Five Mile Beach weekly journal., 1918-02-01
A
Renaissance
BY EDWARD T. STEWART


OF u MISSISSIPPI Sled1uDOdt Wnen the
big stream was the only route between
northwestern and southwestern cities.
], an octogenarian, made a trip from
Memphis to New Orleans when I was
ten years old. / can see far back in
the past the steamer like a gigantic
swan coming down on the bosom of
the stream. float rapidly past the
wharfboat on which passengers intend
Ing to go South on her were gathered,
make a graceful turn, and with steam
shut off slowly approach against the
current, while cables were thrown
from her. with which to make her fast.
A number of years after this trip,
when the railroad was built along Mis-
sissippi's eastern bank and most of
the mammoth boats had given place
to the railway train, | made another
trip, this time from Baton Rouge On
one Of these steamers that was still
running. We stopped at a landing
which had been used by a huge plan
tation but now served principally a
small town. A middle-aged man in
typical Southern dress came aboard.
As he was mounting the staircase
leading up to the cabins a colored
porter took his hand baggage from
him.
"Howdy, Marse Morgan" said the
darkey grinning from a to ear
The gentleman looked at him, sur
prised that he should be called by
mama for ba didn't ranonhor auar
having seen the negro before.
"Yo' don't remember me, do yo',
Marse Morgan? But l reckon yo' re-
member this boat. | TUX yo' hand bag
gage de day yo' come aboard when we
lef' dis very wharf ON de down trip
mon ten years ago; de time yo' run
away with Colonel Jeffries' daugh-
ter"
why Sam. yo' black rascal! Yo'
don't mean to say you've stuck to this
boat ever SINGER
II lef' her durin' the war. Couldn't
run in dem days; too much tighten.
When dat was over and she started
up again l come back to her,"
"Well, well. So this is the same
boat I made my wedding trip on. I
would never have known her. She
was a beauty in those days; not the
rusty old tub she is now"
The darkey carried the gentleman's
baggage to the cabin where the
dialogue was renewed.
"Sam, you rascal, I'm mighty glad
to see you again. said Morgan. "That
was a sharp fight | had for my wife.
The colonel came near plugging me.
Poor man, a Yankee bullet got him
during the war. But we made up all
right on the boat and he gave us his
blessing, dear old chap. l always re-
GREETED taking off his left ear; but it
couldn't be helped"
BY this time several persons had
gathered round and one of them asked
for an explanation of what the two
were talking about. Whereupon Nor
gan gave the story.
ut was this way" he said. II was
a frequent visitor at the plantation of
Colonel Jeffries, whose daughter Isa-
bel was sixteen years old, l being
twenty. The colonel said to me n
day: Tommy, I'm quite fond of you,
but 1t doesn't suit me to consider yo'
for a son-in-law. Sheer off from Isa-
BEL
81 hadn't thought of asking for the
young lady's hand for l knew l wasn't
worthy of her, but when the colonel
said l couldn't have her it made me
mad. The colonel had told her that
she mustn't make a match with me
and this stirred in her the perversity
heads together and resolved to take
our departure on the first boat head
Ing downstream for New Orleans.
"aThis boat was the first and I was
watching for it. The minute I saw
her ten miles up stream I notified
Isabel. She secretly prepared for the
bridal excursion and when the boat had
taken on a hundred bales of cotton
she and l fitted down to the wharf
boat like a pair of swallows. Some
contemplate person saw Isabel leave
the house and ran off to warn her IA
ther."
81 saw yo' comin'," interrupted Sam,
''and the colonel comm too. He had
his gun in his hand ready"
81 saw him." continued the mar
rator. "We had got up the stairs to
the cabin and had gone out on the
guard. The colonel saw us and befo!
[ could get my gun from my pocket he
let drive at me from the wharfboat.
I'll bet / can find the bullet hole out
there now. AS soon as he had fired
Isabel and 1 stepped inside, the
colonel boarded the boat and came up
stairs to the cabin. l was silly enough
to shoot at him and cut off his ear
"By this time the captain Of the
boat who heard the firing came up
and stepped between the colonel and
me. Isabel. chung to me and told her
father 1t was useless to try to separ-