Perrysburg journal. (Perrysburg, Wood Co., O. [Ohio]) 186?-1965, 1897-03-27
FISHING WITH DYNAMITE.

Potomac palisades. These little build
lngs, like whitcncd sentinels, mark the
location of the several quarry plants.
They each contain from few sticks to
q ton of dynamite, enough, in the ag-
gregate, should it explode, to disfigure
the upper Potomac, and deluge George
town with masses of rock and debris.
For blasting purposes, however, only
few ounces of dynamite are used at a
time.
From these wooden magazines along
the shores, wherein the awful eXplo-
sives are stored, certain fishermen, who
cannot under the law employ gill nets,
have been stealing sticks of dynamite
and fuses, and nearly every night they
60 out into the stream, and eN-
plode the stuff under the surface of
the water, thus killing vast num-
bers of fish by concussion. The
sticks are weighted, u lighted wa
ter-proof fuse applied, and they are
sunk. The fishermen quickly row
away from the spot. In few mo-
ments there is suppressed sound, like
distant thunder, and great billow of
fouming water rises above the sur
iace
Then the aquatic poachers return to
the center of the river and gather in
the dead and dying fish, which float to
the surface in large numbers.
81 have heard the yarn of the fellow
who stole thunder and grabbed
at lightning" said a Georgetown po-
liceman, "but these fishermen who steal
dynamite will compare with him in
point of nerve" Commodore Sutton
with the police steamer Joe Black
burn" has been vainly trying to catch
the fishermen who are depopulating the
waters of the upper river of their game
fish by means of stolen dynamite.
The men who work about dynamite
houses are cautioned to use great care
in handling the treacherous stuff. Sew
eral fatal explosions have already oc-
Cured. and deep hole in the earth op-
posite the island called Three Sisters"
marks the spot where one of the su-
perntendents of blasting lost his life
last year. He was warming "chiled"
dynamite at a bonfire, when stick of
the giant explosive ignited, blowing
him skyward and lacerating him in a
horrible manner.
The men engaged in blasting at the
site of the Union depot in Georgetown
are only allowed to bring dynamite
ON the Virginia side sufficient for one
days work. This is temporarily stored,
until used, in the old Key mansion, on
Nj street. near the Aqueduct bridge, the
house formerly occupied by Francis
Scott Key, author of the "Star Span
gied Banner" They used to have lib
erty 10 bring as much dynamite over
10 the Georgetown side of the river as
the contractors desired. But not long
ago there was runaway team in
Georgetown which scared all of the
people almost out of their wits. The
wagon was loaded with dynamite.
The street was paved with cobblestones.
The horses ran furiously and il seemed
miraculous TINT no explosion occurred.
The driver jumped from the wagon and
was badly hurt, but he was glad to get
away from his dangerous load. The
horses ran fully half mile and stopped
OF their own volition on the Aqueduct
bridge. AS they ran around the angle
from the street to the bridge the wagon
bumped against the iron railing. An
explosion at that point would have
wrecked the bridge and killed many
people.
There has probably never been ses-
sion of congress that has given greater
emphasis to the assertion that it is i'm
| possible 20 collect even a just claim
| against tne government than the one
Eow approaching a close. A few pen
sion bills have been smuggled through
1T odd times, and an extremely limited
pumber of relief measures, each carry.
ing small sum of money, have been
pushed along under protest, but all OF
those claims which might perceptibly
increase the total appropriations for
this congress have been persistently
relegated to the rear.
To such an extent has this policy OF
ignoring the obligations OF the govern
ment been carried that judgments OF
the court OF claims are no longer paid
That judicial adjunct of the govern
| ment was created for the express pur.