The farmer and mechanic. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 1877-1885, 1880-01-08
WORKING UNDER 4 CANAL.

ne boat was tlat-bottomed batteau ,
| feet long, wide, and foot deep, deSi1nc,
| Tor use IN shallow water, propelled BY lon.
! poles, which had been carried away: thougi
| OF no service ii crossing the deep river
Fearing the searchers would emerge from
the corn, L showed the end of the ,cow int.
the culyert, and, flat upon my back, begat
ana teet against the masonry There wa,
barely space between the top of the water
and the arch for the boat to enter, and it
sides scraped down large quantities of ooze
mud, dripping moss, etc, while a perfect
shower of snakes, Lizards, or other ser
pents, dropped upon me from the slimey
walls. As the culvert extended entirely
across the canal and the levee there was
pltchy darkness inside particularly on this
stormy evening; and the falling trash made
the atmosphere smothering At the mo-
ment the bow projected into daylight again,
crawled forward, washed my face, and
raised on my knee to reconoitre The out
look was dlscouraging enough. At the tree,
scarcely stones throw distant stood the two
soldiers; IN plain view of my line of transit
across the river! & ~
PLYING FOR LIFE.
Taking the broken strip of pine for a pad
die, | threw my whole strength against the
masonry, and sent the fat surging 90 feet
into the river, then began to ply the paddle,
-nolselessly as possible. But what can the
matter be? The clumsy old craft seems to
turn upon pivot instead of going ahead :;
while the swift current is carrying it down
directly in front of the Yankees! Every
pulse stands still, with such sensation as
men must feel on finding themselves borne
down a cataract In a moment l see my
error: Ignorant of boating | have been pad
ding too much on one side Luckily, the
rain drowned the noise of the paddle
OF course this can not last Although
Oblqulng across the stream, my weak arms
are unable to keep the broad batteau from
drifting in front of the foe. Suddenly
hear growl of amazement, a volley of
curses, throwing down Of wraps, the click
ing OF musket triggers, and a chorus Of
yells
.'Hah! Hut! Halt there! Stop, God
d. you! STOP! Drop that pue1de! !
| do not look around, there isn't any
need SO to do. Nor drop the paddle, it is
all L have! Nor come to halt, because |
prefer to place a thousand yards of water
between us. They have their views have
mine. People cannot always agree.
SHOOTING THE BOAT FROM UNDER ME-
A momentary delay, while the Yankees
ran down to the river bank, and they open
ed fire: Bang! Bang i"-the music
resounded through the misty atmosphere
like the explosion of a couple Of cannon.
One bullet went sing ing ing over head
the other struck the water. Instantly
Shout arose from the corn-feld, another sol
dier came running down the river bank and
the rapid humping of drum beating the
Long Roll" at some point below; the
firing having created an alarm of Rebel add
vance. Halfa-doz Reserves came run
ming up the towpath, yelling and firing as
they caught sight of me. 1t sounded like a
skirmish line of sharp-shooters. The air
swarmed with bullets; each one seemingly a
my ears Presently the rascals, getting the
range, began to chip splinter after splinter
off the edges of the boat. All my strength
was put forth in widening the distance be-
tween us. Then came crippling shot,
splitting my paddle and leaving two strips
Of pine in my hands! This disaster occurred
when within forty feet of the shore. To
lessen the chance of being killed, [ sprang
into the water, and clinging by one arm to
the off-gunwale, determined to drift until
darkness set in. The enemy continued pop-
ping away In lively fashion; but as they
We're armed with old Springfield muskets
(lOng range rifles not having come into
vogue, and as had gotten fully 400 yards
distant, and in the shadow, with an heavy
rain falling, my chances were pretty good.
AN ISLAND PRISONER
While drifting with the current, hanging
at full length, my toes touched on sand
bar The momentum of the boat dragged
me off, but | felt encouraged to watch for