Cameron County press. [volume] (Emporium, Cameron County, Pa.) 1866-1922, 1906-09-13
EVEN
By CHARLES GREY GREY.

| ''''t 4 iNllt llN W dN N~dJldlll WILLIAM
| lreharne. of the tramp steamer Rath-
coole, when the Raihcoole's tramping
took her so regularly round the Mexican
Gulf ports that she almost came to imag-
Inc herself a liner between London, the
West Indies and the Gulf
| Billy wasn't naturally dcpraved, but
those West Indian ports were too much
| for the virtue of the descendant of many
| generations OF Cornish smupglcrs, and
| Captain Treharne fell away from grace
| He started in quite a small way. SNUG
CLING odd boxes of extra special Ha-
vanas and odd pounds of selected Vir-
| gina, which came to him via New Or
leans. Then he started playing the game
heavily and that was where his fall hurt
When they did get him he suffered heav-
lily, lost many pounds of excellent to-
bacco, and, as the lawyers put it, was
"mulct i'll heavy fine
Captain Trcharne, of the Rathcoole.
| resolved to get even. and next trip he
ran some more of his favorite blends
and brands, which by extra judicious
slowing in unconsidered trifles of cargo
he got ashore safe That paid him we'll
and nearly squared up The loss on the
confiscated cargo. Still he wanted to
| get his own back"--to use his own
phrase-and for that end concoctcd a
| deep and skillful plot Accordingly, next
trip he carefully slowed few boxes OF
cigars and a few pounds OF tobacco
where they would be found by the keen
nosed customs officer These being
found, he was fined again pro rata, but,
:he quantity being small, the fine w.s
| small, too. He knew that now he would
he marked as a confirmed runner" and
that was where the plot came in, also
where the skipper of the Rathcoole be-
can to feel pleased with himself
When he next visited New Orleans.
Billy Treharne expended a portion of his
il-gottcn gains on buying up a few hun
dred weight of scrap tobacco, swcepir"s
Of the warehouses, ard so on. Billy be
ing part owner OF the Rathcoole. could
do pretty well as he liked. so he ex-
pended more wealth on a rather unneces-
sarily large supply OF coal, and coal costs
money in the Gulf ports. Then he
started for home When the little Rath
coole had kicked and wriopled herself to
within few hours OF sight Of England
the skipper called the crew aft indivdu-
ally swore them to secrecy ard explained
the plot The crew saw the humor of
the situation and grinned. Then Billy
produced the scrap tobacco and sent for
the ships cook.
For several hours the cook and Billy
were busy boiling up strong solution
of nicotine. Until the cooks galley reeked
like dockers dirty clay pipe Then
| Billy sent for the chief engineer, and
remarked Mister Mckay, will you
kindly have few wee graves dug on
the top of all that extra coal you've got
left over this trip"
Mckay. who was in the joke, retired
10 his bunkers and had the necessary
graves dug as required.
Then the skipper, the cook and Nc
Kay proceeded to scientifically distribute
that nicotine solution between the graves
in the coal, so that it should percolate to
the bouommost plate in the burkcrs.
BY this time they were nearing their
first port of call Everything was made
'shipshape and Bristol fashion below,
and into port they went the Rathcoole's
bunlers and galley smelling ike cut
plug factory.
As soon as the revenue officer came
| aboard Billy gratritously declared five
hundred cigars and twelve pounds of to-
bacco, and offered duty on the sar1e.
Now that alone, from twice con-
yicted smugger, was enough to rouse
suspicion, so off went Mr. Revenue Off
Ger on the spy-aroud. He tackled
Billy's cabin first; nothing 10 be found
there; then the mates quarters, nothing
there; then the fo'c'sle. one man found
with two hundred cigars, nothing to do
with the skipper, though. Then he
tackled the galley.
"Ah," said the revenue man, there's
nothing to see, but this smells suspi-
cous."
Cant say it's pleasant replied Billy
seems to me that dam cook has been
smoking some unholy muck in the to-
bacco line here. Sort of seems more a
case for quarantine officer than reve-
nue. man. though"
THAT don't go here" snapped the
revenue man; you'd far better declare
the stuff right off than let us find it and
get fined yourself though, to tell the
truth, you'll sight more likely get
jurged the third time Come, now,
where is it2 tell YOU, bluff don't go
down here
Who's blufing?" answered Billy.
I've declared all the tobacco I've got
aboard, and you can turn the darned
old Rathcoole inside out, but you won't
find another ounce"
Well see about that later" said the
revenue man.
Well, nothing was found in the galley,
and nothing elsewhere. till they came to
the stoke-hold, and thence to the bunk
ers. Here the revenue man was struck
by the quantity of coal on hand for an
inbound ship, and his suspicious rose
like the comb on an angry cuckatoo.
Seems you've got lot of coal aboard,
Captain Treharne," he said