The Durham daily globe. (Durham, N.C.) 1889-1894, 1890-10-30
LIFE IN A HOUSEBOAT.
NEATNEsS AND COMFORT IN FLOAT
ING HOMES IN THE WEST.

Pen Pictures of Natives of the Upper
Mississippi Who Spend Their Nights
on the Water-They Pay Neither Rent
Nor Taxes and Have No Coal Bills.
Down by the waters edge and upon
the broad bosom Of the great Father of
Waters are moored a number OF small
boats, which are literally floating homes.
and invite no small amount of curiosity.
This new Venice is located near the
east end of Robert street bridge. and is
popularity set down as a tough village.
Standing upon the bridge. Is or 100
feet above the water and fats, and look
ing down upon these unique homes. you
see Il desolate stretch of shore line broken
by rock piles. decaying skiffs. irregular
stacks of bark and driftwood, fragments
of tin roofing. rotten seines. broken bar
rels in all stages of HOPELESS d~isintegra-
ton. and all the other notsan and let
sam incident to the beach of IA waterway
with tides OF a varying volume of water.
In the foreground. and surrounded by
this abomination of d~esolation. are
moored the string of boat homes.
All are small, but some are larger
than others. From the altitude of the
bridge they look like chicken coops, or
the residences of ultra-fashionable swine.
Descending from Robert street t. the
flats by means of a long flight Of steps.
the first boat approached is a small I'M
painted affair, stranded upon stony strip
of real estate temporarily loaned by the
river The windows are curtainless and
dirty. no smoke curls upward from the
stovepipe IN the roof, and you conclude
that it is ~untenanted There is a win
dow in the door, and a climb to the deck
lays bare a bachelors home. confessed
in the comfortless interior.
A THRIFTY COUPLE.
The next boat was quite elegant in
comparison 1t was about thirty feet
long. painted dark lavender. and had a
latticed porch or veranda, without a
roof. extending around three sides. A
shallow fight of steps led from the
ground to this porch on the deck, and
pretty rustic flower pots and hanging
baskets adorned the steps and hung from
the lattice work. On the back porch =
line full Of baby garments futtered in
the breeze, and a big black dog snooz-
ing in the sur kept guard over all. The
owners of this boat are Danes or Nor
wegians.
The husband is a turner, and many Or
namental pieces of his handiwork can
be seen about the boat. His wages are
$3.50 per day. and with no rent, taxes
or assessments, street sprinkling or water
tax to pay. and with an Industrious, eco
nomical and tidy little wife, this young
man is much better fixed for saving
money and enjoying life than one-half
of the men who get double his salary.
Following along the path the third
boat is reached, and the young couple
who live here are cousins of the turner's
family. Such perfection of neatness in
every detail of the small household it
has probably never been your good fort
une to see outside of a New England
home. The kitchen floor was as white
as soap and honest scrubbing could
make it; the round breakfast table was
covered by a bright Turkey red table
cloth; the small cook stove shone like a
mirror, and every cooking utensil in
sight was bright as a new dollar.
The second room was a bedchamber,
and the same neatness was manifest in
the whiteness Of the spreads and pillow
shams, the worked splasher and shining
toilet set. Not a speck nor a spot any
where. If you are astonished into re-
marking upon this high state Of cleanli-
ness the housewife. who cannot speak
English readily, will point with a smile
to the oceans of soft water just outside
the window, and the explanation is COM
plete. although you leave that house
with your respect for the Scandinavian
housekeeper raised several degrees.