The Middlebury register. [volume] (Middlebury, Vt.) 1850-1882, 1875-05-18
Mark Twain's Experiences as
Cub Pilot OH the Mississippi.

Ilark ulli GApeIlollC0S dS
Cub Pilot OH the Mississippi.
A pilot must have Il memory but
there are two higher qualities which he
must also have lie must have good and
quick judgment and decision, and cool,
calm courage that no peril can shake.
Give a man the merest tri6e of pluck to
start with and by the time he has be-
come pilot he cannot be unnamed by
any danger a steamboat oan get into but
one cannot quite say the same for judg
ment. Judgment is IA matter Of brains,
and man must start with a good stock
of that article, on he will never succeed
as pilot
The growth OF courage in the pilot
house is steady all the time. hut it does
no, reach u sigh and satisfactory coudi-
,iou u"iil some time after the young pilot
has been "staudiug his own watch" alone
and under the staggering weight OF all
the responsibilities connected with the
position. When au apprentice has be-
come protty thoroughly acquainted with
the river. he goes Gathering along so fear
lessIy with his steamboat, night or day,
that he presently begins to imagine that
it is his courage that animates him but
the first time the pilot steps out and
leaves him to his own devices, he finds
out it was the other mans. He discov-
ers that the article has been left out Of
his own cargo altogether The whole
river is bristling with exigencies 10 u
moment; he s not prepared for them /;
he does not know how to meet them /;
all his knowledge iorsakes him and
within fifteen minutes he is as white as
sheet and scared almost to death There.
fore. pilots wisely train these cubs by va.
rions strategic tricks TO look danger in the
face little more calmly. A favorite
way of theirs is to play friendly swim
die upon the candidate.
Mr.. b. served me in this iashien once,
and for years aiterward | used to blush
even in my sleep when thought Of it.
l. had become Il good ste rsman 50 good
indeed, that had all the work to do on
our watch, night and dag Nh. b sell
dom made suggestion to me all he ev
er did was to take the wheel on particu-
ary bad uights or in particularly bad
croSslngs,land the GOATS when she needed
to be landed, play gentleman Of leisure
nlne.tcuths Of the watch, and collect the
wages. The lover river was about bank
full, and if anybody had questioned my
ability TO run any crossing between Cairo
aud New Orleans without help or instruc-
tiou, | should have felt irrerarably hurt
The idea of being afraid Of any crossing
in the lot, in the daytime, was a thing
too preposterous for contemplation. Well
one matchless summers day was bowl
ing down the bend above island 66, brlm.
lui of seli.conceit and carrying my nose
as nigh as girafle's, when Mr.. b. said ::
Il am going below, u while. | sup.
pose you know the next crossing p
This was almost an atfront. II was
about the plainest and simplest in the
whole river. One wouldn't come TO any
harm, whether he ran it right or not and
as for depth, there never had been any
bottom there. knew all this, perfectly
we'll
"know how TO run it? Why, can
run it with my eyes shut
"llow much water is there iD it?
"Well. that is an odd question |
couldn't get bottom there with church
stceple"
"You lh'n& so, do ,ou ?"
The very tone of the question shook
my confidence. That was what Mr.. b.
was expecting. lie left without saying
anything more. began to imagine all
sorts Of things Mr.. b., unknown to me
Of course, sent somebody down to the
iorecastle with some mysterious insruc.
tions TO the leadsmen, another messenger
was sent to whisper among the officers,
and then Mr.. Il. went into hiding behind
a smokestack where he could observe re.
suits Presently the captain stepped out
Of the hurricane deck next the chief
mate appeared then a clerk. Every
moment or two straggier was added to
my audience and before | got to the
head of the island had fifteen or twenty
people assembled down there under my
nose. | began to wonder what the trou.
BILE was. AS | started across, the cap.
tain glanced aloft at me and said, with q
sham uueasiness in his voice:
Where is Mr.. b. ?"
"Gone below, sir"
But that did the business for me. Ny
Imagination began to construct dangers
out Of nothing, and they multiplied faster
than | could keep the run of them. Al
at once imagined | saw shoal watel
) ahead The wave of coward agony tha
surged through me then came near dislo
eating every joint in me. All my conf
dence in that crossing vanished. seizet
the bell rope dropped it, ashamed seiz
ed it again dropped it clutched it trem
bliDgly once again and pulled it SO ieebly
that | could hardly hear the stroke my
/ self. Captain aud mate sang ou It instant
ly. aud both together "Starboard leat
there and quick about it n
This was another shock. | began Il
climb the wheel like squirrel; but
would hardly get the boat started to por
p before | would see new dangers on tha