Rutland weekly herald. [volume] (Rutland, Vt.) 1859-1877, 1875-03-25

mentioned these little dl1ncultles 10 MT.
B. He said
''That's the very main virtue of the
thing. If the shapes didn't change ey-
cry three seconds they wouldn't be OF |
any use. Take this place where we are |
now, for instance. AS long as that hill |
over yonder is only one hill, l can
boom right along the way I'm gong; |
but at the moment it splits at the top |
and forms II know Iyegot to scratch |
TO starboard in a hurry, or III bang this |
boats brains out against rock ; and |
then the moment one of the prongs of |
the V swings behind the other, I've got F!
to waltz to larboard again, or I'll have a |
misunderstanding with snag that would |
snatch the keelson out of this steamboat
as neatly as if it were silver in your
hand If that hill didn't change its
shape on bad nights there would be an
awful steamboat graveyard around here
inside of q year. -,rzes.
1t was plain that had got to learn
the shape of the river in ali the different
ways that could be thought of,-upside
| down, wrong end. first, inside out, fore
and-aft and sJhoFtships, " and then
know what to do on gray nights when it
hadn't any shape at all. So / set about
| it. In the course of time began to get
the best of this knotty lesson, and my
| self-conplacency moved to the front
| once more. Mr.. B. was all fixed,
and ready to start it to the rear again.
| He opened on me after this fashion:
| GLOW much water did we have in the
| middle crossing at Uole-in~the- wall, trip
before last 2" grs.f.. s.ctE -. pa
! [ considered this an outrage said.
| .EEyery trip, down and up, the leadsmen
! are singing through that tangled place
| for three quarters of an hour on stretch.
! How do you reckon can remember such
| a mess as that p -..--...a ri.
| "My boy. you've got to remember it.
I You've got to remember the exact spot
| and the exact marks the boat lay in
/ when we reached. the shoalest water, in
every one of the two thousand sh0al
places between ST. Louis and New Or
leans; and you mustn't get the shoal
soundings and marks of one trip mixed
up with the shoal soundings and marks
of another, either, for they're not often
twice alike You must keep them sep
arate. - ~ IL. ..-.-s. Il. .-..-,.e
When came to myself again, / SAID
'.When | get so that | can. do that, III
be able TO raise the dead, and then
won't have to pilot a steamboat in order
to makea living. / want a slush-bHcket
and brush I'm only fit for roUsta-
bout l haven't got Brains enough TO
be pilot and if had / wouldn't have
strength enough to. carry them around,
unless went on crutches. .g.-.-
s'Now drop that When say III
learn a man the river, l mean it. And
YOU can depend on it Eli learn hia OF
kill hirl.
4. There was no use in arguing with a
person like this. promptly put such 8
stain on my memory that by and by
even the shOal water and the countless
/ crossing marks began to stay with me:
Bat the result was Just the same. l
never could more than get one knotty
thing learned before another presented
i itself. Now | had seen pilots gazing at
the water and pretending TO read it as II
If were a book, but it was book that
told me nothing. a time came at last,
however. when Mr.. B seemed To
:. think me far enough advanced to bear a
u lesson on water-reading. So he began
.G'Do YOU see that long, slanting Line
On the face of the water Now that's
reef. Moreover, it's a bluff reef. There
/ is a solid sand-bar under it that Is nearly
( as straight up and down as the side OF q
|. / house. There is. plenty of water close
, I'D to il, but mighty little on top OF It.
II II YOU were to hit il you wonld knock
} the boats. brainsout. Do you see whert
I the lire fringes out at the upper end and
L. begins to fade away 2" Isl. .....,
:s S3s1,I.a .tE;ss :. : L.. 80. 49, -
head az d reef, You can climb over
| there, and not hurt anything. Cross
over, now, and follow along close under
the reef-easy water there-not much
current. :"
II / followed the reef along till l APP,
preached the fringed end. Then Mr..
B said
Now get ready. Wait till give the
word. She won't want 10 mount the
reef boat hates shoal water. Stand
; bv-wait- her well in hand.
; Now cramp her down! Snatch her
Snatch her -
He relied the other side of the wheel
, and helped to spin ii around until 1t was
/ hard down, and then we held it so. The
/ boat resisted and refused to answer tol
a while, and next she came surging tC
, starboard, and mounted the reef, ano
sent long, angry ridge of water foam
! ing away from the bows.
] 'sNow watch her; watch her like
; cat, or she'll get away from you. When
= she fights strong and the tiller slips q
little. in a ierky, greasy sort of way, LEI
t I'D on her a tritle; it is the way she tell
t YOU at night that the water is too shoal
) but keep edging her up little, toward
/ the point. You are well up on the bar
q now there is bar under every point
7 because the water that comes down an(
} around it forms an eddy and allows thu
!, sediment to sink. Do you see thos
n fine lines on the face of the water tina
t branch out like the ribs of a fan Well
. those are little reefs you want to jus
e miss the ends of them, but run then
!, pretty close. Now acknowledgment
I Don't you crowd that slick, greasy-look
ing place there amt nine feet there
It she won't stand it. She begins to smel
: it; look sharp, | tell you Oh blazes
e there you CO. Stop the starboard wheet
u Quick Ship up to back Set her back
The engine bells jingled and the en-
gines answered promptly, shooun
p white columns of steam far alOft out c
d the scape pipes, but it was too late. Th
% boat had .'smelt" the bar in earnest
a the foamy ridges that radiated from tn
bows suddenly disappeared, great dea
,e swell came rolling forward and sweI
n ahead of her, she careened far over to la
pr hoard, and went tearing away towaI
d the other shore as if she were abol
IT scared to death. We were good mi
from where we ought to have been, whe
l we finally got the upper hand of h
i'll again.
D. During the afternoon watch the ne,
day, Mr.. B asked me if | kne
r.. how to run the next few miles. / sale
ld "Goinside the first snag above Il
point, outside the next one, start o
or from the lower end of Higgins WOO
nv yard, make a square crossing, and
ad That's all right. FL be back befo
nd. ! YOU close up on the point.
Ike But he wasn't. He was still belo
nt when / rounded it and entered upon
Nd piece of river which | had some misgi
. i ings about. | did not know that he "
IRE hiding behind a chimney to see how
De. would perform. went gayly along, g
in. ting prouder and prouder, for he b
to never left the boat in my sole char
pi- saeh length of time before. | even g
nv to setting her and letting the VIII
"; 90. entirely, while | vain glorious
= f,rnad NV hack and insDected the ste