Iowa County democrat. [volume] (Mineral Point, Wis.) 1877-1938, 1902-04-10

the events of those days Only the |
survivors of trip after trip on the
treacherOus river recollect the many
formed a part of the daily routine
One of these men is Col Hunter Ben
Jenkins of ST. Louis-Call me colonel
not captain" he pleads. for captain
is so cOmmon''-who was in Kansas
City few days ago. The colonel will
be 67 years old on the day when
George Washington would have been
excellent health TO February % for
he does not appear older than So.
Short. stocky, he has that air of stahit-
ity which created confidence in the
passengers under his care. Not a bald
spot on his head. A short. thick
growth of iron gray hair appears when
he lays aside the almost everpreSent
cap. Rugged and weather beaten
features speak of a life out of doors
Thinking of the old days of the river,
its possibilities in the future, he tells
his story in the quaint terms of the
steamer man to whom a boat has be-
come a necessity in life. If he must
die some time he wants the end to
come in the sight of the river. With a
craft plying to and fro, the huge
walking beams silhoueting their regu-
| lar motion against the sky. bells ring
! ing and whistles blowing. Such after
all, is the only way for an old steam
| boat man to leave port for the last
! time
have been engaged in the steam
| boat business either on the river or
ashore for AZ years next June" said
| the colonel the other day. My expert
Cnce began on the steamer G0Ssamer
! plying between st. Louis and Illinois
| river points. That was in 1855. I'm
on shore most of the time now, but
! | still enjoy getting on a boat occasion
ally that will go 30 miles an hour
downstream and % upstream | don't
| suppose that interests you as much as
| my recOlleCtiOns of the old days be
fore the railroads cut the steamboat
| traffic to pieces. In those days
| back in the SOS, | mean-thcrc were
from IA to 16 boats leaving st. Louis
| in the Missouri river trade The
railroads were not running farther
west then and we had no competition
The boats would leave st. Louis full OF
passengers. immigrants and freight
! Cattle were carried, too, at high rates
and the industry was very lucrative
To cite one instance, the steamer N
] @ i..I,
to st. Joseph. cleared on one triE
| $4,000. The NJ J. Lewis, built in later
years, on a trip from st. Louis tC
Fort Benton cleared $4,000 in 90 days
from port to port. Other similar
cases might be mentioned
"The steamboats, of the sos were
most elegantly equipped, ably manned
and were perfect floating palaces. II
those days freights upstream from st
Louis to st. Joseph were IS cents pei
100. To Jarbee Landing. or Kansas
City, 20 cents, to intermediate points
20 cents. The boats were always
! crowded The service and menu was
the finest to be had. AS the rivalry
| between the lines of steamers was
great, each boat tried to Guido the
other Those very we'll known. sucl
as the Morning Star, Polar Star b
n. Lewis, Lucas and Aubrey, all haC
their friends and partisans to chez
for them. On the downstream tril
they would get from 81 to $3.50 TO
hemp and rope and other staples
Most of this was shipped from Park
vile. Liberty and Lexington. Plat,
and Lafayette counties were almOS
entirely given over to the raising o
hemp. then widely used for banding
cotton. Since the Introduction of stee
this industry has almost died out.
CAS- a usual thing the boats would
run only in the day time, tying up a
night at such towns as Lexington
Weston or LeayenwOrth. The boats
would be Overhauled very thoroughly
and at night a ball and a big suppe
would be given. Every one was in
Vited, and the steamer paid the bills
Often 20 negroes were carried in thu
cabin. Their costume was Tuxedo
Jacket. white apron and white lislt
gloves. On the table there were al
ways from six to nine courses 0
meats and vegetables, with the same
number of desserts. Pyramids o
cakes stood four feet high along thu
tables. When boats went into st
| Louis and it was seen that they wOulC
reach the city before dinner, the,
would land at Brick House bend. ant
take on 80 or 90 cords of wood to xii
time. so as to give the passengers
big dinner before their arrival II
later years." and here the colonel!
voice dropped to a whisper. "they
hung the cOOk-hOuse key on the st
| Charles bridge and the passengers
never heard a dish rattle
What was probably the IOnges
trip on record was made by the Bel
Johnson. She left st. Louis in No
vember, 1865, loaded for Omaha. Oh
the upstream way she picked up 1906
boxes of apples and 500 barrels OF
other goods. Upon her arrival at st
Joseph the river turned cold and ice
began running. Max Choteau. an ole
| Kansas cityan, was in command. See
| ing that the ice was making heavy
! above st. Joseph, be concluded 10 find
2 harbor. He got as far as HolmC&
Landing-abOve Arado. Neb. where
he found the river gOrged with ice
Realizing that the boat could not get
| through until the gorge went out, he
| went to bank and paid off his crew
| sending them by coach to points on