Johnstown weekly Democrat. (Johnstown, Cambria County, Pa.) 1889-1916, 1890-02-14
AN OLD pILor,s "REMINISCENCES.
What Capt. j. w. Campbell Has to So!
About the Upper Mississippi.

de-
sissippi, writes thus about the past and
present: II emerged from the hazel
brush in northeast Missouri in 1874 to
take q first peep at the wide world be-
yond. Having been infatuated in early
youth with the cat fish and drift log bus
iness, it WAS but natural / should seek a
nautical pursuit. Consequently | drift
ed ON board all upper Mississippi steam
boat and began To- serve as cub pilot
along shore latwcen St. Louis and Fort
Smelling. The first duty of cub is to
designate the difference between fore
and aft-larboard and starboard- and
with brains enough to determine if the
current Of the river runs to the north or
south.
''IIe is then permitted to enter the pi-
lot house and take the wheel, while his
senior lights his pipe, and being consti-
tutionally tired seats himself on an ele-
waited bench in the rear and looks COM
placently on. Presently, under the ma
nipulation of the verdant cub, the wheel
begins to spin from right to left-left to
right-hard upand hard down; he strikes
with his clumsy paws at the revolving
wheel with the awkwardness of his ma
tured namesake and involuntarily his
pedal extremitics come i'll contact with
the spokes of the inner circle of the
wheel below, thereby illustrating the re-
suits of centrifugal force by throwing
him outside of the pilot house.
"But after few more experiments of
a similar kind he becomes more skillful,
and with less exertion guides the boat
steadily along, and then begins his great
est task by learning the shores that he
may distinguish unerringly one locality
from another in the darkest night, after
which he is directed TO observe the fol-
lowing landmarks: Head of Island,
Foot of Bend, Cut Bank, Willow Tow
head, Big Hollow, High Bluff, Point-no-
Point, Dead Cottonwood Tree, Tall Syca-
more with many more, all of which by
association become indelibly painted
upon the panorama of the mind, and
when they are recognized by the cub
they become welcomed companions to
him in the darkness of the night-a
warning sentinel by which he avoids the
! breakers and reefs ahead.
"He is now prepared to stand watch,
is 10 longer dubbed the cub, but is en-
titled to promotion and receives the cog
nomcn of star gazer
1T was much harder when l began
for one to learn than at present, for the
country above Prairie du Chen was I'M
inhabited, except by Indians and few
frn. L. xillo
and cities from ten to twenty miles
apart, with government lights located at
every difficult crossing on the river.
While on my first voyage was directed
on passing the head of Coon slough to
hold her on Wild Cat bluff, where now
nestles beneath its shadows the prosper
Gus village OF Brownsville, and on as
cending ten miles farther up we land on
the east side of Prairie La Crosse, con-
tanning then but two houses. The upper
one was occupied by Mr.. Mirick, used
Jointly as n residence and warehouse,
and 100 yarrls below stood log hut
tenanted by Mr.. White, while the bar
rem sand banks intermediate were dotted
with Winnebago wigwams.
I "On this bleak and lonely sand prairie
of the past we behold at present u mag
ical change. The name is abbreviated
to plain La Crosse. Instead of two resi-
dents. We find here now a population of
over 10000 people. We hear the sound
of the buIaing saw of mills less than a
hundred yards apart for over five miles
up and down tbe river. while i'll front
along the shore are millions upon mill
ions Of pine lumber and saw logs await
inr to be towed down the river to supply
the increasing demands of the grcat
southwest
ain place of one solitary steamboat
landing here scmi-monthly. we see them
como and so by the dozen every twenty
four hours for more of them are owned
i'm La Crosse than ut any other point be-
tween ST. Louis and st. Paul. and my
companions in days of yorc, with the
fledglings of today, have organized a
pilot association here with over 150 mem
bers, who question the propriety of the
government in appointing an inspector
whom they deem inexperienced.
"Again we are under way, passing
upon our left majestic bluffs arising sew
cral hundred feet above the waters edge,
while upon our right we view for miles
in the distance the valley of Black river,
whose pine timber has since added mill
ions to the wealth of the pioneer settler.
After stcaming eighteen miles farther up
this rock bound mountain shore ! OBJ
served pine trees growing upon a ledge
of rocks. and ON the the face below was
etched The words George Catlin. On
viewing again this once familiar name,
but bv me then almost forgotten. my
| thoughts reverted quickly back To child
hoods happy hours, passed in gathering
goodies along shore for this great Amer
lean Traveller. an ever welcome guest at
the savage wigwam or priuce!y palace.
We cross over to the right hand shore,
and the valley is in our rear. while in
| front wr neboId the greatest curiosity on
the Mississippi river "a conicH island
muwtfiu. GOO [Dat in height, commonly
/ called N'ouut Suombolo, but hy the
carly Fruru vovagers La Noutaigne
qgr r~mpea r,au. Chicago Times
Misleading Statistics.