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BY CHRIS POH
REVENGE
ON A RUM RUNNER
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"These
men were bringing in liquor for New Year's Eve. They knew it would be
consumed by Governors, Mayors, Selectmen, and Judges of the Supreme
Court—in fact by public officials everywhere."
- Former Boston
Mayor John Francis “Honey Fitz” Fitzgerald.
"The Coast Guard's job cannot be handled
with soft words and
amiable gestures. . . .”
-
Rear-Admiral Frederick C. Billard,
Commandant of the Coast Guard
commenting about the
attack on the Black
Duck
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Photo courtesy of U.S.
Coast Guard archives
A
RUM RUNNER CRIPPLED BY THE U.S. COAST GUARD
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Even
though New England was already in the midst of a terrible drought,
the evening of December 31, 1929 would prove to be much dryer than
anticipated. Not only had the powers from above deprived the area of
life giving waters; but now the powers from below in Washington DC
would further diminish the supply of “The Water of Life.” Two nights
earlier Boatswain Alexander C. Cornell of the United States Coast Guard
Boat 290 opened fire on the crew of the rum-running boat Black Duck.
For nearly a year the “Duck” prevailed in a perilous game of
cat-and-mouse in the waters of Narragansett Bay. But in this round of
play her twin Liberty engines would not be enough to escape the burst
of machine gun fire that sliced through the wheelhouse, wounding her
captain, Charles Travers, and killing crew members Jacob Weisman,
Johnny Goulart and Dudley Brandt.
From Pawtucket to Portland, New Englanders cried foul as they bemoaned
the loss of 3 precious American lives and the loss of 383 cases of
preferred Canadian whiskey. From the government’s perspective the whole
affair was justified. The unfortunate casualties were simply the result
of the Black Duck mistakenly turning
into the line of warning fire
while trying to elude capture. Captain Travers contested that account
of the story until the day he died. And a review of the Coast Guard
records, which appeared in an article in Yankee Magazine in December of
1999, seems to support his assertions. There is a distinct possibility
that the overly zealous Boatswain Cornel had a personal grudge against
Travers and his crew. “Duck hunting” was not a sport that Cornel was
particularly good at, and during a previous encounter in which he was
actually able to briefly detain his quarry, the subsequent search of
the boat yielded nothing. Later the frustrated boatswain was overheard
warning Captain Travers that a future meeting might include a bit of
gunplay.
In honor of those
colorful characters that ran the rum, and other
choice potables, from 1920 – 1933 we proudly share the following recipe:
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The Rum Runner Cocktail
Ingredients:
·
1
oz pineapple juice
·
1
oz orange juice
·
1
oz blackberry liqueur
·
1
oz banana liqueur
·
1
oz light rum
·
1
oz dark rum or aged rum
·
Splash
grenadine
·
Optional:
one ounce of Bacardi 151 to float
on top
·
Orange
slice (optional)
Shake
over
ice and serve in a tall glass |
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