The farmer and mechanic. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 1877-1885, 1878-08-29

lhe tide N Currit,ck Court
House rises three feet.
NORTH CAROLINA.
The coast Of Virginia is now
past, and a short cut through a
canal connecting North river with
Albemarle sound. used by vessels
OF light draught. brings our canoe
TO the junction of Currituck sound
with the latter water. Currituck
sound is thirty-fve miles long.
with an average breadth Of four
miles
Mays Head Beach is the next
prominent point touched at. Ii is
4 favorlte watering place Of the
Carollnians.
Twelve miles through Roanoke
sound brings the voyager to Ore
gon island, where Sir Walter Raj
elgh did not settle.
Body Island Lighthouse here af-
ford the canoelst = nights lodging,
from whose lantern on that special
night the keeper, Captain l"Iatzel.
for the first time deserted the flash
of Cape Hatteras Light, t~hirty-tise
miles to the South of which fact
our obSeryant author, like Captain
Cutie, duly made a note of.
From Body Island the passage
through the coast sounds TO Cape
Hatteras lies between Roanoke
island and the mainland, many
portions of 1t being not more than
four feet deep.
While padding down the long
reach of Pamlico sound the canoe
ist found a pleasant nights shelter
IN the home of "a veteran fisherman
at "a place c%uriously entitled Kitty
Midget's, though who or what
Kitty Midget was, Mr.. Bishops
enquiries failed to ascertain.
WHERE DO THE BLUE FISH co TO !?
Before leaving his hospitable en-
tertalner, Captain Abraham Hoop
er and his amlable family, Mr..
Bishop passed a day in blue-fishing
with him.
1.-The blue-tish go South as far
as Cape Hatteras, and then disap-
pear in deep water; while the
great f1ocks of guls hat accompany
them to gather the remnants of
fish they scatter in their savage
meals, rise in the air and fly rapid
ly away in search of other dain-
ties.
\ NORTH CAROLINA BUCCANEER.
Before reaching Hatteras a stiff
gale sprang up, and the and
its owner were humanely taken on
board by a passing smack, whose
Captain appears to have been some
what of a daredevil, according to
the following characteristic story
with which he RECALLED his passen-
gers
"You see, sir, we was bound for
New Berne. up the Neuse river,
and as we were well into the sound
with all sail set, and TT Yelling
along lively, daddy, says, | reckon
a little coupon wouldn't hurt me,
so I'll 90 below and start a fire I'M
der the kittle. DO as you likes,
daddy, say /. So down below he
goes and takes command of the
schooner. A big black squall come
over Cape Hatteras from the Gulf
stream, and it did not look like a
screecher. Now, | thought old
woman, I'll make your sides ache !;
so l pinted her at it, and afore |
could luff her up in the wind, the
squall krcened her on her beam
ends. You'd a laughed to have
split yourself if you'd could have
seen daddy a crawling out of the
companion-way while water was a
running down stairs like a dick.
Says he, ruther hurriedly, Sonny,
what's up 1T isn't what's up,
daddy, but what's down,' say 1T
sort O looks as if we had capsized.'
ssure nuff,' answered dad, as the
ballist shifted, and the schooner
rolled over keel u%ppermost. We
foundered about like porpoises,
but managed to get astride her
back bone, when dad looked a kind
of scornfully at me and burst out
with, Sonny, do you call yourself
a keerful sailor p Keerful enough,
dad say |, for a smart one. It's
more credit to a man to d'ire his
vessel like a sailor than to be crawl
ing and babbling along like a dia-
mond backed terrapin. Now,
stranger, if you'll believe me, that
keerful one father of mine would
never let me take the helum again,
SO | stick to my aunt at the
Cape"