Yorkville enquirer. [volume] (Yorkville, S.C.) 1855-2006, 1913-05-09
DYNAMITE" JOHNNY o'BRiEN

"DYNAMITE" JOHNNY o'BRiEN
Remarkable Experiences Of the Mos
Famous of All Gun Runners.
In the city Of Havanna, still in &C.
tive harness in spite Of the fact that h,
is today celebrating his seventy sixth
birthday, lives white-headed, lion.
hearted Captain John o'Brien, better
known to his thousands of friends a.
Dynamite Johnny" Still vigorous
erect, his eyes as piercing as in thu
days when he ran He'll Gate, Captain
John expects to live to be a centenari.
an. ,-
OF all Americans who had a hand II
the Cuban gun-running game before
the Spanish American war, Dynamite
Johnny was easily the bravest, thu
cleverest, the most trusted. He fooled
Weyler, he def1ed the Spanish govern.
ment, he evaded the trained sleuthl
employed by his own government; II
fact, he landed arms and ammunition
just where and when he pleased. HI.
flibustering trips kept alive the Cubar
revolutionary movement for years
kept 1t alive until the one-sided nava
duel off Santiago told Spain that hel
Cuban colony was no more.
Had 1t not been for Johnny O'Brien's
expeditions, Spain would have Ions
since starved and whipped the cubans
into submission. The Maine would no
have been sent to Havanna. In al
probability there would have been ne
war with Spain, and the red and vel.
low striped standard would still fioa
over Moro Castle. In other words
Captain Dynamite Johnny O'Brier
might we'll be named "o'Brien the Lib.
orator"
O'Brien was born In New York, or
the East Side, April 20, 1887, Just II
years ago today. Near shipyards, the
water front and He'll Gate when It was
dangerous and intricate passage, the
young O'Brien quickly fell in love with
the water|earned to handle sailboat
when he was but 10. At the age Of 1;
Johnny ran away to sea; then followed
his apprenticeship on a pilot boat, @
course in navigation, until the outbreak
Of the Civil war found him in command
Of private yacht.
AS third officer Of the Illinois, young
O'Brien had his first taste Of real ad-
venture, for the Illinois was one Of 9
fleet of Federal vessels sent south tc
sink the Merrimac. That the Illinois
did not become famous was no fault Of
her third officer. A cautious admiral
forebore giving orders for the ramming
and later, after the Confederates them
selves blew up their vessel, the Illinois
returned north, and her officers were
retired from the service.
Then followed Johnny's first filibus-
tering experience. On board a schoon-
er loaded with arms for the Confeder-
ates, he set sail for Matamoras. The
arms were to be landed at the Mexican
port, and then smuggled across the
border at leisure. It was a successful
trip, spiced with danger, trip that
O'Brien says put the germs Of filibus-
tering fever into my veins; and there
the germs grew and multiplied"
Coasting for a few years after the
close Of the Civil war, O'Brien finally
grew weary of the routine and became
q member Of the He'll Gate Pilots as
sociation. Knowing the dangerous pas
sage so well, Captain Johnny soon
found himself the best-known and
most trusted pilot for that tricky body
Of water. T'a
firing of such work-all too tame for
an adventurer of John O'Brien's caliber
the Colombian revolution Of 1856
gave the restless one an opportunity to
become q dyed-in- the-wool filibuster.
Several thrilling trips. during which
OBrien witnessed the burning Of the
city Of Colon, followed, and then came
the year Of 1888, when Captain John
O'Brien earned his title, Dynamite
Johnny"
It seems that wealthy Cuban pur-
chased sixty tons Of dynamite in New
York, and wanted 1t conveyed to Pana-
ma, where he had coal mine. In those
days, dynamite was rather uncertain
article. Shipmasters were afraid of 1t.
No owner could be found to lend his
vessel for such hazardous trip. There
was but one way out Of his difficulty, 80
the Cuban bought outright the Ram
bier, a sizeable yacht. Then came the
necessity of finding commander and
crew.
Grizzled mariners with masters GER
tificates shrugged their shoulders and
shifted their guilds when the Cuban ap-
preached them. It began to look as II
the purchaser Of the Rambler had
thrown his money away. Then Captain
John O'Brien heard Of the berth. There
was money and danger in 1t. Promptly
he accepted, a crew was secured-ig-
norant, however, Of the nature Of the
cargo-and the Rambler set sail.
In the language Of Horace Smith,
Dynamite Johnny's able biographer:
Being of Irish parentage, he was ia
vorably disposed toward dynamite on
general principles. When he came to
shipping a crew he was forced to do
some lying, which he regretted. He told
the men that the Rambler was a pri-
vate yacht going down to Colon to
meet her owner.
while in the Gulf Of Mexico the
Rambler ran into the center Of terri
fic electrical storm, while the rain fell
in sheets. There was nothing to do
but take in every stitch Of canvas, to
prevent the ship from threshing it and
herself to pieces. Never had O'Brien
seen such brilliant display of electric
ity, nor one that lasted so long. From
sundown to sunrise the sky was liter
ally ablaze with dazzling streaks Of
fire. 1t was q marvellous exhibition of
the heavens in a fury.
1.-THE falling rain picked up the electri-
city and carried 1t down until the air