The Opelousas courier., 1903-03-28
CAPTAIN TlTus's EEL STORY.

captain Titus, is it you?" said the
deacon, leaving his chair by the gro
Gerry stove and grasping the newcomer
heartily by the hand.
How be ye?" came from eyerv.
body.
"Wa-al, I'm purity tole'ble, consid.
erin'."
Where hev you bin fer the last
four months? asked the Deacon.
Heard you'd bin down tn the Can
eelin'."
"Ye-us I hev," said Captain Titus.
Done fust rate tn. Cleared owe
eight hundred dollars since Decem.
her,"
Eight hundred dollars, eelin' in one
Winter?" fairly yelled everybody.
"Shucks," said the Deacon. "You
can't expect us to b'lieve tibet. /
never hearn tell on anybody maxim
over eighty dollars in a winter in nv
life"
WAL" said the Captain warming
up, I never did nuther, eelin' with a
spear, but got a new wrinkle"
"Du tell" said the Deacon. "Let's
hear bout it."
Last spring" said the Captain.
l went up tn the lakes with
Capn Bearse, / saw a Teller loadin'
sand intu a schooner there in a way
tibet sot me a thinkin'. He he'd a little
Vessil bout thirty tons, with his deck
boxed in 'midships and he'd take a
deck load o. sand board with the rig
ne he'd in bout an hour. He'd stopped
up his scuppers and up for'ard he'd
one o them ere n~ew-fangled gasline
engines. Most wond'ful thing I'd ever
seed. He'd run his schooner intu shoal
water, stick a piece o. pipe over the
side and pump a deck load O. sand and
water on tn tibet schooner in short
order, and when the sand was high
enough the water would run over
the side and he'd keep on pumpin'
till he he'd it full o. sand and no
water"
"Wa-al, wa-al," said the Deacon.
That was sartin1y wond'ful."
"Wondful,' said the Captain. "Wa-al
! should say twas wond'fuI. Gosh.
you could pump anythin' with one o.
them air machines. I seen sticks
longer than your arm come up through
tibet pipe on deck. In fact, SEEM
them sticks come out O. tibet pipe was
where got my idee from. I didn't
say a word to nobody, but when we got
back TO Bostin | cruised and drifted
round and bought one O. them ma
chimes, pump and all, second handed, |
and he'd it shinned I'll me deHrn IL TIE
Cape and soon's the bay was fruz over
! went down there and camped out In
my shanty. rugged the pump up on !
Zig sled with a sort O. filter on it |
out of a barrel, and as soon as
the ice would bear, started out tn try
my luck. Wa-al, sir, IL you'll b'lieve
me, | pumped three barrels O. cells out
o. tibet old bay fust day."
"You don't say So came from
everyone.
"Ye-us, stree, and / was the wonder
o the hull town down there"
How'd you operate it," asked the
Deacon.
Why / just cut two holes in the
ice, showed my pipe down tn the bot
In n and set my filter over the
other, started the old machine agoin',
kept the pipe moVin' round in the mud
begun to pump cells, water and
mud intu thet barrel and the mud
asd water would go through the sieve
Intu the water and all / he'd tn du was
u pick the cells our'n the barrel"
Wa-al O. all Miracles said the
Deacon, clasping his hands around his
Knees and leaning back. But heard
told bout havin' a sort o. eatin'
place down there and made lots O.
money out er tibet tu.D ].
$50 did," said Captain Titus, with
twinkle in his eye. You know them
eliers down there use them twelve
'rong barbed spears and naturally nv
attracted constable ten
ION, specially at noo time when they
Knocked Off fer dinner. They'd all
roWd round there tn see my outfit.
'het fust night I did q little extry
ipin' on tibet machine o mine and
ext day ! bought d half dozen leaves |
bread cit the bake shop In the village
ad lest tore noon ! stuck up D aien /,