The Democratic advocate. [volume] (Westminster, Md.) 1865-1972, 1900-02-24
ON THE MISSISSIPPI.
Quaint Incidents of Travel Along
the Great River.
From the Ainslee's Magazine.

From the Ainsee's Magazine.
Passenger service on the Mississippi river
is in a fairly satisfactory condition. Be
tween St Paul and st. Louis and from
there to New Orleans there are large and
well built craft, with comfortable state
rooms equipped with running water and
spring mattresses. Each steamer has a
long cabin extending from stem to stern,
where the tables are set for meals and
where the passengers dance in the evening.
There are piano and sundry easy chairs.
Ii costs about as much on the boat per day
as it does at a good lakeside hotel, so that
a passenger virtually has the pleasure of
/ travel for nothing The chief difference
/ between the life on a boat and that at
summer hotel is that instead of viewing
the same prospect day after day from a
piazza you have a view from the boat every
moment. The boat stops at every
town, so that the passenger may become
/ familiar with the urban as well as the coun-
try life of the valley.
The freight Of the river is always taken
10 and from the boat on the backs of negro
rousta5outs There has been no advance
in the manner Of handling it since the
steamboats, first plowed the river. As soon
| a. the boat nose touches the shore the
cangplank is lowered, and seemingly
I endless procession of negroes begins to move
| back and forth, carrying on board the bags
I Of -four, which, ON the northern portion of
the river, often makes the bulk Of the car
60. Flows, boxes, lumber and merchan
disc are the other products, River lives
are much the same everywhere The ear
goes. however, are varied. They all pre-
sen, picture Of 100 years age.
At Memphis. from the bluffs to the wa
ter e,lgc. Is an immense inclined plane of
granite paving stones In the center
about POO feet from the bluffs, runs a wide
rad the entire length Of the levee and dis
appears among the compress factories and
"a mills. whose great bulks and tall chin
news appear IN the distance Between
this mad and the bluffs the leyee Is nearly
/ level From here to the river Is steep
/ descent Above the road come and 60
continually swift stream Of cotton loads
aud empty drays and great piles Of small
carcoes TO aud from local Jobbing houses.
Below it there are, during busy hours, a
eonelolnerate mass Of draws, mules, cotton
bales. sacks Of cotton seed, darkies aud all
sorts Of freight. Beyond Is the long row
or steamers that line the shore, aud in the
background sweep the waters Of the Mis-
si~sippi
The center Of activity may be one
b,st. such as the Biz Sandy Of the Mem
phis aud Cincinnati line, just arrived,
bringing c,r..a of , 000 cotton bales that
have been picked up along the river mouth.
The huge pile If boxes and furniture aud
bags az cotton seed are bein. carried, one
piece 40 fimc, by long stream IF lazy
darkir, over the Gang plank into the bowels
of the biz boat. There some laborers, re
turning by way of the stage plank at the
prov. roll out before them the cotton bales
and 6le them in rows some distance up the
levee. Above the din of wheels rumbhng
over the ruugh pavement drivers shout Il
their stupid mules There are picturesque
oaths and snatches Of melody. Escaping
steam. shrill whistles, the creaking of load
ing and unloading freight and the below
ing of the overseers, who are, as a rule,
active darkies with monstrous lungs and an
inexhaustible supply of bis words, minSle
| in busy confusion.