the paths of inland commerce-第27章

按键盘上方向键 ← 或 → 可快速上下翻页，按键盘上的 Enter 键可回到本书目录页，按键盘上方向键 ↑ 可回到本页顶部！
————未阅读完？加入书签已便下次继续阅读！


er；　biding　its　time　when　opposed　by　the　brave　but　crushing　the　fearful　on　sight。　In　one　respect　alone　could　it　be　depended　uponit　was　never　the　same。　It　is　said　to　bring　down　annually　four　hundred　million　tons　of　mud；　but　its　eccentricity　in　deciding　where　to　wash　away　and　where　to　deposit　its　load　is　still　the　despair　of　river　pilots。　The　great　river　could　destroy　islands　and　build　new　ones　overnight　with　the　nonchalance　of　a　child　playing　with　clay。　It　could　shorten　itself　thirty　miles　at　a　single　lunge。　It　could　move　inland　towns　to　its　banks　and　leave　river　towns　far　inland。　It　transferred　the　town　of　Delta；　for　instance；　from　three　miles　below　Vicksburg　to　two　miles　above　it。　Men　have　gone　to　sleep　in　one　State　and　have　wakened　unharmed　in　another；　because　the　river　decided　in　the　night　to　alter　the　boundary　line。　In　this　way　the　village　of　Hard　Times；　the　original　site　of　which　was　in　Louisiana；　found　itself　eventually　in　Mississippi。　Were　La　Salle　to　descend　the　river　today　by　the　route　he　traversed　two　and　a　half　centuries　ago；　he　would　follow　dry　ground　most　of　the　way；　for　the　river　now　lies　practically　everywhere　either　to　the　right　or　left　of　its　old　course。

If　the　Mississippi　could　perform　such　miracles　upon　its　whole　course　without　a　show　of　effort；　what　could　it　not　do　with　the　little　winding　canal　through　its　center　called　by　pilots　the　〃channel〃？　The　flatboatmen　had　laboriously　acquired　the　art　of　piloting　the　commerce　of　the　West　through　this　mazy；　shifting　channel；　but　as　steamboats　developed　in　size　and　power　the　man　at　the　wheel　had　to　become　almost　a　superman。　He　needed　to　be。　He　must　know　the　stage　of　water　anywhere　by　a　glance　at　the　river　banks。　He　must　guess　correctly　the　amount　of　〃fill〃　at　the　head　of　dangerous　chutes；　detect　bars　〃working　down；〃　distinguish　between　bars　and　〃sand　reefs〃　or　〃wind　reefs〃　or　〃bluff　reefs〃　by　night　as　well　as　by　day；　avoid　the〃　breaks〃　in　the　〃graveyard〃　behind　Goose　Island；　navigate　the　Hat　Island　chutes；　or　find　the　〃middle　crossing〃　at　Hole…in…the…Wall。　He　must　navigate　his　craft　in　fogs；　in　storms；　in　the　face　of　treacherous　winds；　on　black　nights；　with　thousands　of　dollars'　worth　of　cargo　and　hundreds　of　lives　at　stake。

As　the　golfer　knows　each　knoll　and　tuft　of　grass　on　his　home　links；　so　the　pilot　learned　his　river　by　heart。　Said　one　of　these　pilots　to　an　apprentice：

〃You　see　this　has　got　to　be　learned　。。。。　A　clear　starlight　night　throws　such　heavy　shadows　that　if　you　didn't　know　the　shape　of　a　shore　perfectly　you　would　claw　away　from　every　bunch　of　timber　because　you　would　take　the　black　shadow　of　it　for　a　solid　cape；　and　you　see　you　would　be　getting　scared　to　death　every　fifteen　minutes　by　the　watch。　You　would　be　fifty　yards　from　shore　all　the　time　when　you　ought　to　be　within　fifty　feet　of　it。　You　can't　see　a　snag　in　one　of　those　shadows；　but　you　know　exactly　where　it　is；　and　the　shape　of　the　river　tells　you　when　you　are　coming　to　it。　Then　there's　your　pitch…dark　night；　the　river　is　a　very　different　shape　on　a　pitch…dark　night　from　what　it　is　on　a　starlight　night。　All　shores　seem　to　be　straight　lines；　then；　and　mighty　dim　ones；　too；　and　you'd　run　them　for　straight　lines　only　you　know　better。　You　boldly　drive　your　boat　right　into　what　seems　to　be　a　solid；　straight　wall　（you　knowing　very　well　that　in　reality　there　is　a　curve　there）　and　that　wall　falls　back　and　makes　way　for　you。　Then　there's　your　gray　mist。　You　take　a　night　when　there's　one　of　these　grisly；　drizzly；　gray　mists；　and　then　there　isn't　any　particular　shape　to　a　shore。　A　gray　mist　would　tangle　the　head　of　the　oldest　man　that　ever　lived。　Well；　then；　different　kinds　of　MOONLIGHT　change　the　shape　of　the　river　in　different　ways。。。。　You　only　learn　the　shape　of　the　river；　and　you　learn　it　with　such　absolute　certainty　that　you　can　always　steer　by　the　shape　that's　IN　YOUR　HEAD　and　never　mind　the　one　that's　before　your　eyes。〃*

*　Mark　Twain；　〃Life　on　the　Mississippi；〃　pp。　103…04。


No　wonder　that　the　two　hundred　miles　of　the　Mississippi　from　the　mouth　of　the　Ohio　to　St。　Louis　in　time　contained　the　wrecks　of　two　hundred　steamboats。

The　river　trade　reached　its　zenith　between　1840　and　1860；　in　the　two　decades　previous　to　the　Civil　War；　that　period　before　the　railroads　began　to　parallel　the　great　rivers。　It　was　a　time　which　saw　the　rise　of　Ohio；　Indiana；　Illinois；　Missouri；　Iowa；　and　Arkansas；　and　which　witnessed　the　spread　of　the　cotton　kingdom　into　the　Southwest。　The　story　of　King　Cotton's　conquest　of　the　Mississippi　South　is　best　told　in　statistics。　In　1811；　the　year　of　the　first　voyage　which　the　New　Orleans　made　down　the　Ohio　River；　Tennessee；　Louisiana；　and　Mississippi　exported　five　million　pounds　of　cotton。　In　1834　these　same　States　exported　almost　two　hundred　million　pounds　of　cotton。　To　take　care　of　this　crop　and　to　supply　the　cotton　country；　which　was　becoming　wealthy；　with　the　necessaries　and　luxuries　of　life；　more　and　more　steamboats　were　needed。　The　great　shipyards　situated；　because　of　the　proximity　of　suitable　timber；　at　St。　Louis；　Cincinnati；　and　Louisville　became　busy　hives；　not　since　paralleled　except　by　such　centers　of　shipbuilding　as　Hog　Island　in　1917…18；　during　the　time　of　the　Great　War。　The　steamboat　tonnage　of　the　Mississippi　Valley　（exclusive　of　New　Orleans）　in　the　hustling　forties　exceeded　that　of　the　Atlantic　ports　（exclusive　of　New　York　City）　by　15；000　tons。　The　steamboat　tonnage　of　New　Orleans　alone　in　1843　was　more　than　double　that　of　New　York　City。

Those　who；　if　the　old　story　is　true；　ran　in　fear　to　the　hills　when　the　little　New　Orleans　went　puffing　down　the　Ohio；　in　1811；　would　have　been　doubly　amazed　at　the　splendid　development　in　the　art　of　boat　building；　could　they　have　seen　the　stately　Sultana　or　Southern　Belle　of　the　fifties　sweep　swiftly　by。　After　a　period　of　gaudy　ornamentation　（1830…40）　steamboat　architecture　settled　down；　as　has　that　of　Pullman　cars　today；　to　sane　and　practical　lines；　and　the　boats　gained　in　length　and　strength；　though　they　contained　less　weight　of　timber。　The　value　of　one　of　the　greater　boats　of　this　era　would　be　about　fifty　thousand　dollars。　When　Captain　Bixby　made　his　celebrated　night　crossing　at　Hat　Island　a　quarter　of　a　million　dollars　in　ship　and　cargo　would　have　been　the　price　of　an　error　in　judgment；　according　to　Mark　Twain；*　a　good　authority。

*Op。　cit。；　p。　101


The　Yorktown；　built　in　1844　for　the　Ohio…Mississippi　trade；　was　typical　of　that　epoch　of　inland　commerce。　Her　length　was　182　feet；　breadth　of　beam　31　feet；　and　the　diameter　of　wheels　28　feet。　Though　her　hold　was　8　feet　in　depth；　yet　she　drew　but　4　feet　of　water　light　and　barely　over　8　feet　when　loaded　with　500　tons　of　freight。　She　had　4　boilers；　30　feet　long　and　42　inches　in　diameter；　double　engines；　and　two　24…inch　cylinders。　The　stateroom　cabin　had　come　in　with　Captain　Isaiah　Sellers's　Prairie　in　1836；　the　first　boat　with　such　luxuries　ever　seen　in　St。　Louis；　according　to　Sellers。　The　Yorktown　had　40　private　cabins。　It　is　interesting　to　compare　the　Yorktown　with　The　Queen　of　the　West；　the　giant　British　steamer　built　for　the　Falmouth…Calcutta　trade　in　1839。　The　Queen　of　the　West　had　a　length　of　310　feet；　a　beam　of　31　feet；　a　draft　of　15　feet；　and　16　private　cabins。　The　building　of　this　great　vessel　led　a　writer　in　the　New　York　American　to　say：　〃It　would　really　seem　that　we　as　a　nation　had　no　interest　in　this　new　application　of　steam　power；　or　no　energy　to　appropriate　it　to　our　own　use。〃　The　statementwritten　in　a　day　when　the　Mississippi　steamboat　tonnage　exceeded　that　of　the　entire　British　Empireis　one　of　the　best　examples　of　provincial　ignorance　concerning　the　West。

On　these　steamboats　there　was　a　multiplicity　of　arrangements　and　equipments　for　preventing　and　for　fighting　fire。　One　of　the　innovations　on　the　new　boats　in　this　particular　was　the　substitution　of　wire　for　the　combustible　rope　formerly　used　to　control　the　tiller；　so　that　even　in　time　of　fire　the　pilot　could　〃hold　her　nozzle　agin'　the　bank。〃　Much　of　the　great　loss　of　life　in　steamboat　fires　had　been　due　to　the　tiller…ropes　being　burned　and　the　boats　becoming　unmanageable。

The　arrival　of　the　railroad　at　the　head　of　the　Ohio　River　in　the　early　fifties　brought　the　East　into　an　immediate　touch　with　the　Missis