The Owosso times. (Owosso, Mich.) 1897-1926, 1914-10-23
81, the SiwaSh,
In a Wreck OF Puget
Sound
BY JOHN II. WALSH
Copyright by Frank A. Munsey Co.

amt 81: it's Tom. But ] call him 81.
which Is short for Slwash-a Siwash
being a Puget sound Indian.
81 is a Siwash all right, and, though
he's only four years old and he's half
breed. he looks like old Chief Seattle.
And he treats me as an equal-and he
gets away with it. too-though I'm
sixty-nine. That shows character.
And Sis had experience!
Take just this collision experience
That won't come to anybody else for
ten thousand years, and here 81 has
had it before he's four.
Why. l have had enough adventures
myself, for I've been ship keeper on
the U. S. S. Stalwart here at the Sierra
years. But 81 has me sewed up for
plenty on adventure. though I could
tell yarns Of my own.
But first I'm setting 1t down about
81. his ma and the collision of the
Humahuma and the Stalwart. III tell
about myself when I've got leisure.
However, l do want to say in pass
ing. while | think of it. that ship
keeping is the most exacting work
there is. You have to know the name
of your ship. and to remember what
day is pay day. and when to come off
watch. and when TO go on, and | tell
you it takes brains to keep all those
things strsght in your mind.
Then once in a year they complicate
things by putting your ship in dry
dock or by changing her anchorage Il
little and you have to change your
habits, which is hard. And it's be-
cause 1t is such eXacting work as I've
described that they always keep re-
sponsible men like us old soldiers on
such jobs.
OF course it's strain. and suppose
| could not have held the job so long
if | didn't have iron nerves.
You see, | know myself that / have
iron nerves, because General Thomas
bareback i'm a trench during the Chick
amauga skirmish. And I've needed
my iron nerves in ship keeping, but n
lot of people don't understand why.
For example. there is a gentleman
in Sheraton who digs CLAIMS with a
shovel and peddles them with wheel.
barrow, and he said once he thought
he'd try ship keeping for rest.
/ laughed at him, and then | warned
him he couldn't stand it, which was
true too However. I'm writing about
81, and I'll write about digging CLAIMS
when / have time for it. for I'm as
good a clam digger as there is on
Puget sound. which is saying lot,
for all the smartest men out here were
digging CLAIMS twenty years ago.
Sis ma used to have an awfully hard
time making living. and from time to
time I've helped her a little at it. for
I've had 1920 per day right along, and
I'm bachelor and don't need all that
money for myself.
So yesterday, which was pay day,
gave her So. and l said. Take 81 to
Seattle and see the sights" And she
did It.
At least she put on her pink waist
and her green shawl. and she hauled 81
down to the boat by one arm, his feet
dragging all the way.
After that loafed around until even.
ing. when | went to the Stalwart and
old man Keller.
After he'd left the ship walked
around and inspected things. as l al
ways do. and decided. as I've decided
every day for ten years, that the Stall
wart is still mighty fine ship.
Pretty soon l moved around little,
and when | got aft, and was looking
over the rail under the stern light
could see young smelts in the still, oily
water, and they looked like shreds cut
out with u knife from silver bar
And. oh. how solemn and still it was!
You could hear a gasoline boat two
miles away humping. missing strokes,
stopping and then humping again. and
you could hear oarlocks squeaking
their course across the bay.
At first 1t was clear overhead. and
could see the stars and the lights at
the navy yard. and | could hear the
sentries hail people in loud. important
voices. And then the lights faded and
blinked out. one by one. and | knew
fog was shutting in on us. And the
sounds seemed sort Of muffied by the
fog.
I went forward then to the ships
bell under the bridge. and once min
ute by watch I'd ring rapidly. and
Bill Paterson on the Boston
would ring. and afterward we'd hear
Bixby on the Concord.
Well. kept on ringing the bell. AT
first there weren't any steamer whis.
ties sounding. hut after time I com
menced to hear n dull. thrilling ooo-h.
ooh. from far away down the Mar
rows
| knew at once that this was the late
boat from the city. the Humahuma.
md that she was navigating by
as they always do in fogs OF
this sound.
And then | got a feeling that 81 and
hts ma would be on the boat, so
rang the bell. faster and faster. for !
didn't want the Humahuma to go col
iding With the Stalwart and smashing
81 and mo I'M