The daily Gate City. [volume] (Keokuk, Iowa) 1855-1916, 1914-07-22
RIVER BOATS BOW
10 ORLEANS \
whistle. and Dipping Of Flags on
steamers Is Method Of Recoe-
mixing This Strange
Craft.
CARRIES BIG BANNER
sgeyIved Inland Navigation" Is Leg
end Which i Flaunted From
Big Steel
Barge.

The log Of the Bernhard barge
which is making its way, north to St.
Paul with q full load Of freight con-
tinues to be interesting. James e.
Edmonds. in the New Orleans Item
writes Of the trip in the following in
teresting manner:
On BOARD BARGE NO. So Bound
for St. Paul. s.via the ALI Water
Route" July Revived inland
navigation" is the legend painted in
six-foot letters on the sides of our awk-
ward looking barge. buffeting its three
and four miles an hour against the
Mississippis current northward to St..
paul with the first through cargo old
river men remember. .srt
Just above Natchez we passed the
United States snagboat McComb, hur-
rying southwark, great side wheels
thund ering at the muddy torrent.
black smoke pouring from her tower
Ing tunnels, the red flag Of the "engi-
neers' at her jackstafl, and the stars
and stripes at her stern. Fit and
trim she looked, spick and span, one
of the great feet Of government
steamers that look after the welfare
Of merchant fleet that exists chief
" in fond hopes.
Our little compressed air whistle
footed shrilly the signal for. star
board passage. and the "put-put'' of
our gas engines sounded ridiculously
inadequate and futile behind the solid
~ I,,v~ nhAv, an
piled high upon our bulwarked deck.
We came abreast, and on board the
McComb pilots, captains and crew
crowded curiously to the rail to watch
us. They read the legend. Some one
on the hurricane deck waved an or
der. The flag dipped in salute and
the mellow notes Of the tremendously
chorded steamboat whistle echoed
and re-echoed over shore and stream
In welcome and farewell.
Somehow the incident seemed
good omen Of happy voyage. even II
! It had started on JAly 10, with 10
aboard, and smashed mirror into
the bargain.
Frlende Drop on.
We have dropped our friends who
saw US OF. John NJ. BARNARD, Dom
ala X. Jeffris and his son, all left us
at Natchez, going home by motorbcat.
We slowed our engines for few mo.
ments off Watcher Under the HILL"
once the widest and the busiest spot
along the Mississippi. The same old
brick buildings along the river front,
where the steamboat men gathered
before the war; stin stand, weary
and tagged in painless dilapidation.
At the foot OF the rusty Elevator
railway once used to take steamboat
cargoes to the top of the bluff, the
Betsy Ann little stern-whceled
packet boat. nosed lonesomely at the
shore, nibbling at handful of freight
destined for scattered way landings
on the Louisiana shore.
When our well-wishers had depart
ed, We moved of "un6er full gas" in
the shadow of the bluffs. Away at
The top OF the hill we glimpsed the
railway station OF the Yazoo and Mis-
sissippi Valley railroad and sleeping
car standing on the siding awaiting
the night train. Here and there.
among the trees, came into view the
pillared front OF some old home.
looking out across the river.
Just above the city Is a sawmill,
said to be the oldest on the river,
operated under the same management
save for a few years during the war.
since 1929. 1t cut the lumber for near