The democrat. [volume] (Weston, W. Va.) 1868-1874, 1872-01-15
Dickens on a Canal Boat


Those OF our readers who have, and
those who have not seen canal boat,
will appreciate the description OF these
affairs, given by Charles Dickens, who
Travelled Oh one. or the boat aud its
surroundings land OF course it will he
understood that this was the day Of
packet lines " on the canal he saws:
And now / come to the canal boat.
Bless your heart and soul, my dear fell
low, il you could only see us on board the
canal boat Let me think, for mo-
ment, at what time OF the day or night
should best like you to see us. In the
morning? Between five aud Fix in the
morning, shall say ? Well ! Won tr0u!d
like to see me standing on the deck, fish.
ing the dirty water out OF the canal with
tin ladle chained to the boat by long
chain pouring the same into q tin basin
also chained up in like manner and
'crubbing my face with the jack towel.
At night, shall ! say l don'tEnow that
you would like to look into the cabin at
night, only to see me lying on tempom.
ry shelf exactly the width Of this sheet of
paper when it's open ! measured Il this
mo,niDgl. with one man above me and
another below; and, in all, eight-and.
twenty in low cabin, which you can't
stand upright in with your hat on.
don't think you would like to look in ut
breakfast time either, for then these
shelves have only Just been taken down
and put away, and the atmosphere Of the
place is, rs you may suppose, by no
means fresh though there are upon the
table tea and coffee, and breal and but
ter, and salmon, and shnd, and liver, and
steak, and potatoes, aud pickles, and nam,
and pudding, and sauSages ; md three
and-thirty people sitting round it, eating
md drinking; and savory bottles OF gin,
aud wliskey, and brandy, and rum, in
the bar hard by and seven-nnd.twenty
ont Of the elghi-and.twenty men, in fonl
linen, with yellow streams from half
chewed tobacco trickling down their
chins, Perhaps the best time for Won to
take peep would be the prcsent-elrvcn
o'clock in the forenoon when the barber
is at his shaving, ard the gertlrmen are
lnunging about the stove waiting for their
tutns, and not more than seventeen nre
,pitting in concert. and two or three are
waking overhead lying down on the lug
gage when the man at the helm shouts
Bridge y and I am writing this in the
lalics' cabin. which is part Of the gen.
tlemcn's, and only screened of by red
curtain. Indeed, it exactly resembles
the dwarfs private apartment in q cara
van ut fair and the gentlemen, gener.
ally, represent the spectators at n penny
head. The place is jut MS clean anil
Just MS lnrge MS that caravan you and l
were in at Greenwich Fair last year. Out
sid,, it is exactly like any ca.al bont You
have seen near the Regents Park or else
where.
"You can never conceive what the
hawking and splitting is, the whole night
through Last hight was tho worst
Upon my homer aud word l was obliged,
this morning, to lay my iur cont on the
deck and wipe the half.drie flakes OF
spittle from it with my handkerchief !;
and the only surprise seemed to be that
| should consider it necessary to do so.
When turned in Lust night pu! it OH Il
stool beside me, aud there il lay under
n rross.tire from five men-three oppo-
site, one above, md one below. make
no complaints, and show no disgust. l
am looked upon as highly facctious nj
night, for l crncl jokes with everybody
near me until we fall asleep l am CON
sldered very hardy in the mOrHing, for
run up, bare.necked, aud plunge my head
into the hali.frozcn water by half-past
five o'clock. l am respected for my nc.
tivlty, Inasmuch y I imp from the boat
to the towing pth q i'd walk five or six
miles before brtkf st, keeping up with
the horses all the time. In word, they
IRE quite astonished to fud n sedCntary
Englishman roughing it so well, and TAX
ing SO much exercise and question me
very much on that head. The greater
part Of the men Will sit and SILVER round
the stove MI day, rather than put ON,
foot before the other. As to having n
window open, that's not to be thought
Of"