Manchester Democrat. [volume] (Manchester, Iowa) 1875-1930, 1907-11-20
STE A LING
A SCHOONER
By LAURENCE ). YATES.
o.O.O. .O.O.o.O.o.O.ee.n

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1t was very hot day in the city,
and late in the afternoon my friend,
Wallace Carter, a young attorney in
Liberty street law office, and I went
down to Manhattan Beach for a cool
Ing plunge in the ocean. AS Carter
and splashed out into the water in
our bathing-suits, noticed a long
scar on his left arm midway between
elbow and shoulder 1t had the APP
pearance of having been made by a
bullet, and said:
Garter, where did you get that
badge Of courage, on your arm? /
didn't know that you had ever smelled
powder" "a
oh, that? A gang Of crooks-ship
thieves-gaye me that when I was a
young chap down in Maryland. I'll
tell you about it after the swim, if you
like" and he -dived forward and swan
away with long strokes.
Later, as we strolled along the
beach, ! reminded Carter of his prom
Use. Then he told the following story:
During the summer vacation from
college, eight years ago, l was an
assistant bookkeeper at my uncle's
ship-building establishment, which is
In small village lying ten miles in.
land on one of the narrow rivers that
empty into Chesapeake Bay. One
morning in August. work being slack,
a took my uncle's gun and his pointer,
Nness, and in canvas canoe pad
He4sdown the river to try my luck at
Anipessho oting on the marshes.
wasn't much of shot, and six
O'clock found me with an empty cart
Fidge-belt and only two kills to my
credit, started for home rather dis.
gusted with myself Two miles up
the river, a thundershower rolled over
from the bay and drove me, to take
shelter in an empty shack on the
river-hank, used by hunters in the
duck season. ~.
The storm was long one, and
while waited for 1t to pass, sitting
or. an old soap-box and leaning back
against the wall in the gloomy little
shack, i dropped off to sleep. had
been up rather late the night before,
and l slept soundly in my .silincom-
Portable position until / was finally
aroused by having Guess thrust his
cold muzzle In my face.
u at once discovered that the rain
had stopped, and l hurried to the
door to look out. The moon, nearly
full. was struggling to shine through
broken masses of clouds. l drew out
my watch, and could hardly believe
my eyes when I made out that 1t was
past one o'clock in the morning.
Quickly ! pushed my canoe into
the water, called Guess, and resumed
the homeward journey. A mile and
half from the shack l passed under
the drawbridge that bore the railroad
over the river. When was two miles
and a half farther on l heard a tug
chuggfng its way down the river to-
ward me.
1T was not very often that a tug
Shad occasion to be abroad on the river
It that time of night, and I wondered
Hhat had brought out this one. The
Pon was in shadow, and the tug
anne near before-I made out that 1t
I'd vessel in tow.
2 7 turned the canoe in near shore
i've the vessels the right Of way.
pc tug was opposite me the moon
'Fl,-sped out for moment, and rec.
ognized the vessel in tow as the four.
masted schooner Shenandoah
schooner which had recently been
built at my uncle's yards for Arm
OF shippwners with headquarters in a
Virginia city, and which had been an.
chored in the roadstead in front Of
the yards for more than two weeks.
since 1t had been finished. NV uncle
had refused to turn the vessels over
to the owners until they should make
the last payment on the contract
price.
The fact that there was no other
four-masted vessel in the river at that
time made me sure as to the identity
of the schooner. Immediately aross
the suspicion that the men on the
tug had taken her by stealth, with
the intention Of towing her across
the bay into Virginia waters, where
the owners could boldly assume pos
session and let by uncle whistle for
the money still due-so long as the
vessel was kept away from Maryland
ports. / did not think for moment
that any enc would be so foolish as
to steal outright such an unconceal-
able thing as ship-at least, not in
coast waters in these modern times.
my uncle had gone away the day
before. for three days fishing trip
down the bay. He was beyond COM
munication by wire. There was no
one at the shipyards with authority to
receive money and release vessel,
so there was no chance that since my
departure that morning the Virginia
people had paid up and rightfully
come into the possession of their prop.
erty. It was plain that crooked work
was afoot.
But what was to do-alone and,
since my cartridges were gone, UNI
armed? My first thought was that
could only hurry up the river to the
village, give the alarm, and start a
party of constables In. gasoline
launch after the rascals. But saw
If did this, the tug would have time
to get its prize out on the bay and
disappear before the fastest launch In
the village could appear upon the
scene.
''Then remembered the draw of the
railroad bridge through which the tug
and the schooner must pass. two and
hall. miles down the river. II l
could reach the bridge first and have
The draw-tender. whom ! knew. hold