Grant County herald. [volume] (Lancaster, Wis.) 1850-1968, 1905-10-28
Valuable Antidote
lOriginal.1

[Original.]
There's an old saw, AN ounce of
prevention is worth a pound of cure
am practical illustration of it's
truth. Indeed, an ounce of fluid once
saved my life. AS a medicine? Well,
no. l wasn't sick, and hadn't been
poisoned. Nevertheless that ounce
saved my life
MY father had been an officer in the
United States navy-not when our
ships had come to be big machine
shops, but light wooden affairs that
skinned the waves like a bird. He
went aloft just before the struggle be-
tween the states, and I, being about
sixteen at the time, preferred to go in
to active service afOat rather than to
the Naval academy. AS it was, saw
nothing but blockading service, and
after the war was doomed to the mer-
chant service.
"This is only preliminary to what I'm
going to tell you. In the last year of
the sixties | was mate Of brigantine,
and we were picking up goods in ports
on the China sea. One evening we
were coming down through the strait
OF Malacca when, after passing one of
the islands at the southern end, we
saw on our port quarter and nearly
abreast OF us as queer looking little
craft as ever sat on the water. She
wasn't common trader, for she was
shaped for speed. She wasn't a yacht;
she wasn't sleek enough for a yacht.
Besides, she didn't carry a yachting
fag-or any flag whatever, for that
matter-which set our teeth to chatter
ing in no time, for l never knew but
one kind of craft that didn't show
colors, and when that kind do show
them they invariably hoist the skull
/ and crossbones.
1T wasn't long before we could see
that she was shaping her course to mar
row the distance between us, and we
shaped ours to keep apart This didn't
suit the suspicious vessel, and she put
her nose closer still and before long
was heading right for us. Then we
could see the smoke bullying out of her
stack, and she came through the water
like present day motor boat
"You couldn't get me to go over what
followed for the biggest farm or the
biggest ship in the world. After the
crew, captain and first mate had step
ped off the plank and it came my turn
one Of the pirate crew came up to the
captain and said something to him.
The captain turned to me.
Where's the treasure boxY he
asked.
''There was no treasure box worthy
Of the name aboard, but / caught at a
straw and pretended to try to remem-
Der.
"'Come, hurry up with your think
ing If you want a comfortable death in
cool water. There are hot irons for
people with poor memories
81 don't really know, captain, but
suspect there's a lot Of money in the
ship, and if any one can find it can
"'Well, hunt for it.
''Since my life depended on finding
money, l hunted for my life. 1t was
dusk when l began and worked hard
till o'clock, when the captain sent
for me to come into the cabin. He had
fine dinner set before him and was
just falling to. He asked me if had
found the treasure, and admitted that
I had not.
"'Sit down here and tell me what
you know about it.
81 concocted yarn about suspi-
cious looking box that the captain had
watched while it was being brought
aboard and made the story plausible.
let out that had been in the United
States navy. The pirate pricked up his
ears at this and passed me the bottle.
can idea, hope, straw to catch at!
Could drink the man drunk? l re-
membered how my father when in the
navy had told me of terrible drinking
bouts between the American and Brit
ish naval officers and how dirty, vel
low faced, pigtailed man had put him
on to a secret whereby he could go
through the worst bibular contest and
a bottle of olive oil on the table-sOme
we had taken in at Leghorn-that the
pirate had used to make potato salad
with. l clumsily knocked it over,
picked it up and with a spoon ladled
the spilled oil into my wineglass.
Then I looked for something to turn
it into from the glass and, not see
ing anything, drank it off. My host
remarked that to do such thing would
make him sick as dog, but took no
further notice Of my act. AS | had
supposed, he was hard drinker, and
we sat pouring down one bottle after
another. Now and again would pique
him by suggesting that he had had
enough, whereupon he would call for
fresh bottle, and I could see he was
bent on laying me out. His original IN
tention was to find out if really knew