The Van Buren press., 1895-03-09

11atB ny time Ter maxim n4yS
n It's rsinin, Ills my wish
Makes tho lakes jest right fer dsh:
when the snow falls white - foam.
Then track the rabbits homo.
Spring or winter summer. fall.
I'm 1ost thankful fer EN- all
Prank L Stanton. In Leslie's Weekly.
-.-----------------=
A MIDNIGHT BALD.
Startling Consequences Of q Thiev-
ish Attempt ct Smuggling.
While residing IN the Canadian vii
lage of Chippewa, / happened one
night In July, 1864, to be detained very
late 1t my ofice. on the south side Of
Chippewa creek, which discharges into
Niagara river about two miles above
the falls. The creek has two mouths,
separated by Hog island. which is some
three hundred yards below the bridge
which must cross to reach my house.
Thirty feet from the south end Of
this bridge stood large storehouse for
bonded whisky. The building rested
upon piles driven into the bed of the
stream, and its plank floor was about
tour and one-half feet above the water.
Walking quietly, ! had barely come
upon the bridge when l heard above
the drowsy murmur Of the falls q Pc
culiar, grating sound, coming appar-
emily from beneath the warehouse.
What could it be? Leaning over the
railing, l listened intently.
The grinding noise seemed like that
produced by hand-turned auger bor-
ing through soft wood.
/ surmised at once that someone was
shout to tap the lower tier Of whisky,
consisting Of casks containing one hum
dred and twenty gallons each. Who
could it be? Probably smugglers from
the American side Of the Niagara were
st work, not buying their stun. es
usual, but stealing 1t.
At this time the United States import
duty ON spirits was two dollars q gal
lon. Common whisky could be bought
at the Chippewa distillery for seventy
cents per gallon in gold, and readily
sold across the line for fve dollars in
greenbacks; 10 there was large profit
In the contraband trade, even when
the smugglers paid for the liquor.
Men engaged In this nefsrious traffic
used to row down from the distillery
70 the mouth Of the creek at night;
then tow their boat up the Canadian
side of the Niagara to point opposite
the head Of Navy island, push across to
Buckhorn island and thence drop down
to some previously selected spot On tho
New York state shore anywhere be-
tween 6chlosser and Port Day. Tho
smugglers- always knew, by prear-
ranged shore signal, that no officers
were in the way and that cash Gus
toner was waiting for the cargo.
had listened scarce minute to the
mysterious noise. when chug was
heard; then 3 renewed and sharper
grating. So l knew that the auger
had gone through the three-inch pine
plank floor and was now biting into
the hard oak Of cask.
The matter greatly concerned me,
because was the collector of inland
revenue for that county, and In charge
Of the bonded warehouse, the key Of
which was then In my pocket. The
raiders intended, Of course, not only to
wrong Uncle Sam, but doubly to de-
fraud the Canadian owners of the
whisky, who would lose the liquor It.
self and also have to pay full excise
duty on all stolen from the warehouse.
The slightest alarm would have
driven the robbers Off, but In that case
they would escape in the darkness. /
wished to capture them in the act, but
how would this he possible?
II called for help at that midnight
hour, the men would vanish at the first
cry. II l went back to my Office for a
revolver, and attempted to arrest them
single-handed, they would simply de-
fy me, or, perhaps, plant me ut the bot
tom Of the creek
l resolved, before I did anything, to
ascertain how many there were. Noise
lessly crept under the bridge railing,
slid down = brace and peered into the
inky blackness beneath the building.
Just then o thread OF light from q
VUIBA1A AhuVctu okAot oos sh NY uAAcS-
tion; the boring ceased, and l heard a
gurgling Of liquid. l caught also a
glimpse of three men kneeling on the
fiush deck Of small scow.
One drftly pushed . tin tube into the
suger hole, placed under it ten-gallon
keg. and withdrew the plug from Its
lower end. Eleven other kegs awaited
their turn. The men had brought pre-
cisely enough TO hold the contents Of
one cask. II successfully run the cargo
would bring six hundred dollars in
United States scurrency-all clear profit.
From the efficient way in which they
worked, / concluded that the operators
were ike" "Mose" and "Pete"
Schram, notorious smugglers, living on
Grand island, whom had often heard
OF, but. never, TO my knowledge. seen.
All that I have described occupied
only few minutes in the doing, but l
knew that II would take At least forty
or fifty minutes to all the twelve kegs,
the tube being small.
Whiel considering my next step l
recollected pair Of stout, determined
fellows named Bullamore johnson and
Vert Van Wyck, famous duck hunters,
Of whose services had often awaited
myself. II could get these allies in
timc we should have no difficulty in
stopping the despcradoes rs they
passed through the cut, an artificially-
made channel, leading from Chippewa
creek to the Niagara.