The Washington herald. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1906-1939, 1914-04-26
KEEPS TREASURE
in Marine BANK
Smoky Uses a File to Draw
and by Cable He Cashes
His Checks"
RAILROAD MADE DEPOSIT
Washington Man Figures Account
Will Never Be Exhausted
Before He Dies.

Washington Correspondent Of the New York World.
Smoky draws checks on the First
Submarine Bank OF Southwest Washing
ton He endorses them with file and a
wrench and cashes them with cable.
Smoky. known to his mother and
two or three others as Edward Thomas.
is sixty years old and is to the Seventh
street wharves in Washington what a
besch-comber is to the water front at
Apia. He has no particular profession VI
trade. but has been getting by" con
, sistently for many years.
When the spirit moves him. he buys a
/ barrel OF fish and becomes a peddler
about town. But this IS only occasion
ally. When he needs money he draws 4
check as related in the opening sentence.
How IL All Happened.
One day. about a decade ago. they
were shunting freight cars down in the
old Jersey yards by the gas works when
I switch engine ran OF a trestle and
plunged into the Eastern Branch OF the
Potomac The water il pretty deep at
this spot. and secure.y imbedded in the
mud bottom Of the river the engine re-
posed as peacefully as Spanish gal
leon at the bottom Of the Caribbean
until Smoky came along.
As a child Smoky mad taken A liking
to the water. so when the story Of the
submerged freight engine came to his
ears he saw visions Of wealth Going
TO the point on the railroad trestle from
which the engine was reported to have
plunged. Smoky dove into the turbid
Anacostia River. as the Eastern Branch
is known. and started a submarine in
vestigatiOn. 1t took two or three dives
to locate the engine. but Smoky evsntu-
nd 40 Ha
filed a claim with Neptune tor the engine
or such parts of ii as he desired and re-
turned to the surface TO equip himself
with such tools as he might need.
Calling on the junk dealer he made a
dicker with that individual. The junk
man agreed TO advance tools il. in re-
turn. Smoky would give him an initial
option on all goods to he replevined from
the deep. The covenant was made and
Smoky dived again He piled ri" md
wrench and screwdriver until ne had de-
taChed the choicest and most easily oh
tainsble portion Of the engine. Then he
attached a cable and arose to the sur
face. Standing on the trestle he hauled
away at the cable until there appeared
the beautiful brass hell Of the locomotive
This he disposed Of profitahly and earned
his first reward from out the junk deal
er's greasy cash drawer.
In No Hurry to spend Capital.
The junk dealer and what few others
who knew OF the exploit expected Smoky
to equip an expedition and prosecute his
submarine salv age operations with EustO
But he disappointed them. Belonging to
that happy clan the members Of which
believe that sufficient unto the day is
the cash in hand, he rested on his laurels
The proceeds Of the big bell kept Snorky
in spending money for some time. and.
secure in the knowledge that no one else
would attempt TO jump his ~laim. he
waited until he was fat broke before he
dived again.
On the second trip he brought up the
whistle and apparatus appertaining there
to. Then he detached certain portions of
the control machinery. including the brass
throttle. And so. whenever the spirit. or
the desire for spirits. moved him. he has
descended into the bosom Of the AnacOs-
tia and returned with SOM choice bit
OF junk which always has found a ready