The citizen., 1897-11-19
Genius in tbe ~
~ Oil Region.
DICK wAEHER'S WAY OF HANDLING
NITRoGLYCERIN.

" OU would have been pleased
more times than can tell if you
had only known Dick Warner" said a
talkatiye man from the oil region.
"Dick was a chap worth knowing. In
deed, he was. Devil Dick, we used to
call him, and l don't know but what it
was fitting name for him. Devil Dick.
He was a nitroglycerin handler in the
early days Of that sudden and capricious
explosive agent, so useful to the oil op-
orator, but so capable of mixing up
and changing the aspect of things gen
orally when it gets going at the wrong
time and place. Dicks way of handling
nitroglycerin was so disingenuous
that when Dick had load of the stuff to
deliver to a well everybody else at and
about that well took to the woods.
Unless it might be Dan Sutton. Dan
was chum of Dicks and had as calm
and unrutfled a manner in handling
nitroglycerin as Dick himself Why,
I've seen Dan and Dick play catch with
nitroglycerin they were unloading
Dick tossing can after can to Dan. and
Dan catching it, just as if they were un-
loading brick. although the missing of
a can by Dan would mean that in less
than a second you couldn't find so much
as toenail of either. But Devil Dick
was the better worth knowing of the
two. He was original. He had genius.
He was great.
For instance, Dan Sutton would
never have thought of doing such a
thing as Dick did once down at Roen's
camp. Dan might have been willing to
do it, but he never could have thought it
up. A driller named Peterson got
regular Dutch rolling skate on one day,
and was blowing around about what
things he could do, when who should
come along but Devil Dick with load
OF glycerin. The load wasn't for any
we'll around the camp, but Dick stopped
to listen to the drunken driller. Pretty
soon he got off his wagon and says to
the driller:
Pete he says, III bet you $50 you
can't hit a can of glycerin with a stone
at 20 PAGES once out of ten times, and
I'll hold the can
THAT was enough to make everybody
around there prick up hisears ,andwhen
Peterson said he'd take the bet and Dick
stepped to the wagon to get the can, we
all made tracks for high ground. By
the time we got to a safe place and
stopped to look back Dick had paced off
the distance and stood there holding the
can of glycerin at arms length, and
the driller was getting ready to make
the throws. Five throws were wild.
The sixth one struck Dicks arm not
three inches from the can. That Jared
the can out of Dicks hand, but he
caught it before it reached the ground,
or the throwing match would have end
ed there and then, with the total separa-
ton of Dick and the driller from all
further toll and tribulation. The last
four throws were all close to the can,
the last one actually grazed it. Dick
won his bet, got his money, put his can
back in the wagon and drove on his
way
"That was genius, wasn't it? And
look what it did. When Peterson got
sober and came to think over what he
had done, he signed the pledge, and
never touched another drop Of liquor.
He is living, rich and respected. He
never would have been either if it
hadn't been for Devil Dick Warner.
Lots of men profit by other mems
genius just that way. Lots of 'em.
I'm those days the woods all through
the oil region. and the oil region ran
Ill n
with wild animals of all kinds, and it
was no uncommon sight to see bear,
or panther. or lynx or some other
savage beast prowling around the
camps or the isolated oil towns. The
lynx, especially, seemed to have liking
for oil-well men, and one particularly
big and savage one had its eyes on Devil
Dick almost every day when he was
carting nitroglycerin over the lonely
Corker Run road. and was watching its
chance to get away with him. One day
Dick was on his way to well with Load
OF torpedoes. and he picked me up on
the way. was going to Jones new
drilling. On stretch of the road
through Conway's woods, discovered
Dig canadian lynx steanng along
through the branches of the trees at
one side of the road and keeping only
few feet behind us
"'Great Aaron, Dick said |. pulling
Dicks sleeve. Look at that
:" seen it this mile or more said
Dick. It's hankerin' after me, and |
only hope it'll keep on after US till we
git to Keery's opening. I'm achin' for
it to do that. Then I'll surprise it,
"Keery's opening was a gap in the
woods, and ravine 20 feet deep, mile
or so further on. The lynx kept right
On, and when we got to the opening the
animal was still with us.
Now said Dick. see me scatter
himl'