The San Francisco Call. Newspaper, July 3, 1898, Page 24

24 p!” said nly publi nd ing, stage. sap’s done us up too brow ywing himself sidewise in the 3 support to his elbow; hat big steer?’ gasped ; “offered §10 more'n d hired Jose Facheco, the only man fer forty s how to do.the trick, to barbecue it fer 1ded sted nd our ¥Fourth's t hat.” than that, uJd man. “FELLER CITIZENS!” SAID BIG JAKE, THE SAN FRANCISCO OCALL, SUNDAY, JULY 38, 1898. They're goin' to have a band from t - 1 about the V v of picnicke: co; twenty band! £ the woo 1 they've give us, ’ceptin’ the a " groaned Johnson, as the e to sort the mail. town’!” sal clatter of th ne of Johnson s. iere’s some offenses that c and if I'm any jedge, feller em; to be done up right and | that evervbody knows wa Pot Luck a few vear ago—' broke in Johnson, letter in his hand. ‘‘Bein’ of July committee I took the lib- at you don’t intend to ' the patriotic sentiments ou a cordial invitation to (Signed) The Fourth of “1 AM A M@N OF BY MYRON [§ GIBSON® . . before, the Peace of Pot Luck, never known to be ruffied , proved unequal to the strain of so extraordinary r;fi:lc:‘ sion. He fairly screamed out the final words, empuasizi® them with a swipe of his big felt hat across the top OF bench, fllustrative of the clean sweep he proposed malng of the viands of the luckless picnickers at the Gap, ~/q masterly diplomacy was at once recognized by Shouts f0e cheers of approval, in which the voices of Ike Bledsoe anc Easy Bill sounded loudest and longest. Pot Luck was ready to act as one man. Johnson's strategy, I's E \,( utive abil nd Ike's oratory had been the brilliant feat: ures of many a victory in the bitter rivalry long waged between Pot Luckhxixmz fihe‘(}(,u}l)}.'nn‘il“x;'ot a Pot Lucker eve B o mmitfee went directly Into executive session and 1aid all necessary plans to gather the largest crowd of men ever collected in Pot Luck and march in a body dov\&x to the Gap on the morning of the Fourth, now ten days away. 4 25 The ditch and flume long contemplated by the Po Luck fnlners was suddenly found to be an nmmr:(?idw ne- Ccessity, and word was sént down to the valleys andbm neighboring camps that 200 extra were wanted to be; gin work upon it July 1. Not a tramp came to town u“ Was offered a chance to do light work for his board until after the Fourth, a move which of itself aimost doubled the population of the town, the news spreading with such mysterious rapidity that every Weary Watkins within It reach quickly turned his face toward Pot Luck as the Mecca he long had sought. Pot Luck knew the 'Ggp never figured upon entertaining more than five or six hunc dred people at the mns(.“nnd’dr(c-rm!ned to muster at leasf ber in its invading host. m“},:zs“smmnrn”}; Weck before the Fourth, that the Gapers might not have time to discover the trap set rr_\r them, Pot Luck sent this reply to their invitation, an epistle upon which *Ceptin' Johnson and the whole committee expende much time and ingenuity: “To the Chairman and Members of the Fourtn of July Committee of Dufch Bill's Gap: Gentlemen and Feller Citizens—In acceptin’ the invitation so cordially extended us to participate in the good time you intend havin’ on the Fourth, allow us, on behalf of the citizens of Pat Luck, to thank the good people of the Gap for a courtesy which is doubly ap]»re(‘lflgd on account of our pref )set our own preparations fer celeb 1 wla(tevor\' Bot Lucker who can afford to knock off work will be down to see you on our Nation’s glorious birthday. (Signed) The Fourth of July Committee of Pot Luck.” This reply bhad the precise effect intended, namely: Tt assured the Gapers that the Pot Luckers were as good as themselves at bluffing. and big Jake Tohmer's fat side shook with laughter, when, as their chairman, he read i ‘to the committee. Some one Sugg: Luck had accepted the invitatic Jake roared again. “Good “They want us to think s ’em, and then not a Pot I That's their game. We W n good faith. faith nothin’!" said he. nd go ahead and prepare for 3 r our celebration, n't born v ; not all of us. The idee of a boom at Pot Luck! “too good! And so things went on, the G ers_making prepara- tions for their usual crowd only, while Pot Luck strained itself to add men enough to its ptl\n\ll:umn to ‘“‘eat the Gap out of house and home.” as Tke Bledsoe put it. Two days before the Fourth, Jake Tohmer's boys, Frifz and Jake Jr., went fishing far up the creek toward Pot Luck,’and came home almost bursting with excite- ment. “Dad,” sald the breathless Fritz, dashing into his father's grocery, “the Pot Luckers are goin’ to bust our Fourth wide open!” : “Go long, you young rascal!” sald his father; “what you tryin’ to play on your old dad now? They ain't goin to celebrate at all up there.” “That's just it, dad, and say! the woods is plumb full of men up that way; I never saw such droves of 'em, an’ me an’ Jakey heard 'em talkin’, an’ they're every one of ‘em goin’ to march down on us Fourth of July mornin’ an' eat an’ drink up everything in sight, run all the Gapers oft the dancin’ floor an’ off the groun’s, and just par’lyze us en'rally; them’'s the very words they sald, ain't they, akey " A great light suddenly flashed upon the mind of Jake Sr. Not waltfilg to hear Fritz's news confirmed ne spread a big sheet of wrapping paper on his counter, hastily pen- ciled a call for a meeting that night, not only of "the Fourth of July Committee, but all good citizens of the Gap, and tacked it up outside his door. Jake's grocery store wouldn't begin to hold the Gapers who answered the call, and_the public pulse ran so high that it seemed nothing but bloodshed could result. Some of the more impetuous Gapers were for arming every man and going to meet the Pot Luckers half w This was iven up as too hazardous. Pot Luckers were known to e Hgnters to a man, and would doubtless greatly out- ted moving to a grove number the Gapers. Others sug 2 dozen miles down the river early in the day and thus es- caping the ravaging horde from Pot Luck. But this gmacked of cowardice and could not be considered for a » moment. The chagrined Gapers blamed thelr committee for get- ting them Into such a dilemma, while accusations of bun- gling and stupidity pa: fretly between the committee Ipmibers themselves. e Tohmer was almost the only man present who did not lose his temper, and when the meeting seemed about to break up in a free fight he banged loudly upon his grocery counter with a sugar scoop and es chairman of the meeting commanded order. What 'Ceptin’ Johnson was to Pot Luck, Jake Tohmer was to the Gap, and the noisy crowd was hushed to silence when he rose to speak. PEACE. July Committee of Dutch Bill's Gap. *“‘P. 8.—Don't trouble yourselves to bring lunch bas- kets; we'll have good music and plenty to eat and drink, and it won’'t cost you a cent,’ “Now then, that's a polite invitation enough,” said Johnson, with a wink at Easy Bill. “What's the matter Ik do like pluggin’ t son n insult 1 “Feller citizens!” sald big Jake. “I own Y'm as much to I'm en, but I'm blame in this matter as any one; perhaps more, I don't that Fourth of July Committee at the Gap, and if there's believe any of you will call me a coward, and you all a man in Pot Luck that packs a gun and won't foller me - know I ain’t 4 man to set my judgment up against the will he’s a coward and I can lick him.” of the majority, What goes with the crowd goes with me; Oh, hold on, Ike,” said Jo but if you'll allow me to say so, it's just struck me’all of ;. “don’t be goin’ oft vou're always his here invite's all nothin’ but a bluff. "THey don’t mean a word of it ¢ more'n they expect us to ‘cept it. But loox a-here, Can’t you see they've dealt us the very cards we th a heap that wo alm't been treatin: the Pot Luckers just right fer some years back. While they've been goin’ back- ward, their mines playin’ out and thelr population dwin- dlin' ‘away, we've been progressin’ right ulong; our or- need to beat 'em at their own gam the matter chards and vineyards multiplyin’ and yleldin’ bigger, and with our “ceptin’ this invite and ralsin’ the biggest crowd our populatlon growin’ vear after year. Another thing: Pot Luck ever seen and goin’ down there and monopolizin’ We've got homes and families here at the Gap with our that hundred-and-fifty dollar dance music, and wipin’ all fair share of women folks to make homes worth havin’, their eatables and drinkables off the face of the yearth?’ while up there they’re only a crowd of minin’ men batchin’ Ceptin’ Johnson's dignity as Postmaster and Justice of together. And with all our prosperity and happiness, in- our present boom havin’ ‘We assure you” sted that perhaps Pot - stead of sympathizin’ with 'em and extendin’.a I hand, we've been fightin' ‘em at every turn and tryin take away what little they’ve got left, just because they. used to be big enough to crow over us in yéars.gone by. Now about this celebration: We wasn't satisfied .to beat ‘em so bad that they didn't have the heart to.try.fo -cele- brate at all, knowin’ our attractions wouid, draw all the : crowd from the country roun? about; not’ satisfled with this, as I say, we must taunt them by sendin’ that shdm fvitation. “That. of ftself, was o challenge, and they'te only takin’ it up as they have a right to. Now, Il tell you, friends, to my notion there's just one vay.fer us-to get out of this scrape like men. That, is fér us.tg pervide the best there {s in the land, and enough’ of. it fer.e Pot Lucker that comes, and treat 'em so-white that € man of 'em 'll go home a friend instead of an énemy. W what's all this Fourth of July business fer; anyway? ain’t the lickin’ our great-granddads glve the Britishers, but the peace and happiness and prosperity they had ‘to- fight fer; that's what we're celebratin’! Now, gentlemen, 1 don’t pertend to dictate what course we.ought-to_take but 1¢ there's any one present,with a better “plan out of the difficulty I should be pleased to hear from him. Dead silence prevalled for some indnients.after Jake ceased speaking. Then the leaven of brotherly. love fm- parted by his speech seemed all at once to leaven the whole fump. His plan, put in the form of a motien, was carried with applause that shook cans of tomatdes' and boxes- of sardines off. Jake's grocery shelves, while' his stock- of jan- terns and tinware suspended from numerous hooks. in- the ceiilng nodded and clanged in approval like so” many lib~ erty bells. e Then the Gapers set to work in earnest.. ‘The time was short, but what they lacked in time they made up in.en= ergy. The hot July sun had barely pushed its faee above the eastern mountains on_the morning of the. Fourth be- fore the picnic grove at the Gap swarmed with people-of both sexes putting the finishing touches tq . L prep= s for entertaining the expected- horde from’ Pot Luck. ¢ Two blg fat steers Instead of one, six fat sh of three, and a dozen were already smoking over the barbecue pits, done juicy brown crispiness known only to-the art of Jo checo, while long rows of tables groaned, under-the w of ‘other good things. Evervihing the larders of ihTfty Gapers could supply was there, with such boxes and b Kets of fruit and such stacks of melons as only-the foot- hills of California could furnish e S e A scene of equal bustle and activity, though animated by a far different spirit, was transpiring. up-emong 1le pines at Pot Luck that bright July morning where. thejr chosen leaders were marshaling the invading hosts.; = “Pack our guns? Of cours: veLy mian Of us.”’s Ike Bledsoe, in answer to a query as the columia’ bégan 1o form. “T'm a peaceable citizen and we ain’t huntin- fer trouble, but we may want to fire a salute, "you Xnow. Leastwise, the woods is full of bears and we may be.late. gettin’ home; I was treed by a grizaly -onc just.because 'd left my gun to home.” e Bursts of laughter greeted Ike's. ironfeal Mdeclaration of peace,” and as the anvils at the Gap began to boom-and echo across the valley and up the canyon toward Pgt Tauck a motley army 500 strong, of almost every racé and calor under the sun and headed by the fifes ana ms. of A stroliing band of minst marched with swinging stride down the winding road between the solemn pinés.and Ted- woods toward the Gap. .. Ay The Gapers heard their coming miles away;-and form= ing as many couples as there were ladies on’the grounds went out to meet them with waving banners of welcome and a lively burst of music from their own exceh band; The Pot Luckers heard the advancing-music with. quak- ing hearts. That their raid was anticipated upset eveil their leaders, and only by heroic effort on treir part was the column kept in motion as the Gapers drew near." . “They're on to our game, Bill!"” said Ike. Bledsoe, gal- - loping uD to his lieutenant, just as their own music wa< vered and came to a sudden stop.” “Ride ahead and.sfart-- that music again and keep it goin’ if you'ha to 8hoof a couple of drummers! If that-stops, half rabble!l] take to the woods in no time. Come on, boys!"” he shouted . | to the faltering ranks, “they're comin’ to meet us; mo. flunkin’ now! 1'm a peaceable man and don’t want to hurt nobody, but I'll plug the first man that makés a break to. Without stopping their music or breakingthe stng of .- their guests the Capers “about faced” and escorted them to the grounds, where the leaders were conducted to chairs on the * stand with their own committee, banner., in= . insfead instead of six fat.young ]’lUl"{(l 19 v a ¥ scribed : The embarra and chagrin of the Pot Luckers,’ which, as Ike Bledsoe afterward declared, “made every man of 'em feel like wiltin’ down to his boot tops i aiy(vl;u-nrw] quickly before the friendly spirit mani s words: 2 “To our fellow-citizens of Pot Luck, who have ho- ored us o proudly by their presence in stch numbers here to-day, we extend the glad hand of: fellowship -and wi come. 'Pitch,in, gentlemen of Pot Luck, and enjoy selves. Everything on the grounds is as welcome to it as you are to the w. yonder mount , or to the balmy air that floa us over the tr rom the bosom of the.broad P: When the tables were spread the ladies Gevoted. selves to their guests, and not a Gaper ate or.drank-until every Pot Lucker had been well sérved.” Then in bumpers, of lemonade the Pot Luck, toasted the Ga sae. i calls, made a_sp come of the Gap £0 down in history as the greatest time ever- e The Gap, and the one occasion upon which Tke’ ever failed him. : “Ladles andgentlemen and feller-citizens of- he began, T — Ob; hang it all, I my life had the packin’ so éverlastin'ly krocké as I have to-day, and I'm going to own up ty it ‘We came down here with malice in our hearts, of us, but from this day on Pot Luck’s the best friend Gap's got, and don’t you forgit {t. I'm a peaceabdle ax. and don’t ‘want to harm nobody, but if ever ik a POt Lucker say a word ag'in The Gap ¥l shoot-hint on the “oh all’ the orator of the day closing his address with these spot. More'n that, we want to celebrate with you every. year after this, ‘and on behalf of the citizens of ot Luck, invites you, one and all, to come -up and picnic with- next Fourth. T calls fer three cheers feér the Dutch Bill's Gap! and, as I said before citizen, but I can lick the man .that s: the Gapers. ain't the handsomest ladies and the best all-round good-felllers: in all this glorious land of the free and home-of the brave! Hip! Hip! Hooray ' e cople m a_peaceabls OT a_cloud relleved the.dull blue of the sky rays of the equa i or tropic bird cquld be k with its “caw the death lence of the stifiing air,-and not a breath-of ‘wind to reyive the exhausted energies of the érew or to cause the slightest flap of the sails - of. the bark Excelsior as she lay motionless on the glassy bosom of the Indian Ocean. And to-morrow would he the Fourth of July The Excelsior was on, a voyage from Philadelphia to Japan. The. Cape-of Good Hope had been safely rounded ard werhad made a good run along the west coast of tralla, but after sighting the Island of Timor, noted for its many .massacres by pirat. solitary s seemed to desert A glance at th y islands stretching from t ‘Gulf-of Siam to 1l show at once that be- fore a’'vessel can make her way from the indian Oce the Pacific she must thread a tortuous passage through “innunierable 15lands and rocks. This was the portion of our % that lay fmmediately before us on the Fourth of n which we are.now interested. The first attempt to run this gauntlgt of obstacles proved: a faflure; so did the sécond and third. We were ahoiit half way between Timor and Bathurst Island when the wind died away and we were left like a log on the ocean—unmanageable and -at the mercy of the currents -runmring from the opposite” direction. to that in which we -wanted to go. Man is a feeble opponent against- nature, and the of- ficers of the celsgior realized this, as with all of their knowledge of navigation and secamanshlp they were farced to stand on the quarter detk and see€ their vessel drift helplessly past the Ombay passage, while consoling them- selves with the hope that ther ould: be some wind before Floris Straits were reached. The hope was vain, how- -ever, for the red sun rése out of an unruffled sea and after-sending forth his flercest s sunk into his western -.chamber, " his uninterrupted progress through the blue ocean above seeming to mock the helpless condition of . our_vessel drifting on the bluer ocean below. I was trying to convince myself that there was a ~preath of wind from some direction:in spite of the fact that the dog vane did not.make the least attempt to flut- ter when the captain came up the companion.® “Take In ‘the small gails and have them made fast. 1 think these monsgons are goin; us,” he said, addressing the;mate. based on the erratic motio; barometer. 2 “Anything would be better than this,” said the mate. -“Perhaps you won't think so by this time to-morrow, although this is enough to make a saint swear.” And both men leaned over the rail and watched the peculiar ac- tions of hundreds of those little water spiders that are never seen except in-a calm; . well to play a trick on His calculations were of the mariner’s savior—tha e e e ey ing-dong, ding-dong, ding-dong, ding-dong. Eight bells,” “Eight bells, sir; all hands shorten sall’ echoed one of the middies of the starboard watch as he rushed into my room at midnight. gl I _jumped oyt of my berth and having turned in *“all standing” 1 was ready to rush up on deck. Raln was falling in torrents, the darkness was 8o dense it could be almost felt and was rendered blacker by the occasional flashes of lightning. The wind was howling and whistling through the rigging and the white waves, lashed into fury by the sudden storm, were hurling their crests on the deck, and the sailors were trying in vain ‘to clew up the fluttering fragments of the torn sails before their violent flafylng should carry away a mast. ven then with death staring them in the face, not one of them flinched from doing his duty or hesitated to obey his officer's orders. It was a time when prompt action might.mean salvation; to temporize, certain destruction. hen the tempest first struck the vessel the captaln ordered her kept dead before the wind, but as such a .eourse was carrying us toward the dangerous overfalls off Ringit Point, on the southeast corner of Lombok, it was necessary to haul the ship to the wind as soon as possible, “Everybody off the main deck while she comes to the wind,” ordered & e captain, All hands mustered to the poopdeck to avold the heavy seas which a vessel invariably ehips when she 18 being leid to. “Down with the helm—not too fast now! Bring her to ntly,” was the advice given to the man at the wheel. ] eyes were watchi e uhi‘v'a head. Gradually she ose on the top of “fe breaker as she answera‘é ?\er elm and brought the wind on the qu:anar‘ us roller was tearing al . It brokd ower the in & direct Anmo!untnln- e for o ibmaln:‘wnl 'n.te;',l‘t’g - SCARED THE PIRATES. 2 32 : “YANKEE DOODLE” & % . A Story of the Fourth at Sea -g'ri'v: YL LT RS nREINNY : nuRRLLRLRLN .3 BRRRLRRRNN PRNURURRNRNRNNRANNRES ¢ upon the deck, and at the same instant the 5 of the lower topsail gave a quiver and the at the wind. er, my lads, steady the helm,” said the captain, minute all immediate danger was past. But only for 4 Crash! te. A violent shock was heard and felt all over the ship, Crash! rang out the thunder, followed immediately by & blinfing flash that revealed to us the foretopmast of a few minutes to cut away the At last d >, and with its appearance the fury of :ased. But the troubles of that eventful begun. ~ As is usual with tropical storms, 1y almost uddenly as it rose and left wrecked to the mercy of the conflicting cur- hold high carnival around the shores of had onl. A few observation: the captain that we w ound S were fathoms, so it was u could plainly see t and crossbearings soon convinced e drifting fast toward the shore. 1ken but showed no bottom at 100 cless to think of anchoring. Yet we 1t we were rapidly approaching those almost perpendicular cliffs. We were not more than half a mile off were nearing the edge of the seething over- falls caused by the meeting of several approaching cur- rent 14 Scarer onearer_ngarer] cide her fate. What an age that minute seemed! All hands were nding near the boats ready to leave the ill-fated bark soon as they were certain they could be of no more he SMR. It would all be settled in a few seconds—now a biscult could be thrown on shore. The main yardarm grazes the cliffs. Crash! Crash! Crash! The Excelsior’s stern was hurled against the rocks, which at that place disappeared under water perpendicularly for more than a hundred fathoms., . The force of the collision caused the timber to splinter like matchboard, Would the vessel sink? ter? Would One minute more would de- ‘Was she damaged under wa- the yards become locked in the cliffs and cause the mast to go by the board? As any one of these disasters would inevitably have destroyed the hoats and robbed us of our last means of escape, the captain or- dered the men into the glg and lifeboat and told them to row off a little distance and stand by. Barely had the; left the vessel when one of the currents swung her of the rocks and she was free from another danger. hen the pumps were sounded the rod was pulled out of the well almost as dry as when it went in. ‘t"llfl'.e old craft isn’t sinking, anyhow, Chip,” said the captain. “No, sir;” re‘xflled the cnrpentfr. “Just six inches, sir; same as yesterday, Can't be leaking a drop. Didn't touch under water, I guess,” By trimming the vards so as to catch n faint air that ‘came to our assistance we were enabled to work our way into fifty fathoms of water and let go an anchor,. How that two-ton mudhook did make the chain fly be- fore it struck the bottom. . Once more we were safe. The erew then commenced to bring order out of chaos, and the cook and his mate set about preparing our Fourth of July dinner, which is al- ways a great occasfon on board a ship. Little did any- body dream at that time of the circumstances under which :hal.meil was ll.) be .eu.le.n. . . . . . . . The little bay in which we werg riding at anchor was ur to this time considered one of the most dangerous pirate grounds in the Malay islands. Shortly after noon the second mate, who was looking through the glass, noticed hundreds of the swarthy na- tives congregated together and gesturing toward the lhu‘). He {mmedfately informed the cap , who seeing It would be folly t0 keep his fears a secret any longer, mus- tered the crew aft. ,‘After the experfences of the last twenty-four hours,” '12'13 the captain, “I feel that T have a crew on whom 1 ean wAye, ave, sir.” the saflors ghouted. Z “Well, boys,” he continued, “here we are, unable, with- ‘out making Tepairs, to go any fu . Those_cutthroats on the beach know' this‘, too,y-ndni!tl%uh u.t h they ?Z%’é“:% 1‘01 Ll:vt texmwnrm time at our expense. fim‘t in- any encouragemen e hg best showing we cany wftoh a‘\}'r ‘l:\ll l!l!? ut ope we shall not have to use t u? e do, —— Tho {hice Hacpbumor st e ckred "mare placed o -pounders that we ed were on the poopdeck with J:'eu- mujzles projecting avgrui!u el CRASHI RANG OUT THE THUNDER, FOLLOWED IMMEDIATELY _ hallucination of our worn-out, rail. The muskets and sabers were dealt out to- the crew, the ammunition was distributed, and‘as that’ was . the sum of our means of defense, there was nothing to do but await developments. - = - Late in the afternoon the natives left us no-longer in: doubt. Several hundred marched toward. the canoes,. dancing and yelling like a crowd of black demons: - A few- minutes later fully fifty ecanoes were launched "and: manned with the fierce looking crowg. “They started: for the ship and those who were not paddling were shouting: and gesticulating. The entire absence of. any- womeérn proclaimed their mission—they were out to fight:’ When about half way to the ship théy ceased paddling and held ow-wow. We made up our minds that they Had deter- mined on waiting for darkness to help them. ' Just as the captain was. ordering the officers to fire our guns, the canoes turned around and started for the beach.. Wé at’ once concluded that they were returning for re-enforce- ments with which to come back after nightfall. .~ ... Never did human beings pass more anxious -hours than - those we passed that evening, While a few kept:watch {he ]mhers rested by stretching out on’the deck, but not* 0 sle - e 5 Hark! Were our ears deceiving uia? ‘Could we not hear the airs of the old tune, ‘““Yankee Doodle’ ain _ilusion. Nearer and clearer ¢ame the music. Tt must surely be the. = distracted, " despairing " rains. What was that coming around the point?’ A’ bowspritt A hull! A mast! A full-rigged ship comes into view! L A Surely a kind fate had.driven us mad so that. h, ah! we should be insensible to our doom. - Illusion? No. Mad? No. Sy - Thank God! It was a man of war and. from. her- pedlk’ fluttering in the clear evening breezes were the-red,; whit and blue of Old Glory. 5 s < 3 We were safe. Owing to a dopression .in the RiIT at the back of the point, the savages had séen. the -upper yards of the approaching ship, and it was that which des cided them to return. . : Aol died And what a jolly Fourth we did delebrate after -all . How we_did enjoy that dinier, prepared by.Unéle Sam's:. - cook! - How our flagged spirits were révived by "that: - music, and with what security we went. to sles) 5 BY A BLINDING FLASH THAT REVEALED TO US THE FORETOPMAST HANGING OVER THE LEE RAM.