The Indiana State sentinel. [volume] (Indianapolis) 1868-1895, 1885-09-09
AN INDIAN IN INDIANA.
By J. T. MILLER.
Forced by thy converse happily TO steer
From grave to gay, from lively to severe"

Forced by thy converse happily to steer
From grave to gay, from lively to severe
Pope.
"Who is he? where is he? and what is he?"
were the questions hurled at me from Sum-
ners store in Scion, when | returned from
my first visit to the abode of Professor Ram
chusa-chum at the stone fort All the inhab-
itants of the Fourteen Mile Creek vicinage
wanted to see live Indian Professor of
Buddhism, and for several weeks a constant
stream of visitors from the
villages OF Owen and Vesta
and Utica toiled up the steep ascent to
the old fort to get glimpse of the dark for
eigner, to ask him questions about India and
Persia and to examine the furniture in his
pretty villa. | waited until the rush of cur
ioSity as / thought was over and l was there
fore greatly surprised when l reached the
door to find our minister, the Rev. Mr. Arm
strong with a committee OF five of our lead
ing members (who were about TO take their
leave in the very act of inviting Professor
Chum to address the Friday night mission
airy meeting at Vesta Chapel on the Shape
and Construction of the Car of Juggeruant.
and whom should see comfortably seated
on the porch overlooking the Ohio River but
my old friend Captain Andrew Green, the
greatest talker in Clark County. He is just
such fellow as Sir Roger de Coverley was,
only instead of worrying about the
manners and morals of the present genera
ton, and contrasting them with the simple
habits of our forefathers, he is fond of
boaSting of the hardships of the pioneers
and he delights particularly in recalling the
history of the river. which for fifty years he
traversed in arks, fiat boats and steamboats,.
As soon as i saw him in one of the Profess
sor's easy chairs knew that the discussion of
Shakespeare's claims wauld have to be
postponed.
1t was a lovely day and lovely picture.
We were on an elevation at least seven hun
bred feet above the river, which wound like
a silver cord around the base of the tall cliff.
In the foreground on the opposite side of
the river, we could plainly see the ancient
town of Westport in Kentucky, with its old
fashioned houses of the pattern of seventy
years ago, and beyond, for ten miles at least,
East, North and South, up and down the
river were beautiful gardens, orchards, fields,
farm houses and little towns, all wrapt i'll
sun light.
The Captain busted himself in pointing
out objects of interest to the professor. up
there around that bend he said. ''you see
Marble Hill. and Bethlehem just below and
then comes Otto, where the Deans have their
great peach orchards, and at that bend
beyond the island is Utica. around which
are the very finest lands for agricultural and
cement purposes in Indiana. The fact i.
take it for all in ALL Clark County is the
finest and best county in the State"
Before either the Professor or had a chance
to say a word he resumed. Talk about the
Hudson river scenery, it does not compare
for beauty and sublimity with the scenery
along the Ohio river from Louisville to Mad
ison. See Wonder is the Fleetwood, the Gin
cinnati mail boat coming out of the bend at
Eighteen Mile Island She is fast boat,
perhaps the fastest on the river now. but
nothing 10 compare with the Eclipse. the
Shotwell or the Robert T.. Lee. What a
change there has been in the navigation of
the Ohio river since | was boy. Shall |
tell YOU about the first steamboats, The first
steamboat which descended the Ohio river
was called the ''OrleanS" and she was built
in 1911. by Fulton and Livingston at Pitts
burgh. She passed the falls of the Ohio dur
ing the prevalence OF the great earthquake.
After reaching New Orleans she ran between
that city and Natchez until July II, 1914,
when while lying by at night opposite Ba-
ton Rouge. she settled on a sharp log which
as the river fell, went through her bottom
and sunk her. The next boat was the NeSu-
vius, which was put into requisition by Cen
eral Jackson during the war. Then there
was the Enterprise, commanded by captain
Shreve, which was the first steamboat 10 as
cend the falls of the Ohio from New Albany
to Louisville She made that trip in 1915
from New Orleans to Pittsburgh IN
the wonderfully short period OF
fifty-four days. Then came the Buffalo, the
Etna, the Franklin, the Washington, the
Shelby and Monroe and in 1912 there were
four or five hundred steamboats, on this
river. Now however, so great Is the speed
of the'railroad trains, that steamboats, eX-
cept for towing purposes have almost dis
appeared from our great rivers. In those
early times the cost of a state room from New
Orleans to Natchez was twenty-five dollars.
Have you ever thought why they give those
little narrow rooms on steamboat the high
sounding name of State rooms? Each room
was named after one of the States OF the
Union, and the rooms above the cabin al
| WAYS received the name of Texas and they
have retained that name on all steamboats,
| to this day. The floating palaces. once the
| pride of our Westernlwaters have disappear
| ed, and with them have gone the large heart
| ed. generous men who commanded them.
can count very few of the old Captains
| among the living. Montgomery, Malbon,
| Conner and a few others survive. but we are
getting to be old hulks, not remembered or
worth remembering.
The mention of the first steamboat which
| assembled the falls of the Ohio recalls to my
mind an incident which read in the Amer
! lean Pioneer in 1912. 1t was stated therein
| as a fact that the Welsh under Owen APP
| Gwineth in the twelfth century found their
way to the Mississippi and as
| far up the Ohio as the falls of the river at
| New Albany and Louisville, where they were
cut off 10y the Indians; others assembled the
| Missouri. and were either captured or settled
| with the Indians, learning their habits. In
| proof of this in the year 1893, six skeletons
|