The Birmingham age-herald., 1906-08-11
INDEPENDENCE ON A BOAT.
Story of How to Live on 25 Cents for
 Two Weeks.

From the New York Sun.
 '1f you'll sit there on the top of the
 cabin a minute while I wash off the deck, ''
 said the man who lives in a boat through
 the summer, "1'n show you my little
 home.
 As he dipped the mop into the water
 again and again and mopped the deck
 clean he explained why
 1 "1f l don't do this about four dozen
 times a day." he said, "the boards page
 wide open and let the waves in. It's q
 lot of trouble, a boat, but"-here he looked
 from the mop with a sunburned smile | ''its about the greatest pleasure in the
 world. 1t seems to me. Now, if you'll get
 down carefully-don't fall, give me your | hand-Fll show you through my little | home"
 | Inside there were two rows of leather | couches a table in between with the l leaves let down. some portholes and two
 large white stone jugs.
 Jugs of water" the man hastily ex- plained water is very necessary some
 times on a boat for coffee and tea. See | this place for my clothes" unlocking q 1 little press at the side, and this press on
 the other side for my kitchen utensils.
 Could anything be cosler?
 And here is the little kerosene stove | l cook my breakfast on All you need for
 breakfast Is some fish and a bite of bread
 When we go outside again I'll tell yon
 how I lived on % ccnts for two weeks ! on a boat.
 Not this boat. The first one eyer
 owned I hated to give that boat up,
 tell you It taught me independence and
 the joy of the sea When you lift the
 leaves of this table you can seat eight
 people
 ~rheres no place like a boat for econo- mixing room and being comfortable too. Come sit on the cabin again and let me tell you how started out in life on llt- | file boat. the boat that taught me inde- pendence. I will bring some pilloks. Now we own the earth and the sea and tho | sky They are ours
 | aYou see. since | was a boy my folks | ouarrelled with me about loving the sea and boat. They thought 1t was foolish ness Sometimes 1t seems to me that the | things you love best are always the things
 that your people think are foolisnness' well. the very first money got or my own bought me that boat. It was Jnst ohout large enough for two or three, Dh'
 if was a nice boat. Plenty large enough for me by myself, and that was how went in 1t. Ii. You can count pretty well on a boat 1T
 vou get to know it. but you can't always | count on the tide. One Sunday went out | in my little boat anu .sth9'u w li's' | I onqht to have got back in time Tor my
 work on Monday morning; would have, 1T | If hadn't been for the tide that took I | o,t and out and out 80 far that didn 1 get hack again for a day and half By | that time Monday was over with and II | ,,,as well into Tuesday by the way they | counted time there at home on the land | nNTy folks were furious They swore at l inc boat. my father did, and called II Inc hane of my life. I'd never be any good | in the world, he said so long as iet
 inc love of boat carry me away "i.u | if A boat was all right for few hours | Inf nastime but to stay out two nays and two nights and lose my Job Tor that l was what the tide and the boat nad | done for me lost me my Jop ''You know. l couldn't help ioVlng lhal little boat. in spite of the harm 1T had done me. 1 couldn't bear to hear It abused | co when my father got more and more | f,,r,ous and told me to gold hate to | talI vou where he told me to go to with my boat. said, All right, iH,go' anu | with that | got in my boat, hoisted the | sails and went.
 | ..I had just exactly quarter III my | nocket. That was all. but 1t was enough. ynu know. all you've got to have to get l along in a boat is plenty Of lard, some thing 10 cook the fish in-there are all | ways plenty of fish in the sea-a httle l stove and some bread. l had these ana l the quarter.
 | sT lived week on the boat oll that louarter Then l had to spend it for more