Gloucester County Democrat. (Woodbury, N.J.) 1878-1932, 1901-03-21
WOODBURY. n J, Thursday MARCH 81 1901

ghosts and regardless of kinney's
spook steamboat, when sharp rap at
my stateroom door brought me out of
dreamless slumber.
81 say" he said Its nearly
o'clock, and we are going to pass the
wreck. You wanted to see the ghost
of steamboat / don't want to be
alone, and l want a skeptic with me.
Light your pipe and sit down"
/ did So while Kinney smoked on till
the signal came to start, and presently
the wheels of the Baton Rouge once
more beat the turbid waters.
Kinney hove the wheel over to port,
and the jackstaff of the boat could be
seen as the might hawk" swung for
the pilots eye to sweep the horizon, cut
away such little rays of light as pene-
trated the cottonwood forests on the
Louisiana shore.
'I don't see her." said Kinney, turn.
ing his night glass one way and anoth.
er, ''and it's ten minutes to H."
Don't see whatY inquired a strange
voice at my side, and, turning in sur
prise, for had not heard any one en-
ter, could define in the half gray light
of the morning the figure of a man
with smoothly shaven face. apparently
youth.
"The ghost said Kinney, still peer
ing out into the space beyond.
''Do you expect any," asked the
stranger.
"Why, was just telling you Great
God, there she is.'
l looked in the direction he pointed,
and, sure enough, about a quarter of
mile away were the red and green
lights of an approaching steamer. l
knew enough of the laws of the road
on water to comprehend that she was
coming toward US, and / could also see
that she was making tremendous head
way. Kinney's eyes. as 1 saw them
flash, were fixed upon her. He neither
moved the wheel nor stirred a hand to
give warning.
Kinney" l cried, "that is not the
ghosti 1t is steamer. 1t is the White
of the Vicksburg line, bound up. She
is to pass here about this time. For
the love of heaven give the signalp'
l tried to wrest the wheel from him,
but strong arm swept us both aside,
and the stranger seized the spokes.
There was jingling of bells, a screech-
ing of whistles, mad cry of human
voices, a leaping of flames over light
woodwork that seemed to laugh with
joy over the destruction that was being
wrought, but over it all | heard one
voice in articulate agony whose wild
agonizing accents 1 shall never forget.
Then in the flash of flame | saw the
person who had uttered it. 1t was the
stranger at the wheel. On his cap
band, spelled out in letters of gold bull
lion, were the words, "Pilot Alonzo
Child" He was illuminated by the
blaze, and his eyes shone brighter than
the fire itself.
81 am punished! My God, is it not
enough? I was her pilot! 1t is the
Alonzo Childs~ he screamed.
For a second he lowered like a giant
high over the eight foot wheel, then,
throwing his arms above his head, he
fell prone upon the floor. Already the
glass windows of the pilothouse were
cracking with the heat. knelt beside
the PROSTATE form. There was no heart
beat.
looked up at Kinney. He was
standing with his arms folded, his face
perfectly calm, but pale as death.
At that moment the flames burst in
to the pilothouse, and their hot breath
blistered my hands as l held them be-
fore my eyes. l had no feeling of fear
beyond apprehension of physical pain.
Death had no terrors for me. Besides,
there was no escape. l remember just
then Kinney shook me by the arm, and
heard his voice:
"Say, you will set yourself afire in
minute"
opened my eyes. The steamer Baton
Rouge, Bixby master, Elton clerk, was
having quick dispatch, and my after
dinner pipe lay smoking on my knee.
Some of it's live ash was on the floor,
and some had burned my hand just
little, and Kinney said l had been
asleep less than two minutes Buffalo
Enquirer.