The New Bloomfield, Pa. times. (New Bloomfield, Pa.) 1877-188?, 1879-03-18
An Old sOatman's Opinion.

~ moment, met Captain Binns, the
owner of n canal boat which Is laid up
for repairs Somebody was telling about
the loss of steamship at seq, and when
Captain Blnns had chance to express
his views he said
"In my opinion, all the wrecks Is
caused by ignorance; just mere jack
assedness. Look Mt me. I've been
navigating vessel nigh on to thirty
years, and never got into trouble.
I've carried "The Louisa, of Pencadder'
through the worst storms that occurred
on this earth, aud beyond Dustin Off
her rudder and having the cook stove
swep' overheard, che never shlvered
timber. The reason is because / under
stand my business. / don't scare no
more'n baby II there's hurricane u
howlin'."
"But, Blnn, said Mr.. Lamb, "you
must remember that the ocean Is more
dangerous than the canal"
"Well, / don't see it," replied the
captain don't see 1t. I've heard n
good deal talBin' about the ocean, but
you can't make me believe It's any
worse than any other sheet Of water.
You just run "a tow path across that
Atlantic Ocean, and give me my yaller
mule and plenty of halElnch rope, and
If / don't take "'rhe Louisa, OF Pencad-
der" and go swoopin' TO Europe then
you may shoot me and chop me up cat
meat. Pm sick of this everlastin'
blowin' about the ocean. Where Is IL
Bring 1t out Set up your tow path and
| I'll hop the Louisa over 1t in manner
that'll disgust II. There's no boundln'
biller that ever BOUNDED that kin swamp
the Louisa. The Louisa's got a dollar
and n quarter tinpump that'd jest jerk
| the entire Gulf stream out in a jifiy and
/ wouldn't be much afraid to tie the tow
line onto that mule and chuck him over
and let him swim across. He's the
most reliable and conscientious mule in
the States. What's yer Atlantic Ocean
to himp / never seen no squall yet
that'd faze him. He's got the heart of
lion. He's been jerked into the canal
more'n a hundred times, but he comes
out every time, just as Indifferent. The
only thing that bothers him Is the locks.
He's so impatient that he don't like to
wait Now, If they could only yank
the locks out of the ocean / wouldn't
be-
You know there're no locks In the
Atlantic 2" said Mr.. Lamb
No locks Thunder You dom
mean to say there's no locks in that
ocean How in the mischief do they
keep the water on q level ? And where
do they elect the tolls 20
They have no tolls"
"Well, well no tolls, no locks !
Why, that mule'd just hist that boat
across so quick you wouldn't know you
had left home. And s'pose they do
not even let the water out i'm winter like
we do. Why look at it. Just look at
it and then talk to me about it's bein'
hard and dangerous. Why it's the aw-
fullest foolishness L ever heard off,
When there's trouble at sea the men kin
go into the riggin' and be safe, but on a
canal boat man must stand square on
deck and face the music.
" At sea there's no distractions, but
| Just look at the risk canal boat has OF
goin' over dam and bustin' into kin
lin wood AT sea there's no mule to git
contrary, and to pitch and kick, and to
go up while you want to go down {; there
is no boats to pass to wear out your tow
line scrapin their bottoms there's nc
danger of runnin' sock agin the bank II
you go to sleep at the hellum; no toys
kin throw stones at you from the tow.
path and cuss ye; and for your sea-
sickness there's 80 much hullabullo about
why, pledge my word, that I've seen
man git so sick in canal boat he
threw up his boot linin' afore he got
through. Yes, sir it's all bosh, this
talk about the ocean. We never git no
credit for pluck on the canal, but want
you to understand that it takes more to
run the Louisa betwixt here and Pen
cadder than it does to sail in steamer
to China.
Seems to mes if they might carry
out that idea about trans-Atlantlct tow
path somehow, by maxim movable
tow-path like one of them endless
thrashin,-machines Then man could
take it right along with him over thu
water, and have somethin' dry to stanC
on uhtIa he nullad the hOaf hahind n Inn