at the exciting contest had re-
turned. In fact, many people staid up
nearly all night to talk about the ap-
palling disaster they had escaped. re-
hearing our parents reading the
accounts of this tragic affair in the
local newspapers. 1t was charged
that this was fiendish attempt on
the part of the anti-temperance peO-
pie to remove at one fell swoop all
those who were interested in the
good cause. This was stoutly denied by
the friends of the liquor interest on the
other side. Letters of coincidence
poured in from all parts Of the country
to this particular lodge on their fearful
and heroic fight with INSCRIPTIONS op-
position. But this was largely checkmat-
ed by the Tavern Keepers Association
playing a trump card. They offered q
reward Of $500 to the one who would dis
cover the perpetrators Of the vile deed,
but no one was ever brought to justice.
and / believe that this is the first con-
fession that has ever been made as to
the true culprit Of what was nearly .
fearful holocaust Sharp. in De
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