The Marietta journal. [volume] (Marietta, Ga.) 1866-1909, 1873-07-11
EFrom the Danbury (Conn. News
THE DANBURY MAN ON HIS
TRAVELS.

az Yulncy Sot my uFbC VleW VI
the Mississippi river. behave there
is not an American but has some sort
OF an idea of what the Mississippi
river looks like, and has vague inn
Epression that some time or other be-
fore he dies he will be permitted to
see it. The Mississippi, what word
il is to chew up ink, is an institution
by itself. 1t is full Of associations,
both tragical and comic, and it is also
| full Of mud. 1t has no banks to speak
of. It is full of bars, has a narrow
and very uncertain channel. These
are matters we all hear at school, and
see repeated in the papers, but we
don't realize them until we get on
| the river itself.
The steamboats, are flat-bottomed,
and many Of them carry the wheel
at the stern. think ii is the stern.
IL is that part of the boat where, il
it was house, the Stops would be
thrown. The wheel is cumber-
some-looking article, and to the casu
al observer the boat appears to have
Just clined over it. | would give you
a picture of the two were | not en-
gagged in paintings view Of the Rocky
mountains at sunrise.
The river is much broader at this
point than expected to see it, but
we can not always have things our
own way in this world. The chan
mel is about three feet deep opposite
this place; | don't know the exact
width of the river, but there is no
doubt but that the water is as thick
as it is broad. The traveller should
turn it over with his foot, and SO look
at both sides Of it. All was hustle at
the dock when got there. The
boat was taking on its freight, and
about thirty lively negroes and one
very excited and awfully profane
white man was a study. He was the
mate of the vessel, and what he didn't
know about rhetoric could be held on
the point Of knife blade by nerv-
GUS man. The thirty negroes had
all they could we'll attend to keep up
with his new oaths and roll on the
casks. Without any cessation they
bobbed from the boat to the shore,
and from the shore back to the boat,
and all the while that Mississippi
elocutionist danced around and swore,
| When got on the boat sat down
on my baggage and watched thai
man.
Being a resident Of New England
!. | thought i knew something of wick,
edness, but | was mistaken The
negroes were uniformly dressed in
pants, shirts and hat. Some of the
hats were ornamented with different
coIored ribbons; others again con-
tanned but a simple brass plate, the
trade mark Of a retired fruit can
Beauty unadorned is adorned the
most. They were driven like sheep,
first to the shore, then back to boat.
The least hesitation, the slightest
misstep, was noted by the orator and
promptly Incorporated into his dis
course. He couldn't have been more
familiar were they his own fathers,
| which Is not likely they were.
After getting through at the dock
the boat moved up TO the coal-yard.
The coal was brough. on in boxes
with handles at each end. Each box
contained two and one-half bushels,
and was carried by two men. Six
hundred bushels were thus taken on.
The same amount of hustle and We
hemence occurred in this transaction.
The men sweat like April, and APP
peared to be ready to drop at every
trip, but the male hurried tonics at
them and kept them up. When his
throat got tired he used bis boot, and
used It in that whole soled way PEI
culiar to Mississippi boatmen.
The negroes received one dollar q
day and their victuals. should think
they would go to some city and get
into a store.
Through the courtesy Of the clerk
| helped to occupy the pilot house,
and in this lofty perch got splendid
view Of the river and the cinders.---
The shores are fiat and covered with
forests. When / grew tired of look
| ing at them | looked at the pilot. =
| There was boat ahead Of US which
the captain was bound to overtake.
The pilot didn't believe it could be
done, because the boilers on our boat
were old and weak, and could moi
possibly stand the pressure This
made me sick to the stomach, and 50
i climbed down out Of the pilot house
| and Immediately placed between me
and those boilers all the territory !
could get together.
- -eaS--------T
MURDUR A COSTLY LUXURY.