The Wichita daily eagle. [volume] (Wichita, Kan.) 1890-1906, 1893-08-23

! ! ! !. !. ] J: J
1 EdiiICdus
- of the present
day contest for
VI lp E3 supremacy in
III EIksygya speed and good
ESY fl5zfgssAl service, SO did
TAE EmHes: zf3S the steamboats,
i ! E. ! ! ]: J
NV d l4b OF twenty and
! ,,i.l,H fSTrrT'n,l W.T. forty years ago
CMgW Esa Gf;5a!IlIildA struggle for po-
! f,gg j.EPyY sition in the
II ikEI -@G public eye. All
! II Eljff't- that money
q could purchase
- ard the hand
of artist and artisan devise and con-
struct to further the comfort and pleas
are OF the passengers was to be found
on the packets of the western rivers.
The higlI-class boats stood on an equal
footing in this particular. The point
IN contest was always that of speed.
Many were the races of those early
days. The long train of black smoke,
the measured but labored exhaust Of
the steam pipes, the excitement of the
passengers, the orders of the hatless
and coatless captain, here, there and
everywhere in search of ideas that
might give his vessel the advantage;
half way down the main deck the be-
grimed stoclrers, stuffing the roaring
furnaces with coal, wood, oils, bacon
and even butter, that the flames might
be longer and hotter, to reach through
the boiler fiues and out into the black
night through the stacls-in this you
have the story of the steamboat race
in part. but in part only.
Years ago the trade on the Missouri
was prosperous. At least one hundred
boats assembled the stream every season
before July, many of them going as far
IS Fort Benton, in Montana. A boat
that made this trip and returned to ST.
Louis in two months without profit
OF seventy-five thousand dollars did
poor business. Those were the days
when freight was freight. No compel
ing vessel cut the rates, The boats ran
Independently, and when one captain
fixed the tariff there was no other boat
to be found that would offer cheaper
transportation. Horses, chattels and
food had to go to the west. The Mis-
souri, river boats were the means of
getting them there.
It must have been early in the ff-
ties that wonderful steamboat race
took place on the Missouri. The high
water of 1914 brought many boats from
the south, their owners gaining an inn
preston that the Missouri became
veritable inland sea every spring. In
1874 chutes were abandoned ard boats
ran over farm and garden, through
towns and across wooded patches, re-
gardless of channel or landmark 1t
was this condition for one season that
for ten years afterward crowded the
river with strange boats. Early in the
spring of one year the Henry X. Johns
tone and the Martha Aull came from
southern waters to try their fortunes
in the muddy stream of the Dakotahs.
Both reached St. Louis at the same
time. At the busy levee Of the grow
ing metropolis each vessel took on
freight for the northwest. Owing to
the large number of vessels out that
spring, cargoes were in demand, but,
despite the brisk rivalry, rates were
maintained in accordance with the eth
les of early steamboating.
1t happened that the two boats
dropped away from the wharf about
the same time. The Aull, Henry Sorgen-
Son master, was probably half an hour
ahead of the tombstone, Bristow mas
ter. 1t was late in the afternoon. Each
boat was loaded with merchandise, and
both cabins were filed, most of the
passengers having been men who were
headed for the boundleSs west in search
of fortune There were, however,
women on both boats The Aull
steamed away briskly and by midnight
had turned from the broad Mississippi
into the dark, turbulent waters of the
Big Muddy. 1t was only a few mo-
ments later that the tombstone passed
into her wake. When daylight broke
the boats were in sight of each other,
both steaming ahead steadily, with no
effort to show high speed It
appeared, however, that the tombstone
was the faster boat. By noon the YES
sells passed st. Charles, within hailiug
distance of each other.
The passengers of each vessel sat on
deck and watched the other boat push |
ing through the water but few rods |
away. The crews, too. eyed the boats
from their respective forecastles, COM
meuting on the rival steamer 1t was
this talk from the idlers on the main |
decks that set the passengers to think
ing that something should be done to |
enliven the day. A young fellow on
the Aull called to a passenger on the |
Johnstone:
Tell your captain that we can leave |
him so far behind before sunset that |
he can't see our smoke"
The taunt was at once conveyed to |
Bristow. who appeared at the rail and |
shouted a response.
And you can tell your man." said |
he, that he can burn every side Of !
bacon in his hold and not get bend |
between rs"
Then Capt. Sorgenson came to the
front for word. The Auu did not |
come into these waters to race any,"
said he, but if you want to see what |
sort Of boat she is-why, guess We'll |
have 10 accommodate you"
y shout went up from the Aull's pas
sengers, drowning the reply that Capt
Bristow made. As he concluded, how |
ever, he waved his hand TO the mate be- !
low. who sang out: Aye, aye, sir"
with the air of an old salt. and ran
back toward the boilers In three /
minutes the lazy smoke that came from
the Aull'S stacks had changed to a
rushing volume of coal black, stream
ing a quarter of 4 mile astern, seeming
" lipDinC into the dark brown water