The semi-weekly messenger. [volume] (Wilmington, N.C.) 1897-1908, 1905-05-16

light,
A tripping the Ti-Ra-Loo!
A tripping the Ti-Ra-Loo!"
The sale the other day of the steam
er City OF Fayetteville" for Sl1,.5D
costing $4,000 to build, exclusive OF
it's expensive wharfs, automatic freight
and passenger lifts, and bonded for
$125, 00O-set me to thinking of CID
flush times on the Cape Fear river,
when the steamers piled the waters,
loaded with goods to the gunwale, and
the saloons and stateroOmS were full
of passengers. There was nothing of
any exciting interest about the jour
ney between Wilmington and Fayette-
vile, but the trip was always pleas
ant. The captain walked his quarter
deck monarch of all he surveyed,
but he was a kindly autocrat, and his
passengers we're his we'll cared for
family.
Captain S. W. Skinner, now a citi-
zen of Wilmington, was for many years
a steamboat captain on the Cape Fear,
and no man was more cordially liked
and more highly esteemed than he
throughout Fayetteville and from une
end of the river to the other.
One night, many years ago, when
Captain Skinner was commanding the
steamer Hurt or Governor Worth, be
was on n of his up trips from Will
mington to Fayetteville. 1t was cold,
sleety weather, and the mate, wrapped
UP to his ears, slipped and Sided en-
the decks as he made his rounds. The
sparks rushed out from smoke stack
in angry battle array against the deep
ening gloom, and the laboring craft
churned the black, cold waters in i'm
patience Of her dreary task. The inte-
rior Of the saloon was cosy and COM
Portable with a good fire in the great
box stove, but it was almost deserted,
for the passengers going all the way
through, after the evening spent in
talk and cards, mad retired to their
berthS.
A long awkward looking, typical
backwoodsman, in a saffron jeans suit
and sandy chin whiskers, was alone
awake and restless-sitting on a rock
ing chair near the stove, splitting o
bacco juice now into the spittoon On
the left and then on the right, and
peering a~nxiously through the caoin
windows. Finally a pine torch was
seen waving on the river bank a few
hundred yards ahead, the whistle
blew frantically the deck hands were
heard stamping about, and the pas
senger rose to his six lank feet of stat
ure, and gathered up his bundles.
The boat rounded to, the captain
gave his quick, sharp commands, the
engine pulled and groaned in disco-d-
ant protests at being stopped in such
weather, then egrO rOustabontS jump
ed out on the bank, and carried a rope
around a big jumper tree, the gang
plank was put Out-and then there
was a pause. Where in thunder is
the passenger to get off here?" de-
manded Captain Skinner. Hasn't
come down from the upper deck, sir"
Go after him, and bring him down;
we can't stop here all night" The
mate found the dilatory passenger
marching deliberately up and down the
saloon, turning owe chairs, ransack-
ing cushions looking behind doors,
ETC."
Come, get out of here man; you are
keeping the boat waiting" Well,
mister, l carried down four pounds OF
lard to sell in Wilmington, and I caat
find the empty tin bucket, high ner
low!" There was no further party. The
mate marched him out of the cabin by
the shoulders, and he and the captain
had him over the gang-plank in a 1i1y.
The passenger stood on the bank
in the glare Of the pine torch in the
hands of his son, who had come down
to wait for him. He watched the rope
and the plank pulled aboard, the DOW
of the steamer swing out to the mid
die of the stream, and the sheet OF
sparks lengthen out to a broad spark
ling ribbon on the curtain of the night,
as the boat passed on its way. He was
silent, but he was thinking about
something-and what he was thinking
about will develop presently.