Mexico Missouri message. (Mexico, Audrain County, Mo.) 1899-1918, 1910-06-02

be paid out of the debtors hide" his wages,
Boarding masters of this class were petty
calls They dealt in men at retail. The brothers
John and Peter Sherman, of Irvington, on the Pa
-cifc coast of another type. They dealt in
men wholesale. shipped entire crews Their
boarding houses were licensed by the govern
ment. Captains bargained with them openly.
The shipping commissioner Of the port winked
at their devious ways. crowd of thugs
ners and hangers-on served them and thrived by
eheir favor. They were of substance and
owned or controlled as part Of their business ev-
cry saloon dance hall and resort in the crooked
streets and dark alleys about the wharves. Upper
ArVington drew n deadline about the waterfront
and seldom ventured over it outside Of business
hours. Jack and Pete Sherman were kings of
IrVington's sailortown.
Every autumn saw a big fleet of wind JAM
mers"-shps of 1000 to 900 tons register-lying
OH Irvington The wheat of the new northwest
was In their holds, consigned to ports in Europe
or India by way of the six-months' journey
round the Horn. The wheat feet Irvington
called it, and when the wheat fleet came, upper
Irvington stirred itself. sailortown reused to
vicious life and the sailortown kings reaped
harvest of blood money
No captain shipped crew from Irvington UNI
I'll he had done business with the kings and paid
their price Captain Brown, of the bark Carmar-
thaenshire, learned that to his cost He put into
Hrvington for a cargo at time when ships were
plenty and men hard to get, He was uncon-
ceTncd for his men had been shipped in England
and would not be discharged until the home port
was reached. Captains of deep-laden vessels ly-
ing In the stream eyed the Carmarthaenshire's
crew enviousy. Jack Sherman quietly sent a
man or two aboard the "lmejuicer' to visit and
smuggie in forbidden whisky BY twos and
Gbrees Captain Browns crew left him and were
hidden about sailortown The Irvngton police
were asked to bring them back. but however hard
they looked for deserters they didn't find any.
Then one dark night the rest of the crew van,
tshed over the SIDE to the last man, after knock
ing the breath out of Captain Brown and tricing
the mate up to the main hferail. And before the
asfonished captain could recover breath enough
% roar for claw" Jack and Pete Sherman had his
men shipped in one of the waiting vessels and
away Next day the captain waited on by
the kings who blandy offered to find him new
Erew-at $50 the man. He Toared again--to the
British consul, TO his shipping agents, to the po
Nee who were sympathetic but helpless. Nobody
could be found to even hint that the kings had
any hand In the AFFAIR and the shipping commits
s,itners records were clear He had shipped no
adeserters that he knew Of
But Captain Brown swore that If he couldn't
get back his men, get the dogs of justice to
even bark at the kings. he at least would pay
them no blood money for new crew. So he
went TO another port and brought new crew to
Ervington by steamer. His bark was hauled out
Rnto the stream and her crew kept close In her
forecastle That night she boarded by
masked men, who swept her new crew over the
Bows into the stream. Gossip had 1t that some
e0g them were drowned, Captain Brown gave up
and paid the Sherman boys S75 instead Of $50
each for a crew. and put to sea In hurry.
They're bleedin swine. but they're kings OF