The San Juan islander. [volume] (Friday Harbor, Wash.) 1898-1914, 1903-11-05

The Seattle papers published such
garbled reports of the capture of four
teen Chinese on Lopez island Wednes-
day of last week and the arrest of the
two white men who smuggled them
over from Victoria that the ISLANDER
gives rather more space to the circum-
stances than would otherwise have
been deemed necessary. Following are
the facts:
About midnight Tuesday the two
smugglers, Harry Thomas, alias Sum-
ners, and Fred Anderson, left Victoria
in sloop about 2S feet long, with four
teen Chinese laborers, destined for Sc
attic. They made good time across De
Haro strait and were skirting the shore
Of Lopez island in search of a safe and
secluded anchorage for the day when a
high wind sprung up quite suddely,
about $50, rendering the navigation of
the heavily loaded sloop difficult and
dangerous. The jib was soon carried
away and the little craft was run into
Davis bay, near Richardson, and an
chored. But 1T was very rough even
there, the wind being in the south
west. and the anchor line having part
ed, the sloop was driven upon the
rocks and was soon total wreck.
Thomas jumped into the water and
carried line ashore and .. j. and f.
J. Bruins, tenants Of the Davis farm,
having come to their assistance, the
terrified mongolians were landed and
soon "took to the woods" The two
smugglers, after offering Bruins Bros.
500 to look after the Cinnamon until
they cou'd 90 to Seattle and get an
other boat, walked to Lopez, about six
miles, to take the steamer Buckeye for
Anacortes. Bruins Bros. promptly no.
titled Henry Towel, justice of the
peace of that precinct, and Mr.. Towel
hurried to Lopez and engaged Weeks
Bros. to take him in their launch to
! Friday Harbor where he notified
Deputy Customs Collector, Culver. The
steamer Buckeye was then coming in
to the harbor, and Mr.. Culver, accom-
panied by Mr.. lowell and Sheriff Nc
Crary, at once started after the snug
glers, who were expected to board the
Buckeye at Port Stanley. They got
aboard at Lopez, however, and were
quickly arrested by Mr.. Culver, hand
cuffed together and left in charge of
Mr.. Towel at Buffers store while the
officers were taken by Ben Lichten-
berg in search of the Chinese, whom
the Bruins Bros. had succeeded in
Grounding up" shortly before dark, on
the Port Stanley road, taking them
back to the Davis place, where the Off
GERS found them. From there they
were taken in a wagon to Lopez, where
they were lodged over Buffers store
and guarded all night by the officers,
the smugglers on one side of them and
the Chinese on the other, the two
white men having begged that they
not be left in the same room with the
Chinese from whom they seemed to
fear violence. The nearest Chinese de-
tention station being at Port Town
send, all were taken there oil the
steamer Lydia Thompson Thursday,
Bruins Bros: also going, in the expecta-
ton that the preliminary hearings of
the men would be held before the U. S.
court commissioner there. Mr.. Cul-
vers responsibility in the matter ceased
with the turning over of the party to
Col. Fisher, inspector in charge OF the
immigration service there.
For the reason that Thomas (or Sum
ners) and Anderson had been arrested
a few months ago in Seattle for the
same offense, by Customs Officers De-
laney and Brinker, and had been
bound over by Commissioner Keifer,
Col. Fisher decided to take them there,
after having had very aggravating
experience with Commissioner Kuhn
in Port Townsend.
The defense (?) of the prisoners is
that they were en- route with the Chi
nese from Victoria to Salt Spring ISL