Perrysburg journal. (Perrysburg, Wood Co., O. [Ohio]) 186?-1965, 1886-10-15

making il sufficiently bouyant to kccT
the boys nose above water. He ap
pearcd to be less disturbed by the adj
venture than any of the passengers,
and whom he was drawn out the first
words he uttered were: Didn't / hold
on liko a good fcllowP" There seems
to bc n special providence watching over
the mischcvious boy, and he Is certainly
the favorite of fortune, for when ho
comes to be n man, nearly all the big
hings of the world are done by him.
AZ Baton Rouge singular incident
occurred, The boat was tied up TO the
bank for some purpose just above the
| city, and some article was accidentally
dropped overheard, which the mate
thought he could recover with u rope
and hook. Whilst he was fishing for it
his hook got cntanglcd in something at
the bottom, and, being unable 10 pull
il loose himself, he called several deck
hands to his assistance. As they gave
"a long pull, strong pull and pull
altogether something broke loose and
they all tumblcd over backwards in n
heap.
When the rope was hauled in there
was found caught in the hook II piece of
heavy gold chain about five feet long.
II was about the size of an ordinary dog
chain, and was very roughly and clum-
silly made. as if by an ordinary black
smith. The fragment weighed over
three pounds, and what It's use was no
one could tell. 1t was suggested as
probable that large gold cross was at
tachcd to the end left in the river, but
as the boat remained only "a few minutes
at the landing, there was no time to
make Investigations.
| had always heard that the river ut
New Orleans was higher than the city,
and rs we nearcd that famous Southern
port l looked with some interest to see
such n curious sight, and was quite dis
appointed at being unable TO discern
anything of the kind. | afterwards d s.
covered that it was only when looking
towards it from the city that the river
is readily seen to be the higher.
After discharging his passengers and
cargo at New Orleans, Captain ID. CON
cludcd to make a trip up the Wachita
river for the navigation of which his
boat was peculiarly fitted, and rs | was
bound for no place in particular, con-
cluded to 90 along. The Wachita
empties into Red river few miles above
the confluence OF the latter with the
Mississippi, and its source is in the
northern part of Arkansas. 1t is one of
the most remarkable of rivers, and on II
first view it seems strange that it should
be called river at all. 1t has much
more the appearance of an artificial
canal. The country it runs through is
for the greater part almost on dead
level, and the stream is so narrow that
at almost any part of it one might jump
ashore from either guard of the boat.
1t is always "bank full, and the grass
on the margin hangs over into the
water There are but occasional points
where boats can pass each other. Sig
nails are always given there with the
whistle, and if responded to the boat
hugs the shore closely and waits for the
other boat opass. The water moves so
slowly rs to appear still, and it is hard
to conceive that such narrow, sluggish
stream can have any depth, but it has,
and u novice is surprised to find Il plum
met reaching down twenty or thirty
feet. In some places the stream is so
narrow that the limbs of trees on the
opposite banks intcrlock, and for this
reason the boats chimncys are always
constructed with hinges and appliances
by which they can be laid upon the hur-
ricane roof ut short notice. From this
popularity very remarkable incident
occurred, in which one of our passcn-
gers made Il narrow escape from sudden
death. He was seated in barbcr-chair
being shaved, and the barber was lust
approaching the climax of one of his
best stories when crash came Il dead limb
through the wheclhouse, tearing away
it and the barber shop and passing di-
rcctly through the arms of the chair in
which the passenger was seated. When
the boat passed from under, the chair,
with the man still in it, was left dang.
ling from the dead limb.
He was so overcome by fright that
when he was being eXtricated he was
unable TO afford the least cooperation,
and had to be handled like dead man.
The water of the Wachita is unfit for
drink ng, and good water is scarce all
along its course. TO make up for this
deficiency boats trading up that stream
usually carry numerous casks of cheap
kind of clarct wine, which is free to the
passengers in moderation. The deck
hands and roustaboutS, who are not
included in the claret ring, banker
after it, only, perhaps, because they
are excluded from it, and would
probably grumblc If compelled to drink
it, But they were determined to have
it, and where there is will there is II
way" is an old saying, and they hit on
Il most ingenious device for tapping the
clarct casks. These were stored in n
little room on the upper deck near the
pantry, Immediately over some of the
hunks OF the deckhands, and the device
was n small, thin gun-barrcl with the
brcech-p.n taken out and the muzale
filed into saw-tecth, like Il surgeon S
trcphine. In the still hours of the
night they bored in the flooring under
one OF the casks. the gun-barrcl was in
serted and the cask trepanned, the wine
running through the gun-barrel into n
bucket held beneath. Two casks had
been cmpticd in this way before the
trick was discovered, and Captain ID.
was so much amused at the ingenuity of
ii that he forbore making any inquiries
after the perpetrators.
After ascending the Wachita some
distance, very singular feature of the
river is reached, ii doubling back and
forth on itself six or seven times. form
ing what is known as the "Thirtccn
Points" The turns of the bends are so
sudden that no boat beyond certain
length, and that a short one, can pass
through. Captain DIS boat touched
the shore at both stern and bow all the
way around at every turn. The dis
tancc around these points must be about
forty or fifty miles, and after The last
one the river makes final double until
ii comes within quarter of mile,
overland, of the first one. Midway be-
tween those two points was house of
entertainment whore passengers usually
got off and spent the time playing bill
lizards and nine-pins until the boat
made its tedious trip around, which is a
number of hours. Enclosed in these
coils OF the river were many fine planta-
tions, each of which had its landing,
and that is said to have been the reason
for not cutting canal across the mar