Birmingham age-herald., 1895-01-15
DRUAI1lERS AFL0AT..
SALEsMEN WHO WORK THE OHIO AND
 Ii SslSelFPl E0AT3.

Continually Going Down the Rivers to New
 Orleans Selling Goods Board and
 Ashore One Man Who Fad the Boat
 Step to Let Him Sell G Gun,
 'tSay, what would you think of going up in ona Of the biz Albany day boats and having her stop and set you ashore long enough to sell gun to countryman, then pick you mp again and go onY'
 Such question could be asked only by a commercial trayoler. It would bo un just to him to say that tho littlo hottlc of wine with a half deilar table d'hotc din nor matlo him talkatire, because he is al- ways tall.ative, always interesting, too, and fall of good stories.
 .knaek you crazy, wouldn't it?' ho went cn, not expecting any answer be- yond a look of surprise. Of course it would. But had juat tliat thing happen to mo down on the Ohio river some weeks ago. That's my country for business the Ohio and the Mississippi basin and all tho other basins in that region It's about the finest racket that any travelling man in this country has too. tako q boat at Pittsburg, and with two changes 1 go right through to New Orleans batting in little time at every town on tho way. 1 reckon four 1r five weeks for tho trip and 
 from eight to ten trips year.
 There are-well, 1 can't say just how many of Us work tho river boats. l never striko boat without meeting two or threo others, and, to draw it mild, 1 should say thoro were several hundred. It's just liile profession, the river business is--tases a long time to get into it, but when you once get thcre you're solid. It's n snap whon you have the right line. You don't want to go down thorc selling French clocks or bell slippers, you know. In my line-licht hardware, cutlery and fire arms-its about G3 soft berth as q man could crawl into. Como back by the river? Of course don't. It would take me, say, a month to get from New Orleans to Gin cinnati by boat, and that would be q month wasted.
 II make up my list and have tho goods boxed and shipped to Pttsburg about tlree days before l am ready to start. My business is not in full swing till get to Cincinnati. That's where tho big Ohio river packets start from, and to one of them my goods arc transferred. l don't go through to New Orleans on that beat, only to Memphis, because the Ohio river boats don't mako many stops after they get into the Mississippi.
 No matter what beat I take from Gin cinnati, there's suro to be queer lot of passengers on her. Nobody is supposed to travel by the boats nowadays who can afford to rdo in tho cars. Last time down was right in tho swampor season, and NC had about 80 of them on board. You'd think from their appearance that tho swampers were a lot of daredevil cowboys hungry for fight, but they re not. There's always work to be had in the swamps of Louisiana, especially along the Red river, cutting lumber for barrel slaves and shingles, and when winter comes on in the north hundreds of farmer boys in Ohio and Indiana and Illinois go down in the boats and put in q winters work in tho swamps. They're the swampers. They're great on guns and pistols and knives, not for fighting, but to give them a real sporty appearance, l suppose, and work my cards to sell them all I can. It's very much like peddling, to be sure Sometimes I sell as much as 5000 or $500 worth on the boat between Cincinnati and Memphis. The swampers haven't got any money, but pay with orders on their om- ployers.
 This work on tho boat of course is only side show. My main business is in the towns. How long the boat stops at place depends entirely upon how much freight there Is to take on. At least it's supposed to depend on that, but sometimes it de- pends moro upon the commercial travellers on board, as you shall see. We're ap- preaching Shawneetown, on the Illinois shore, let us say, and when we get up close enough we sec that there' very little freight for us, not enohgh to keep us moro than 10 or 15 minutes. There are, we'll say, four commercial men on board, and VIC all want to spend two or three hours in Shawneetown. We get right down into our pockets and pull out about a dollar apiece and put the money where it will do the most good, no matter where, but somehow the boat is delayed, and we do our business on shore. At the next landing thero may be enough freight to keep us four or five hours, and we don't have to spend any money there.
 II was going to tell you about stopping the boat and setting me ashore while sold gun to countryman. I don't sup pose such a thing could happen anywhere in the world except along the Ohio river. We were poking along one morning pret- ty close to the Kentucky shore somewhere between Owensboro and Evansville. The river is very wide there and in some places almost six feet deep. I was up on the Texas deck leaning against one of the pilot house windows talking to the cap tain when I happened to see an old chap walking along the shore with gun over his shoulder. Tho captain was great friend of mine, and just for joke I said to him, Say, cab wish you'd stop the boat while go ashore and sell that fellow , decent gun
 Well, sir, the words were hardly out of my mouth before the captains hand was on the whistle cord, and the old thing gave mosts GneSrthly screech. It was the big whistle, you understand, that they blow. snly whom they're going to make landing. MSst of tHese boats carry two whistles@ oKS for ordinary use and dia- bolioal One of ahoht 1000 horsepower tol let psopls know tBsY'Te going to mals0 lahdfS1 fbs old ieil6x. on shore q
 sufptDAd, kns ho'was no more surp
 f6af #&s. They set me ashore,