The Columbus journal., 1910-06-08

be paid ont Of the debtors hide" or his wages
Boarding masters OF this class petty ras-
Gals. They dealt in men at retail. The brothers
John and Peter Sherman. of Irvington. on the Pa.
c;hc coast. were 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.
| ne shipping commissioner of the port winked
! at their devious ways. A crowd Of thugs run.
ners and hansers-on served them and thrived by
their favor. They were men OF substance and
owned or controlled part Of their business ev-
cry saloon. dance hall and resort in the crooked
streets and dark alleys about the wharves Upper
lrvlngton drew deadlne about the waterfront
and seldom ventured over IL outside Of business
hours. Jack and Pete Sherman were kings Of
. Irrington's saortown.
Every autumn saw big feet Of wind Jam
mers"-ships of 1000 to 5000 tons register-lying
off lrvington. 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 1t. and when the wheat fleet came upper
/, lrvington stirred itself. saortown reused to
vicious life and the sailortown kings reaped
harvest Of blood money.
No captain shipped crew from Irvngton un.
I'll he had done business with the kings and paid
their price. Captain Brown. of the bark Carmar-
thaenstire learned that to his cost. He put into
lrvineton for cargo at time when ships were
plenty and men hard to get. He uncon-
cernad for his men had been shipped in England
and would not be discharged until the home port
was reached. Captains of deep-.aden vessels ~
Ing in the stream eyed the Carmartha enshre's
crew enviousy. Jack Sherman quietly sent
man or two aboard the 'limejuicer" to visit and
smuggle IN forbidden whisky. BY twos and
threes Captain Browns crew left him and
hidden about sailortown. The lrvington police
were asked TO bring them back but however hard
ttar nod for ioSa hov dnsf Gp1a
Then one dark night the rest of the crew van.
ished over the side. to the last man. after knock
ing the breath out OF Captain Brown and trcing
the mate up to the main fiferail. And before the
as:onished captain could recover breath enough
to roar for law" Jack and Pete Sherman had his
men shipped in one Of the waiting vessels and
away. Next day the captain was waited on by
the kings. who bandly offered to find him a new
crew-at $50 the man. He rOared again-to the
British consul. to his shipping agents. to the po-
lice who were sympathetic but helpless. Nobody
could be found TO hint that the kings had
any hand in the affair and the shipping commits
sioner's records were clear. He had shipped no
deserterS that he knew of.
But Captain Brown sw ore that II he couldn't
get back his men, or get the dogs of justice to
even bark at the kings he at least would pay
them blood money for a new crew. So he
went to another port and brought new crew to
into tine stream and her crew kept close in her
forecastle. That night she was boarded by
masked men, who swept her new crew over the
bows into the stream. Gossip had il that some
Of them were drowned. Captain Brown gave up
and paid the Sherman boys S.5 instead Of $50
each for a crew. and put to sea in a hurry
They've hisedin' swine. but they'o Engs Of