Part 15 (1/2)

”Are you sure you understand the channel down the river?” asked Paul.

”Deed I do, sah, I knows mos' oh the cat-fish tween heah an' dere.”

”Consider yourself engaged, providing you can get the boat away from Gabriel.”

”Dats all right sah, lebe dat to me,” Mr. Brown answered. A liberal supply of hay for the comfort of the reporter was placed in the row boat.

As the hour approached for them to depart, the levee was thronged with darkies of all sizes and ages, who gazed in open mouthed astonishment, when they saw the dark form in rubber appear and step into the Mississippi. By a clever ruse Mr. Brown got charge of the boat and shoved her off, much to the discomfiture of Gabriel. He returned Gabriel's maledictions with bows and smiles. They shot rapidly away on the yellow flood and were soon far below Bayou Goula. As night came on, Paul requested Brown to light his lantern and get ahead. Brown lit the lantern, but insisted on keeping behind instead of taking the lead. To all Paul's remonstrances he would reply: ”Yo' doin' all right, Capen, jus' go right 'long, right 'long, sah.”

Paul soon discovered that the negro knew far less about the river than he knew himself and so he threatened that if Mr. Brown did not keep up, he would be tempted to dump him overboard, where he could renew his acquaintance with his old friends the cat fish.

All night they glided between the dark forests on either side of the river. Paul frequently amused himself by startling a camp of negro fishermen. They spear fish by the light of a fire they build close to the bank. All he had to do in order to break up a camp was to float down quietly until the glare of the fire played on him, then stand up in the water and utter a few howls to attract the darkey's attention.

One sight of so hideous a figure in the rubber dress was enough. Their fis.h.i.+ng was adjourned for that night.

About three in the morning, Paul found himself far ahead of the press boat and made the forest ring with the echo of his bugle to wake Mr.

Brown up. Two or three times he had to wait for the boat. At last he decided that there was no use in dallying or he would never get to New Orleans in twenty-four hours; so he shot ahead and let the boat take care of itself. Before daylight in the morning he heard the roar of a great creva.s.se that had been formed near Bonnet Carre. The river bank there had been washed away for about four or five hundred yards and a great volume of water was being swept into the forests and swamps below.

Without much difficulty he pa.s.sed this dangerous break and at daylight his bugle called the early risers in the village to the river bank. Here without leaving the water, he got a cup of hot coffee and while he was drinking it, those on the bank informed him that there was a white boat just coming around the bend in the distance, so he concluded to wait for it. Soon after, Mr. Brown, pulling lazily along, arrived. Paul rated him soundly for his tardiness. The reporter was sound asleep, doubled up in a pile of hay at the bottom of the boat. At five o'clock that evening, exactly twenty-four hours after they started, they tied up at the levee in New Orleans where they were received by about ten thousand people, who covered the levee and crowded the deck of the steamers.

While resting in New Orleans after his run, Paul was waited on by a party of gentlemen, who announced themselves as a committee appointed to call on him and see if they could induce him to give an exhibition in......, an interesting little town up the river.

”Have you got any water that can be enclosed?” Paul inquired.

They said they had a beautiful little lake right back of the town that could be properly fenced, so that no one could look on without paying.

They promised that Captain Boyton should have the entire receipts, and that they would make it a gala day providing he would come up, and a.s.sured him of the warmest kind of reception. ”We'll have music too,”

added one of the committee men.

Being so a.s.sured, Paul promised to be on hand. The committee started for home where they commenced to rouse the country. One morning Paul, accompanied by Mr. Brown stepped off a steamboat at .........., and was received by the committee who were waiting for him and who immediately escorted him to the hotel where he was cordially invited to ”limber up.”

After breakfast, the voyager was escorted to the lake and saw to his annoyance that there was no fence or enclosure around it. He remonstrated with the committee and said that they could never get a fence around it in time. The answer was, ”Never mind, Captain, never mind. We'll guarantee that no one stands around that lake without paying.”

All the morning crowds kept pouring into town. By noon, the main street was filled with wagons, ox-teams and mules with vehicles of every kind, shape and color, all carrying crowds of whites and negroes. Paul dined with the Mayor, at the hotel and after dinner commenced to dress in his suit. The Mayor informed him that there would be a parade to start from the hotel door and that he would be escorted to the lake by the guard and the band. When the hour arrived, Paul was led from the hotel by his honor and was mounted on a cart to which two white mules were hitched in tandem. The Mayor mounted with him. Behind this cart, drawn up in military array were fifty men armed with shot guns. In front of the cart rode the Grand Marshall of the occasion followed the band which consisted of a solitary hand-organ. Order for advance being given, the parade started for the lake. When they reached the water-side, Paul was requested to step into the little tent which had been erected for him and to be seated until the fence was made. The Grand Marshal then ordered all the people to fall back, while he stationed the guards with loaded shot guns at intervals around the entire lake. Then riding his horse wildly up to the crowd he informed them that ”this line of guards was the fence and thatany person coming within one hundred yards of the line would be shot.”

”This,” pointing to two of the committee men, who stood with shot guns near an old soap box in which a slit was cut to receive the money, ”is the entrance gate. n.i.g.g.e.rs twenty-five cents, whites fifty cents. Now get right in or get off this prairie.”

The whole exhibition was unexpectedly successful. There was not a dead- head around the lake. Paul took for his share two hundred and thirty dollars, beside spending one of the pleasantest days he remembers. This town is now a smart city and Paul withholds the name because the citizens may not relish this reminiscence.