The Portland daily press., 1875-02-20

snag and one limbed cottonwood and obscure
wood pile that ornaments the bank OF this
river fer twelve hundred miles; and more
than that, must actually know where these |
things are in the dark, unless these guests are
gifted with eyes that can pierce through two |
miles of solid blackness; wish the plotting |
business was in Jericho and l had never |
thought OF it.'
at dusk Mr.. B. tapped the bell three |
times, 1.-THE signal to land, and the Captain
emerged from his drawingroom in the for
ward end of the Texas and looked up inqulr' |
ingly. Mr.. B. said:
1--WE will lay up here all night, Captain"
every well, Sir
That was ALL The boat came to shore and
was tied up for the night. 1t seemed to me a
fine thing that the pilot could do as he
pleased without asking so grand captains
permission. took my supper and went
Immediately to led, discouraged by my days
observations and experiences. My late
voyages note-booking was but a confusion
of meaningless names. 1t had tangled me up
in knot every time l had looked at it in the
daytime. / now hoped for respite in sleep;
but no, it reveled all through my head I'LL
sunrise again, a frantic and tireless night
mare.
Next morning felt pretty rusty and low
spirited. We went booming along, taking
good many chances, for we were anxious TO
"get out of the river las getting out Cairo
was called) before night should overtake us.
But Mr.. BIS partner, the other pilot,
presently grounded the boat, and we lost SO
much time getting her off that it was plain
| tho darkness would Overtake us good long
| way above the mouth. This was great
| misfortune especially to certain OF our visit
| ing pilots, whose boats would have to wait
| for their return, no matter how long that
might be. 1t sobered the pilot-house talk
good deal. Coming up stream, pilots did not
mind low water or any kind OF darkness;
nothing stopped them fog But down stream
work was different; boat was too nearly
helpless with a stiff current pushing behind
her; so it was not customary to run down
| stream at night in low water.
There seemed to be one small hope, how
ever if we could get through the intricate
and dangerous Hat Island crossing before
| night we could venture the rest, for we
would have palmer sailing and better water.
But it would be insanity to attempt Hat
Island at night. So there was deal OF look
| ing at watches at the rest OF the day, and
constant cipheriug upon the speed we were
making; Hat Island was the eternal subject;
| sometimes hope was high and sometimes we /
| were DELAYED in bad crossing, and down we
went again. For hours all hands lay under
the burden of this suppressed excitement; 1t
| was even communicated to me, got 10 reel
ing so solcitous about Hat Island, and under
I wished might have five minutes on shore
to draw good, full, relieving breath, and
start over again. We were standing on reg
ular watches. Each of our pilots ran such
| portions of the river as he had run when
coming up stream, because OF his greater
familiarity with it; but both remained in the
pilot house constantly.
An hour before sunset, Mr.. B. took the
/ wheel and Mr.. W. stepped aside. For the
watch in his hand and was restless, silent,
and uneasy. At last somebody said, with
doomful sigh:
''Well,; ;yOnder's Hat Island and we can't
make it." -l
All the watches closed with snap, every
body sighed and muttered something about
| its being ''too bad, too bad-ah if we could
only have got here half an hour soonerV and
the place was thick with the atmosphere OF
disappointment. Some started TO go out, but
loitered, hearing no bell tap to land, The
| sun dipped behind the horizon, the boat
went on. Inquiring looks passed from one to
another; and one who had his hand on the
door knob, and had turned it, waited, then
presently took away his hand and let the
knob turn back again. We bore steadily
down the bend. More looks were exchanged.
and mods of surprised admiration-but no
words. Insensibly the men drew together
behind Mr.. B. as the sun darkened and one
or two dim stars came out. The dead ST.
| lence and sense of waiting became oppressive.
Mr.. B. pulled the cord, and two deep
mellow notes from the big bell f1oated off on
the night. Then pause, and one more
note was struck. The watchman's voice fol-
lowed, from the hurricane deck:
cardboard lead, there! StarbOard lead!'
| The cries of the leadsmen began to rise out
of the distance, and were gruffly repeated by
the world assers on the hurricane deck.
''M-a-r k three! Mark three! Quarter
| less-three! Half twain! Quarter twain!
Mark twain! QuarterIess"- "A
! Mr. B--pulled two bell-ropes, and was
answered by faint jinglings far below in the
| engine room, and our speed sackened. The
steam began to whistle, through the gauge
cocks. The cries of the leadsmen went on
and it is weird sound, always, in the night.
/ Every pilot in the lot was watching now with
fixed eyes, and talking under his breath. No
body was calm and easy but Mr.. B. He
would put his wheel down and stand on
spoke, and as the steamer swung into her Ito
mel utterly invisible marks-tor we seemed
to be ia the midst of wide and gloomy sea
he woull meet and fasten her there. Talk
was going on in low voice:
f'There; she's over the first reef all rightT'
| After pause, another subdued voice:
| "Her stern's coming down just exactly
right, by George! Now she's in the marks;
over she gossip
| Somebody else muttered:
| ''Oh, it was done beautiful-be dutifNL'
] Now the engines were stopped altogether,
, and we dIifted with the current. Not that
I could see the boat drift, for / could not,
the stars being all gone by this time. This
drifting was the dismalest work; it held
ones heart still. Presently I disco vered
| blacker gloom than that which surrounded
us. 1t was the head of the island. We were
closing right down upon it. We entered its
deeper shadow, and so imminent seemed the
peril that was likely to suffocate, and had
i the strongest impulse to do something. any
| thing to save the vessel. But still Mr.. B.
stood by his wheel, silent, intent rs cat,
and all the pilots stood shoulder TO shoulder
| at his back.
| ''She'l not make itp' somebody whis-
pered.
| The water grew shoaler and shoaler by
| the leadsman's cries, till it was down to
| Eight and half! Eight feet! Eight
| feet! Seven and -
| Mr.. B--said warningly through his speak
ing tube to the engineer:
"Stand by, nowV
"Aye, aye, Sir"
"Seven and half! Seven feet! Si1
and
We touched bottom! Instantly Mr.. B.
set lot of bells ringing, shouted through
the tube, "Noao let her Fave it-every ounce
|
hard down snatch her! snatch herP' The
boat rasped and ground away through the
sand, hung upon the apex of the disaster a
single tremendous instant, and then over she
wenti And such shout as went up at Mr..
BIS back never loosened the roof of pilot
house before.
There was no more trouble after that. Mr..
| B.-was hero that night, and it was some
little time, too, before his exploit ceased to be
| talked about by river men.
| Fully to realize the marvellous precision re-
quired in laying the great steamer in her
marks in that murky waste of water, one
should know that not only must she pick her
| intricate way through snags and and blinds
reefs, and then shave the head of the island
so closely as to brush the overhangng foliage
with her stern. but at one place she mast pass
almost within arms reach of sunken and
| invisible wreck that would snatch the hull
timbers from under her if she should strike
| it, and destroy quarter of million dollars
worth of steamboat and cargo in five min
utes, and may be a hundred and fifty human
| lives in the bargain.
The last remark l heard that night was
compliment to Mr.. B., uttered in sollloquy
and with junction by one Of our guests. He