New Orleans Republican. [volume] (New Orleans, La) 1867-1878, 1875-02-28

that radiated from her bows suddenly ala,
appeared, q great dead swell came rollins
forward and swept ahead of her, she
careened far over to larbOard, and wen,
tearing away toward the other shore az il
she were about scared to death. We wera
good mile from where we ought to have
been. when we finally got the upper hand
of her again.
During the afternoon watch the next
day, Mr. B--asked me if knew how 70
run the next few miles. said:
60 inside the first snag above the point,
outside the next one, start out from the
lower end of Higgins wood yard, and make
| square crossing and
That's all right Ill be back before YOU
close up on the next point
| But he wasn't. He was still below
when | rounded it and entered upon a
piece of river which l had some mis-
givirgs about. L did NOT know that be
was hiding behind a chimney to see how
l would perform. | went gayly along
getting prouder and prouder, for he had
! never left the boat in my sole charge such
| length of time before. Ieyen got to "set
ting her and letting the wheel 60 entirely
while vaingloriously turned my back and
inspected the stern marks and hummed IA
tune, sort OF easy indifference which |
had prodigiously admired in B and
other great pilots. Once inspected rather
long, and when l faced to the front again
my heart flew into ny mouth SO suddenly
that if hadn't clapped my teeth together
would have lost it. One Of those frightfui
bluff reefs was stretching it's deadly length
right across our bows! My head was gone
in a moment; did not know which end |
stood on; l gasped and could not get my
breath: l spun the wheel down with such
rapidi.y that it wove itself together like
spiders web; the boat answered and
ha h1,ts no,
reef followed her. fed, and still it fol
lowed-still it kept right across my
bows. / never looked to see where
l was going. only fled. The awful
crash was immnent-why didn't that vii
lain) come! If l committed the crime Of
ringing bell I might get thrown over
hoard. Bat better that than kill the boat
So in blind desperation l started such d
rafting ''shivaree" down below as never
had astounded an engineer in this world
before. fancy. Amidst the frenzy of the
bells the engines began to back and ill ia
furious way, and my reason forsook its
throne-we were about to crash into tho
woods on the other side of the river. Just
then Mr.. b stepped calmly into view on
the hurricane deck. My soul went out to
him in gratitude. NV distress vanished; I
would have felt safe on the brink of Mia
CARA, with Mr. b on the hurricane deck
He blandly and sweetly took his tooth pick
cut OF his mouth between his fingers, as if
it were cigar-we were just III the &C.
OF climbing an oyerhanging big tree,
and the passengers were scudding asteru
like rats. and lifted up these commands to
lne ever SO gently:
stop the star6oard. Stop the larboard.
Set her back on both"
The boat hesitated. halted, pressed he-
nose among tie bonghs critical instant,
then reluctantly began to back away.
fhn win I'd
Stop the larbOard. Come ahead on il.
Point ner for the bar"
sailed away as serenely as a summers
morning. Mr.. b came in and said. with
mock simplicity:
When you have a hail, my boy, you
ought to tap the big bell three times before
'ou land, SO that the engineers can get
eady.'
l hlueled under the sarcasm. and said
hadn't had any hail.
"At. Then it was for wood. suppose
The officer of the watch will tell YOU wheu
le wants to wood up"
won't on consuming. and said wasn't
fter wood.
Indeed, Why, what could YOU want
yer here in the bend, then! Did you ever
now OF boat following bend uD stream
t this stage of the riyer!"
NO, strand l wasn't trying to follow
I. was getting away from bluff reef"
mo. 1T wasn't a bluff reef: there isn't one
7lthin three miles Of where you were
But saw it. 1t was as bluif as that one
onder."
just about. Run over it,"
do you give it as an order -
Yes: run over it,"
IF don't, | wish | NAV die
AN right: l am taking the respons
ility."
was just as anxious to Kill the boat now
3 had been to save her before [ in
ressed my orders upon my memory, to be
sed at the inquest, and made straight
reak for the reef. AS it disappeared under
IT bows held my breath: but we slid
yer it like oil!
Now don't you see the difference Il
ASH anything bat a wind reef The wind
Oes that
80 | see Bnt it is exactly like bluif
EFF. How ara | ever going to tell them
,art?"
Il can't tell you. 1t is an instinct. Bv
Id bv you will just naturally know one
ON the other, but you never will be able TO
,pia!n why or how you know them apart"
1t turned out to be true. The face Of the
alter, IN time, became wonderful book
book that was dead language TO the IN
ucated passenger. but which told its mind
me without reserve, delivering its most
erlshed secret az clearly "a if it uttered
EN- with voice. And 1t was not book
DE read once and thrown aside, fo, il
"a new story to tell every day. Through.
t the long 1900 miles there was never
page that was void of interest, never
9 that you could leave unread without
70, never one that you would want to
ip, thinking you could find higher en-,
7ment in some other thing There
yer was so wonderful book written
man; never one whose interest was
absorbing, SO untiagging, so spark
ely renewed with every reperusal The
ssenger who could not read it was
armed with peculiar sort of faint
hpie on ITS surface ION the rare occasions
zen ne did not overlook it altogether); but
,he plot that was an italci-ed passage:
ieed, 1t was moro than that, it was q
emu OF the largest capitals with string
shouting exclamation points at the end
II, loi 10 meant that q wreck or a rock
9 buried there that could tear the life out
the strongest vessel that ever tloated. 1t
ne Iaintest and simplest expression the
!e =. ever makes. and the most hdeous to
'!lot eye. In truth, the PASSENGER WIN
I'D not read this book saw nothing bur
manner OF pretty pictures in it, painted
the sun and shaded by the clouds.
ereas to the trained eyes these were not
lures at all, but the grimmest and most
ID earnest of reading matter.
VOW when had mastered the Isngu,,a
TINS water and had come to know
Try trifiing feature that bordered
great river as Familiarity as | knew
letters OF the alphabet, / had mada
liable acquisition. But / had lost so,,,a
ng, too. | had lost something wb;cJ,
lld not be restored to me while ivaa
the grace, the beauty, the poetry had
ie out OF the majestic river, | still kean
mind certain wonderful sunset which +
messed when steamboating was new to