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Folklore
FORMA
Circumstances of Tnterview
Washington
A. A. tson
Seattle, Washington
December 20, 1038
"Larry 'elly"
1. H. H. Matteson, Seattle, Washington
2. Taken from field copy.
3. Federal Writers' Project Office
4. None
5. None
6. None
Folklore
FORK B
Personal History of Informant
Washington
A. A. Matson
Seattle, Washington
December 20, 1938
"Larry Kelly"
H. H. Matteson, Seattle, Washington
1. Not known
2.
(Not obtained)
B.
etc.
Larry Kelly
I think Larry Kelly, in hie day, knew these islands better perhaps than
any other skipper before or since his time. You see Larry's freedom and
perhaps life depended on his knowledge of the winds and tides, and of the
myriad nooks and hidden bays among the San Juane.
Kelly sailed a small sloop. This sloop was both the apple of Kelly's eye.
and also his bankroll. Under cover of night Kelly would slip his ship out of
Vancouver or Victoria, B.C. loaded to the gunwales with contraband Chinese
heading for some desolate section of Puget Sound in Washington, U.S.A. Each
Chink meant WO in gold to Larry and believe -you -,me he made certain, if
humanly possible, thoseeinks were going to be landed on U.S. poll.
Kelly was a hard man, however, and sometimes when pursued too closely by
revenue cutters he would land his cargo on the bottom of Puget Sound. One
trick he used to throw off pursuit was to land his charges on some island and
make them hike across and after purposely mixing it with the government men he
would again load his chinks, only this time on the opposite side of the island.
His favorite spot to pull this trick was Orcas Island because of its peculiar
shape, something like a greyhound in full flight.
Evidences of smuggler Kelly's infamous doings still crops up in a rancher's
field once in a while. A quarter of a century after Kelly ceased his nefarious
practice evidences of this nocturnal trek of chinks turned up on William Wright's
farm. A Chinese jade knife was turned up by Wright's plow. The owner of the
knife never came back to claim it. I've often wondered why he didn't.