Evening star., 1912-10-06


canal. That's how they get into the work.
few of them go to school in the Win
ter when the canal is closed, but most
of them just stay about the house till
cold weather is over.
Il eat at the captains table and get the
same fare the captain and his family
eat 1t. is not fancy food, but good ana
plenty Some captains wives cook bet
ter than others. and there is never any
trouble about getting hands on their
boats. .
This boat begins moving at o'clock IN
the morning and ties up at y O CLOCK at
night l attend to the stock ana Walk
about fifteen miles a day on the down
trip. The captain walks about the same
distance a day coming down. Our teams
pull this boat loaded, about thirty miles d
day. Going up stream light walk TWEEN
ty miles or more day. The boat makes
forty miles or better. The number OF
miles we 60 in day depends good zeal
on the weather, but we never Tie up on
account of storms. No matter how hot II
is or how hard it rains or how muddy
the towpath gets. We keep going. Some
times the walking Is pretty heavy Inc
hours in this kind of work are long. The
mules pull the boat six hours at a stretch,
and in that time the only stops they are
expect to follow the canal all my life. L
want to strike out and find something
with better pay and shorter hours.
A young woman was sitting in willow
chair under the awning OF boat that
had been freshly painted and that had
touches of red and green on those pro-
jectfng bands or ribs that run lengthWise
from bow to stern. There was an air OF
comfort and tidiness in the cabin. The
hunks. partitioned off with due regard to
propriety, folded up after the fashion OF
those in a sleeping car. The breakfast,
dinner and supper table was hinged to the
port side of the cabin and was furnished
with legs that folded under when the ta-
BILE was not in use. The young woman
was pretty. She had well kept hair
bound with a bright ribbon. She wore a
freshly laundered shirt waist of filmy
white fabric, a neatly made skirt of dark
blue cloth. trim fitting low black shoes
and black Isle hose.
Life on the canal? Oh! When I came
from boarding school after commence
ment last spring I thought the novelty
great: after few trips it got monoto-
nous: then the monotony wore off and
settled down to the routine of helping
mother get the meals, clean up the dishes
and look after the children. We've got
the thing systematized so that housekeep-
ing goes along smoothly. We know all
the folks along the canal and on it-all
the boat people and their families. the
lock keepers and their families and the
prominent people in the villages along the
way 1t is not lonesome. There is plenty
of company and plenty of chatting. Some
girls on the canal play the mandolin and
the guitar and some have good voices.
and some of the boatmen play the violin.
If there was room on board I'd have
brought my piano with me. One gets SO
out of practice, being without 1t all sum-
mer.
Sometimes I go to a party or dance
when we tie up at night. When We get
to Washington pa and ma and I go to Il
theater If there is anything very good
In town, or to the moving pictures.
like to go down in the afternoon and
look around the big stores. They have
so many beautiful and interesting
things It's hard not to be able to buy
everything you think you want. but it s
good for the character to have to deny
yourself.
''Oh yes, we read the newspapers and
talk about bargains and actresses. the
Goulds and the Astors and scandals in
rich families just as women do who do
not spend their summers boating up
and down the canal. At the Cumberland
end of the run l visit friends and go to
the theater when there is anything worth