The Magnolia gazette. [volume] (Magnolia, Miss.) 1872-current, 1885-10-16
REMARKABLE CHANGES.
Mississippi Steamboating Twenty Year
Ago and To-day.

Mississippi steamboatiug Twenty Years
Ago and To-day.
81 tell YOU" he said, throwing him
self back in hesvy armchair, 1.-The
Mississippi is no longer what it used to
be; the railroads have ruined it. There
VIII be no more such steamers as the X.
E. Lee, the Richardson or others of
their class built The steamers used to
| float all the cotton of the valley to New
Orleans, and were butt to carry from
| 5000 to 5000 bales. The week, how
ever, which it required steamer to
| take it down, is now reduced to twenty
| four hours bv rail. Railroads are fol-
lowing the coarse of the river, and rob
bing it of its trade, and / look forward
to the day when the Mississippi River
will be abandoned entirely in favor OF
rail.
'.Yes," he continued, in answer to
| question, gamblers used to have
picnic along the river; but that dav, too.
is past. 1t is not because people have
grown better, but because they have
less money. | once saw two men in
a dispute over game. rise from their
chairs, place Their pistols at each 9TH
er's temples. and fire simultaneously.
Their dead bodies were carried away.
and the game continued as If nothing
had happened. Those were wild days,
and are not likely to return.
'.The mode of getting other peoples
money has merely changed in some re-
spects. With the exit of the honest
gambler who told his business, we wit.
ness the entrance of the sneak thief.
But a few days ago a rich planter
boarded this steamer off Natchez.
While sitting right where we are now.
, he purchased a paper from q newsboy
and was soon lost in its perusal.
"sColonel,' said bland young man,
! few moments after, you have just
1 dropped this handing him a fifty-dol
s lar note.
|. "l reckon not said the old gentle
man as he overlooked his spectacles.
81 Just picked it up under your
chair repl' ed the Young man, and SEE
e GO other way to dispose of it, How
o ever, since it seems to belong to neith'
er of us, we might just as well divide
s it,
t '.The plan worked well. The ole
: gentleman passed over S25 in change
n and the young man sauntered careless
i. ly out on land. A few minutes aftel
: gentleman presented the $40 note t.
II the clerk in payment for his fare.
81 Counterfeit exclaimed the clerk
r and then for the first time the who'll
:. truth dawned upon the old man
~ mind.
~ 1.-The deckhands are ahard lot The
u, work, as you see, with vim while i
10 port, and pass the time until the mex
- Is reached in playing craps. The
"a. are paid $3.50 dav. When they ar
w called up to get their wages, they d
es vide into little gambling parties 8
ut once and by the time port is reached
Ii. of the fifty men paid of, about ten wi
re have all the money. This ten will tai
lis one night on land, coming back to Il
es- boats dead broke, and on the retul
eY trip there will not be a nickel in I'll
whole crew. And the way they can
through stranger, said the speake
:, growing warm, lis caution. A n
. GRO got on board at Vick sburg Il
ur other day and fell asleep. 1t was n
ar ticed that his underclothiug was me-
re- Quietly the men went to work, stripp
te- HIM, divided out his underclothin
put him back into his old shoes. sh
tut and pantaloons, and left h m. VIII
lat that negro awoke and found the chan
oo- which had been made in him. he W
as 90 completely mystitied. He could l
60 understand how his underclothi
v tva could have been stolen without toue
ing the rest, "-4Atfanta lGdl Constt
ion.