The Northern Pacific farmer. [volume] (Wadena, Minn.) 1878-1885, 1883-04-26

and the first steamboat built at Cincin-
natti, was constructed in 1917 by Heze-
kiah Bliss and son of Gen. Harrison.
The Gen. Pike, as it was named, after
Zebulon Montgomery Pike, young Har.
rison's father-in-law, was lOOx25 feet.
The Gentlemans Magazine for April,
1914, gave some interesting notes on the
progress of steam navigation in America
1.-THE city of New York alone possesses
seven steamboats," cried the writer in a
tit of generous enthusiasm, and he went
on to say of other American steam YES
sells; Zone Of them passed 1000 miles
on the great river Mississippi in 81 days,
at the rate Of five miles an hour against
tho defending current, which is perpet-
uaily running down." Steamboats, were
used on both sides in the war of 1925.
Steam navigation WAS commenced on the
lakes May %, 1918, when the Walk-in.
the-Water was launched at Black Rock.
In the following year the first STEAMBOATS,
assembled the Missonri-three little gov
ernment boats, accompanied on shore
by party of naturalists and engineers,
who were q good deal worried by the
Pawnees. One of the boats had SER
pent for fieurehead thronvh whose
mouth the waste steam escaped,
soaring the Indians beyond measure,
as the monster was taken for a
veritable brazen fiery serpent. In this
which derived its exceeding apt name
from the we'll known Wyaniotte chief,
made her first trip to Mackinac. For
some time she proved equal to the de-
mands of Lake Erie's commerce, but by
1881 there were III steamboats, on the
lake with an aggregate capacity of 2, 260
tons. In 1927 the first steamboat plowed
the water of Lake Michigan, making an
excursion to Green Bay, and in 1881 one
went to Chicago with troops, greatly to
the establishment and adm ration of the
Indians, who now beheld with awe the
accomplishment of the prophecy that
sturgeon was soon to draw blg canoe
from the northern waters to the far west.
The Wisconsin, 2lS feet long and 50
feet beam, built at Detroit in 1888 by
Mr.. Randall of Philadelphia, was one
of the early giants Of the lakes. In 1897
Capt. Augustus Walker introduced up
per cabins on lake steamers: the first
Western. A year later the secretary of
report on inland steam naviga-
ton. The whole number of steamers
was put at 800, of which 400 were in the
western and southwestern waters, and
1877 boats had been built during the pre-
ceeding u months. Among the large
steamers mentioned were the Illinois,
755 tons, Madison. 700 tons, and Buffalo,
Glib tons, Oh Lake Erie; the Uncle Sam,
49O tons, the North American AS, and
Mogul, Al, on the Ohio, and the St.
LOUIS, $40 tons, on the Mississippi. On
the northwestern lakes 70 boats were
running. The earliest accident chroni-
cled had been in 1916, on board the
Washington, already mentioned, on the
Ohio. The most fatal accident up to
1893 had been tie sinking, from collis-
sion, Of the Monmouth, on the Missis-
sippi. with 900 lives, and the burning
of the Ben Sherrod, on the
same river, will, nearly 100. Both &C.
cidens took place in 1887. 1t was in
1854 that the high-pressure paddle
wheel engines were taken out of the
Baltic, at Buffalo, being replaced with
side-propelling engines. She carried
double the weight and ran with half the
fuel at Il higher rate Of speed after the
change. though her new engines rated
60 per cent. less power than her old ones.