The intelligencer. [volume] (Lexington, Mo.) 1887-1891, 1890-04-12
DOWN THE MISSISSIPPI
On BOARD STEAMER, BATON
ROUGE, March 80, 1890,

On BOARD STEAMER, BATON
ROUGE, March 80, 1890.
EDITOR INTELLIGENCER = Your
junior editor requested me to write
You occasionally, so here goes: We,
that is, my good wife and the jolly old
ex- Kentuckian, Colonel G.. o. Grimes
(you may not recognize the colonel by
his title, but refer TO our brass jewel
or, of Grimes & Venablc, and myself,
left home last Monday morning via the
Mo. l.. Ry., (day train) for ST. Louis;
thence bound south, via steamboat on
the Mississippi river. The first laugh
able item to strike our party was just
before we arrived at jefferson City,
Mo-, where Col. Lon Stephens, our
now state treasurer, and his wife and
her sister got aboard the train and took
seats opposite us. My wife and motto.
cd the ladies were cycling us pretty
closely, and evidently talking about
us. About this time Col. Stephens,
who was sitting farther away from us,
came down and spoke TO us and intro
duced us to his ladies. They having
heard OF us, or knew of us, at once, in
a very social way said, "Wcll, we were
lust talking of you all and sizing Won
up, and said VIC thought you were
bride aud groom" and took my wife
TO be my second wife. SO much for INV
bald head, (my wife having long since
pulled my hair out.) We arrived in
st. Louis all right Monday night, stop
ped at the Lindell hotel for two days,
and OH Wednesday evening, March 20,
| at 6 y. m, we took our departure from
| st. Louis OH board this steamer, where
we are now comfortably located, for
New Orleans. We have about fifty pas
scngers aboard, mostly ladies, all very
pleasant and agreeable people, and we
have by this time gotten pretty well
acquainted with each other. We have
several young ladies aboard, one good
looking young widow, to whom, by
the way, we have introduced Colonel
Grimes IA rich widower. You onght
to see the colonel play the agreeable to
her. The first day out from st. Louis
we made several landings and took on
! great deal of flour, bran and sacked
oats, We had qnite strong March
wind all dav to run against and about 5
p. m, Thursday, the big storm of wind,
rain and hail, which played such sad
havoc at Louisville, KY, struck us. Our
boat could not attempt to make land
ing our captain (Capt BiXby) thinking
il safer to keep from shore. Our party
happened to be up in tho chart room,
an open glass.frOnt room on the upper
| deck OF the boat, from which place we
had fine view of the high water, view
| ed the country and saw the storm. We
passed through ii safely and arrived at
Cairo, Ills, about ) "A. m, Friday; re-
mained there all day taking on freight
OF course all of our passengers took n
promenade through the town. Col.
Grimes kindly showed us into u jewelry
establishment, where he went To i'm
part some OF his knowledge to tho gen
tleman who came to wait on us, and
after a few minutes talk they soon found
out they formally knew each other. We
make enquiry of him of Captain Tom
Shields, and he very kindly walked
with us and showed us his home. My
wife and called and found Miss Sue
Trigg, sister OF our fellow tOWnsman
Mr. Frank Trigg, who was glad tC
welcome us to her home. Col. Grimes
and his friend continuing their walk
though the city, soon called by for Il,
and after his having II few minutes cha
with Miss Sue Trigg, we bade her gOOG
bye. Our boat remaining ut Cairo unit
9 p. m, we had Il pleasant call at ih'
boat, first from Capt. Tom Shields
later on from Miss Sue Trigg and Capt
Alex Lesueur's handsome and accom-
plished daughter, who is visiting il
Cairo, Miss Anna Lesucur, who spen
most of the afternoon with us, and j
made us lccl like We were at home tC
see our home acquaintances and friends
We lett Cairo with 1000 tons of freigh
OH board of our boat, she drawing min,
feet of water and loaded down TO tn
, guards. We enjoyed good night
rest and were up and out to see tn
big river at O'Clock. We soon iouu,
water, water, everywhere, the might,
Mississippi being from 10 to 10 mile
wide. We were up in the chart o
. look out room all day and from ther
we could gee the water all aroun,
houses aud barns, the horses, cows ant
hogs being put into pens erected n
| out of the water, and we could sc
the people going to and from til
a pens, in skiffs. TO feed the animals
We arrived at Memphis about 81
O'CLOCK III the evening anu enjoyed
carriage drive over the city. Memphis
we thought, hadn't halt the enterpris
OF our own little city. Her street
looked like they had little or no atten
ton or work put upon them; dust
streets; not much sprinkling, at least
= not as much as in our town; her bust
ness streets looked fairly well, bu
q residence streets not inviting. We lei
Memphis at . O'Clock last night, an
u: to-day is Sunday. We are jourueyin
along, our river being about 40 mile
10 wide most all along hero. This morr
n ing about II O'Clock we made our fir.
stop since leaving Memphis, at the co,
N yard at the mouth of the White river
Arkansas. Instead of n yard, AZ I'll
" name implies, il was at the edge OF III
timber, or bank of the river, before III
high water came. There were sou
p eight or ten barges OF coal tied to Il
standing trees, and out in the wat,
stood the cotton gin house, which W,
standing upon posts high enough