Gallipolis journal. [volume] (Gallipolis, Ohio) 1837-1919, 1875-02-04

peace. All / desired to ask Mr.. b
was the simple question whether h'
was ass enough to really imagine ht
was going to find that plantation Oh
night when all plantations were
exactly alike, and all the same color
But held in. / used to have fine
Inspirations of prudence il those
days.
Mr.. B made for the shore, and
soon was scraping it, just the same
as ifit had been daylight. And not
only that, but singing
Father in heaven the day is declining,
ect.
1t seemed to me that l had put my
life in the keeping of a peculiarly
reckless outcast. Presently he turn
ed on me and said:
whats the name of the first point
above New Orleansy'
was gratified to be able to an
swer promptly, and 1 did. said l
didn't know.
"Don't knOWn'
This manner jolted me. was
down at the foot again in moment.
But l had to say just what l had said
before.
"Well, you're a smart one" said
Mr.. B. whats the name of the
nert point?"
Once more didn't know.
swell this beats anything. Tell
me the name of any point or place l
told you"
studied a while and decided that
l couldn't.
Look hear. What do you start
out from, above Twelve Mile Point,
to cross over?'
"I-I-don't know?"
"You-you-don't know" mimic
ing my drawling manner of speech.
what do you know?'
"I-I-nothing, for certain"
"By the great Caesars ghost l be.
lieve you! You're the stupidest
dunderhead 1 ever saw or ever heard
of, so help me Moses. The idea Of
you being pilot-yOu! Why you
don't know enough to pilot a COW
down lane"
Oh, but his wrath was up. He
was nervous man, and he shuffied
from one side of his wheel to the
other as if the floor was hot. He
would boil awhile to himself, and
then overflow and scald me again.
"Look- a hear! What do you sup
pose l told you the name of those
points for?"
l tremblingly considered mo-
ment, and then the devil of tempta-
tion provoked me to say:
"Well-to-to-be entertaining, |
thought"
This was a red rag to the bull
He rag.d and stnrmed so he was
CROSSING USc river at the tinc) that 1
Judged it made him blind, because he
ran over the steering-o oar of trading
scow. OF course the traders sent up
a volley of red-hot profanity. Never
was man so grateful as Mr.. B
was, because he was brlm full, and
here were subjects who would talk
back. He threw open window,
thrust his head out, and such an
eruption followed as l never heard
before. The. fainter and further
away the scowmen's curses drifted,
the higher Mr.. B lifted his voice,
and the weightier his adjectives
grew. When he closed the window
he was empty. You could have
drawn seine through his system,
and not caught curses enough to dis
turb your mother with. Presently
he said to me in the gentlest way:
my boy, you must get a little
memorandum book, and every time
/ tell you thing, put it down right
away. There's only one way to be
pilot, and that is to get this entire
river by heart. You have to know it
just like A b c."
That was a dismal revelation to
me; for my memory was never loaded
with anything but blank cartridges.
However, l did not feel discouraged
long. Judged that it was best to
make some allowances, for doubtless
Mr.. B was stretching" Pres
emily he pulled rope and struck a
few strokes on the big bell. The
stars were all gone now, and the
night was as black as ink. L could
hear the wheels churn along the
bank, but was not entirely certain
that | could see the shore. The
voice of the invisible watchman call
ed up from the hurricane deck:
"What's this, sirY'
"Jones' plantation"
/ said to myself, l wish l might
venture to offer a small bet that it
isn't. But l did not chirp. | only
waited to see. Mr.. B handled
the engine bells, and in due time the
boats nose came to the land, torch
glowed from the forecastle, man
skipped ashore, darkey's voice on
the bank said, Gimme de carpet
bag, Mars JONES'" and the next mo-
ment we were standing up the river
again, all serene. reflected deeply
awhile, and then said, but not aloud
well, the finding of that plantation
was the luckiest accident that ever
happened, but it couldn't happen
again in a hundred years. And | full
ly believed it soas an accident, too.
In regard to a portion of "the
Great West" it is a private opinion
extensively held that country