Pittsburg dispatch. [volume] (Pittsburg [Pa.]) 1880-1923, 1889-04-21
PITTSBURG TO GULF.
A Shanty-BOatman's Yearly Journey
Through the Bayous.
LOTS OF QUEER THINGS AFLOAT.
Money Made Catching Mud Turtles and
MuSkrats.
VENISON, WILD TURKEY AND HOE CAKE
CORRESPONDENCE OF THE D1srArcH.I

the river in some mysterious way last night,
and this morning was seen tied to peg
driven in the sand at Shanty-Boat Town, on
the Kentucky shore, opposite Cincinnati.
It was the home of Captain Silas With
ers, and in about 30 days, by easy stages,
will have completed its journey, and be nose
on to PittSburg wharf
The tide of travel among the nomads who
make up the numerous tribe of house
boatmen is slowly setting northward, and
by the LIST of June all of that leisure class
who follow the warm weather into the
bayous, and come back with it to the
North, will be tied up at their summer
quarters, or will be well on their way to the
head of navigation on the Monongahela,
whence many Of them start in September
for their winter haunts.
Among them Captain WitEers is known
as regular and a pioneer.
"There is plenty of money afoat in the
river north of Cairo, - said he this morning
''Plenty of it; but further south-in the
bayous and along the gulf coast-lt can be
taken up in scoops Alligators, oysters, sea
beans, sharks, pelicans, wild ducks, jack
fish, tarpon and sea trout swarm in those
waters, and everyone of them can be sold
for good money-the gators, sharks and
pelicans in the Northern markets and the
others, which have to be specially packed
for transportation, at New Orleans.
CHEAP LIVING.
''But we don't need much money-we
river peOple-about 500 which il costs me
every year to be towed to Pittsburg-is my
biggest item of expense, and that of course
might avoid by staying in the South. Ten
dollars viii buy a whole years outfit of
clothes; tobacco can be had all along the
Kentucky shore for the asking; and as for.
food-it is not necessary to go half mile
from the bayou at any time to shoot deer,
turkeys, squirrels, 'possums, and water
fowl. Palmetto buds make as good cabbage
as is ever grown in field, and bushel of
oysters can be traded at any time for peck
OF corn meal to make hoe cakes
''But the oysters; what do you trade for
them?'
81 shovel them. Near the coast line, every
little bayou in Louisiana is an oyster bed
1t is only necessary to wade out into the
shallow water and scoop up the shell fish
with a shovel or fork. OF course, like all
gulf oysters, they are small; but there are
none in the world more delicious to the
palate, the Bayou Cook oyster, which can
only be procured in New Orleans, being
famous in this land of good oysters as the
e"SSNSSs -ALl budb Cdu S1luG
down mans throat. But in my mind all
the gulf oysters are equally fine favored,
the Bayou Cook being singled out from the
others because of the pinkish tinge, which
makes it distinctive.
"But don't think that all the wild game
is found in the South. Come in and see the
prizes that caught yesterday"
A NoMAD's HOME.
He led the way up the gang-plank,
through the low doorway into his castle. A
bunk, two chairs, table and stove COM
pleted the furnishing. A short plank on
e1gemsGe triangular pen in one corner.
and about a dozen of the ugliest, slimiest.
muddiest swapping turtles that ever came
out OF water were resting behind it. Their
bright eyes watched every motion of a will
low twig in the Captains hand, and when
he carried its end within three inches of the
largest turtles nose the head shot forward
with slight hiss AID the twig was caught
between jaws as unrelaxing as bull dogs.
"AuPs fish that comes to my net" said
the captain, "and that little bunch of fish
there-all of which caught yesterday-is
worth about S., and will be sold for that
sum in Cincinnati before the day is out.
There are 13 turtles in the lot, running
about five pounds to the turtle, which will
make 65 pounds, at s cents pound, giving
me % ~ lOr my DAY WORK.
There is scarcely pond or a creek in this
latitude which is not stocked with mud tur-
ties, to greater or less extent and eyery
one Of snapper variety has market value
shell and all-of about cents per pound,
They make the turtle soup which decorates
the free-lunch counter of saloons, and fig
ures on the bill of fare of many pretentious
restaurants. The beast has habit of sun
ming himself on logs projecting over the
water. Upon the approach of the hunter
they slip from their perch, and go splash
Into the depths.
CATCHING MUD TURTLES.
with long-handled scoop the hunter
searches the bottom of the pond at that
spot until he feels the creatures hard back;
then with quick sweep of his arm he
brings up scoop and turtle, sending the
brute head over, heels through the air to the
shore, where it is picked up and popped
into the boat, or into leather bag, if the
trip be made afoot.
Another species for game common to
this latitude, which often furnishes the
ohAnty boatman all the money he needs in
9 season, is the muskrat. Two seasons ago
] started North earlier than usual, and
reached muskrat town I knew of in a
gwampy bend of the Big Miami before they
had broken camp and left their winter
quarters. DID you ever see muskrat town?
Go2 Well, you have pretty clear idea as
70 what beaver house is-a dome of mud
and sticks rising out of a marsh, with the
entrance under water. Group about dozen
of these mud huts-most of them five feet
high and four feet across at the bottom-in
q swamp grown up in willows, alders and
marsh grass, and you will have fair idea
Of the appearance of this village
81 did not propose to waste much time
or trouble on the colony. So I borrowed an
empty potato barrel from farmer, and sunk
ii IN about two feet of water on the outskirts
Of the town.
CATCHING MUsKRATs.
''I hoated a few lines Of apple peelings
from the water into the barrel, and put a
few apples to bobbing on the surface of the
water in the barrel. The next morning five
muskrats were trying to get out of the bar
rel into which they had jumped after the
apple. And in two days had taken SO Of
them.
''It tskes about ten minutes to strip the
pelt from a muskrat, to rub the inside with
salt, which is all the curing required, and
10 store it away ready for the dealer. They
average about 20 cents apiece, and got S6
for my 80 pelts.
But taken altogether, the shanty-boat-
man who knows how to warp his way char
through the bayous to the Gulf can do much
better on the coast than he can anywhere
this side of it. Take my experience last
winter. I went down the Bayou La
Fourehe and tied up in Terrebonne Parish,
about ten miles from the coast. Game, oys-
ters and fish were plenty as blackberries in
August all around me, and whenever felt
in the humor for 1rorlr I uould tata NV