Virginia free press. (Charlestown, Va. [W. Va.]) 1832-1916, 1848-04-01

bai n 0<ker1. Il anhounts % about thru
cc1,s n lh1 11Ilsr So mutt for he ~
8in1i1. - Ic1st snc1 = ny cxreri5ncsI
and ID Iiti61 Il = such. I k6pt tkS rsSle'
VII p@rl51 ~ o. dealing j mysteries
have al aversion 10 mysteries 90, bu|
when : rare chance oIIers and : mofHl
can b drawn thsfeftom, I my b excaseo
| for giving Jim Higgins 1c@o1nt Of tht
mysIsri0us Pilot which = true 10 ne bssI
Of - belief and knowledge.
A|'ler the st<eh-b6s& came IN isshion.
sad lin, sold Bin Reese and myself used
% tSkeat least one TRIP % Orleans once 4
yetr on IT. csrfyinf with Is snch arti-
cles = t1rkeys torb.oker, and the pro:
dnct AZ our section 0f the State. We ~.
IN1Tt vent tc1efhcr, 20 hat uhep o1e q,
US would GIT into bad drive, We could
whip ourselves out without trouble. We
had been down with load, and made con-
siderable Of speculations on our purcha
SEES And knowing the trade would keep
up good for more'n short season, we start
"a back home to buy up another cargo
We bad fifteen hundred mules to scalk, and
knowing that, we sot our trotters to work,
and in less than six days we reached home,
and I'D
aGuess you we're little tired about
then ~ interrupted one Of the passengers,
aTired ha, ha, ha, out of it my dar-
Ilinl We commenced buying up produce,
and at the eend o. ten days, we had two
new boats built, and filed with such artis
cles as we wanted, and floating down the
river with colors histedf When VIC got
to the Mississippi, we just let our fats
smooth the surface of the water accordin
to their own action. I think We had been
in the river two days, runnin sometimes
over twenty miles hour, when my boat
run aground on one Of them cursed sand
banks; and there I staid for more'n q
week / was out huntin one day, jest fer
amusement, and freed one O the orful-
lest bars ever raised in Arkansawl /
saved him arter hard fight, got i'm a.
board, and tied him to a big cable. ] had
q old fiddle aboard, and was giyin i'm les
sens in dancin day or two afterwards,
when / looked up the drink, and saw -n
@What2n chimed several voices, ''saw
what 2"
aThe fust steen-boat that ever futtered
a wheel on the Massippi and if you'll
believe me n
aWhy, sirs 7 believe she was driven
every fsh and alligator in the river before
her Ny bar jumped overheard, and l
was near follerin as the steens fxin rid by
me; Just then somethin jerked my fat
| plum luse from the island, and she took
rite after the stcem critter as fast as the
mater Of the occasion would let 'erl Well,
Isirs we soon cotch up, and for hour or
two, We had it Interestingly tho steem boat
was bilin and the fat don't mention it'll
She darted before as easy as the wind,
and the way the critter pulled and bloWed
after us, wasn't fast enough to ketch upl
/ What was the matter with my craft,
didn't knowl She was ridin like dancin
fethcr and THROWN the water from ONE
bank to the other I begun to get skeer
ed, but KNOWN I could cut the cable afore
she could run to the Gulf Of Mexico,
thort I'd let her ripl I jest sot back
tuned my fiddle, and played to kill time
It was the purtyest wether in the world
and / enjoyed it amazingly. Tho brezes
stretched my colors butifully, and the
moon would peep down once in while "a
see what I was drivin at / was alone
| but had no use for company The aai
was now turning the most dangerous bend
In all the river, whar I know'd shed be
apt to run agin one o. the free and indie
pendent snags, and sure enuff
aShe did p exclaimed several Of the
listeners.
/ aAnd sure enuff, afore / had time to
say Jack Robinson, or draw my bow across
my fiddle, I saw one snag and another just
below it, and -n ~.
aShe bursted herself agin 'em?" said
one or two.
aWhen she got TO 'em,n continued Jim
ssthey wasn't thar / found 'em about al
fur aheada they was when / fust seed 'em
i In the mornin / looked out and thar thej
was Jest as far apart splitter the watel
like lightnin pole aWhat was they =
III asked myself; but it's no use tina
JeYenin my boat was piloted to Orleans
and she ran up to the Ice handsomely
bein only few hours out from the sane
bar, and beatin the steem boat day and |
half; and now, gentlemen, all said latte
this beautiful instance Of my mysteriousl,
out running steamboat what power d,
you suppose carried it along2"
i sThe tide, forced BY the flsh and allyga
ttors2n said . knowing Jake
aMurder r said Jim stake down you
sign"