The Seattle post-intelligencer. [volume] (Seattle, Wash. Terr. [Wash.]) 1888-1914, 1892-07-17

What Il had thoughts) will be more en-
eaging than night on the river during
this warm wave, pirating hunting with
nv friends of the central Office? Accord
tngiy. applied to Superintendent Byrnes,
who. with his customary courtesy, at once
gave his permission and arranged every
thing. He would not, however, guarantee
me any pirates. These adventures who
have fiourished from 1850 to 1875 and have
maintained some sort of organization for
several years longer, are now all broken
up. They are dead. in prison or reformed.
Only lew here and there steal little cot
ton, coffee or sugar-thefts for which they
may be arrested, but can seldom be con-
yicted. The new piers and bulkheads have
aided the ''finest" in the practical extirpa-
ton of the business.
A cold rain, following the hot wave, de-
layed my trip day or two. for, though
rains and fogs are perhaps congenial
TO river thieves, l preferred reasonable
weather. At length came clear, still,
mild Saturday evening. At about 6 O'Clock
reported on board the police. steamer
Patrol at pier A, North river. The ser
geant in charge first gave me supper
of tripe and tea, and then showed
me over the boat, in which
everything looked clean, commodious
and ship-shape. The Patrol herself only
leaves her moorings when there is big
yacht race, or a naval review, or an I'M
yelling of the statue of liberty, or some
such affair causing great assembling of
river craft. Ordinarily she stays at her
mornings, and the three or four rowboats
al uo Int olnnry ho
fronts report to her periodically and are
regularly relieved. The river police are
not q separate organization, but the men,
bers of it may be put on or off at any time.
Each boat carries two men in uniform.
There is also detective boat, the crew of
which are in plain clothes. To this boat
was assigned. My companions for the
night we're quiet, taciturn man of or
binary size, and young Hercules with
thews and sinews of giant six feet two
inches tall and weighing 300 pounds.
Our course was up East river. As we
rounded Castle Garden tug came by and
We tossed her line to tow. The deckhand
failed to hold it. He'd have held it fast
enough if we'd had our uniforms on" re-
: marked the giant. A second attempt on
another tugboat resulted in the same way.
But by this time we were in the region of
the ferryboats, and we followed one of
guards and hauled ourselves along until
We resteo in the confined space between
her bow cher stern as it now was) and the
end OF the slip. Our line was now made
fast to the rudder post, and we waited in
the gloom for several minutes while the
passengers and vehicles embarked above.
The muddy water swashed about the string
piles and dripped from above, and the at
mosphere was close and offensive. Pres
entity We heard the chains rattle. the great
paddle wheels revolved and the steamer
moved out, dragging us behind in the foam
OF her wake. As she turned her nose up
the river she seemed to move at a tremend-
Gus speed, and the waves ran up at each
side OF US in continuous foaming wall.
mus we swept up the river for ten or tif-
teen minutes and were carried over . dis
lance which we could not have rowed in
more than thrice the time.
1t was now long past sunset and lights
were klndled along the docks and over the
dark mass OF the city, and along the thin
arch oil the Brooklyn bridge. We turned
ana began feeling our way down along the
eastern shore The dusk was very deceiv-
ing TO the eye-things far seemed near,
and vice versa; shadows were like sub
stance, and solid objects passed like shad-
ows. Once or twice We had to pull hard
10 avoid the bow of an advancing steamer.
meanwhile sharp lookout was kept for
anything suspicious. A shapeless, sunken
OBJECT appeared floating Oft oul starboard
quarter
Looks like stiff" remarked one of the
men and We pulled up to examine it. 1t
turned out to be drowned dog, expanded
TO enormous size
What would you have done with it if
II had been human body?" inquired.
,, We tow EN- all up to pier A" replied
Hercules, cheerfully, "for the coroner to
pod an inquest on. Mostly, though, we
uon't tow EN-; it's worse dragging stiff
.han pulling scow. We just pull 'em
ABOARD and lay 'em in the stern. That's
TIE quickest way"
fou take in more stiffs than live men
nowadays. suppose?
Wen there's only these cotton thieves
ana coffee thieves. Stealing sugar dots't
pay now, since they put the new tariff on.
ihey creep along and cut holes in the cot
ION bales and pull il out and put it into
pam bags. The same with coffee. You
cant identify cotton nor coffee, so even
Taeh We arrest 'em they mostly get off,
Lney say they bought it off q schooner