The Lamoille news. (Hyde Park, Vt.) 1877-1881, 1877-07-04
YOUNG MAN DROWNED.


YOUNG MAN DROWNED.
H. L. Hartt, young man twenty
two or three years of age, left Mont
pelier, some time ago, in small fiat
bottom scow, with oars, sail, provis-
ion, &C., for a voyage of pleasure.
He descended the Onion river to its
mouth, visited Burlington, and wrote
one letter back to the Aryus, while |
encamped at Appletree Point. The
letter is very interesting and since the
talented writer, so soon found wat
cry grave, we quote from it.
The entire letter may be found in
the argus and Potrjat of June 27th.
At no time in my experience has
there been so much of excitement and
lively qualification crowded into four
days Of my travel. Weeks on the
Northern lakes, day after day on the
upper and lower waters Of the Missis-
sippi, and no small amount Of travel
bv sea and rail elsewhere, have left
no memories so delightful in kind as
these few days of drifting with the
current down this beautiful valley have
afforded. Planning to make the trip
alone, my necessities were few. A
boat eleven feet in length by two in
width, put together with screws-the
better to endure the knocks OF the rap
ids-and a scant camping outfit,
weighing, with oil-stove and valise,
less than fifty pounds, proved amply
sufficient for comfort and needs. Leav-
ing Montpelier at ten O'Clock on Mon
day morning, l trusted myself to the
guiding influence of the current and a
stout pole.
More than once / felt that a smash
up was imminent, but always missed
the danger by the width Of q piece of
chalk. lie Rodeur, my boat and only
servant, seemed almost to anticipate
every stroke of the pole. AS | con-
tinue my voyage around the shores of
Lake Champlain, and possibly of Lake
uvUIgc, II %nl ne my Only companion
so we are Les R0dears. Only once
on the whole journey did we, the ram
blers, get a wetting. This was by
running afoul of a sunken tree in turn
ing sharp corner, but the few gallons
of water that got into the boat did no
damage beyond wetting my feet and
starting my bag of dougnuts to sprout-
ing. had nearly a peck Of these
old-fashioned comforts, now had half
a bushel; not bad thing-perhaps.
II
The Winooski is about two hundred
yards across at its mouth, and the
wind was blowing straight in. [ got
out my sails, and, with "a short leg
and long one" managed to run out
side and along the shore towards Bur-
lington. Am now in camp on "Apple-
tree Foint," a shady bluff, with a slaty
beach at the foot. Montpelier people
need not anticipate the loading of
heavy merchant craft at her levees
with cargoes of cheese, unless we can
divert part of the impending appropri-
ations for the southwest to this errat-
ic stream. But any one who has a
week of leisure, and would employ it
at small cost, and with much real graf
ification, cannot, in my humble opin-
ion, find any finer scenery than this
beautiful valley Of the Winooski.
1t is with sadness that we write
that there are many things to indicate
Les Rodeurs, who started out so pro-
pitiously, have been parted and one
went down to sleep under the blue
waters of the Champlain, while the
other drifted away before the winds
into Willow Bay at the east end of the
sand-bar bridge. Hartt was last seen
encamped at Mallett's head, and it is
supposed that he was struck by a
squall, somewhere in this vicinity,
capsized, and, possibly, SO entangled
in the sail, as to be unable to rescue
himself. His valise and some other
things have been found on the beach
at the south end of Grand Isle, and
the little skiff, in Willow Bay.