Chapter I: Front Matter

“The rescue occupied considerable time and work.” (See page 283.)]

The Last of the Flatboats

_A Story of the Mississippi and its
interesting family of rivers_

By

GEORGE CARY EGGLESTON

Author of “The Big Brother,” “Captain Sam,”
“The Signal Boys,” “The Wreck of
the Red Bird,” etc., etc.

BOSTON
LOTHROP PUBLISHING COMPANY

COPYRIGHT, 1900,
BY LOTHROP
PUBLISHING
COMPANY.

Norwood Press
J. S. Cushing & Co.--Berwick & Smith
Norwood Mass. U.S.A.

_TO MY LAST-BORN BOY_

CARY EGGLESTON

_A brave, manly fellow
Who knows how to swim
How to catch fish
How to handle his boat
How to shoot straight with a rifle
And how to tell the truth every time_

I Dedicate

_This Story about some other Boys of his kind_

GEORGE CARY EGGLESTON

_Culross-on-Lake-George_

Preface

Vevay, from which “The Last of the Flatboats” starts on its voyage down the Mississippi, is a beautiful little Indiana town on the Ohio River, about midway between Cincinnati and Louisville. The town and Switzerland County, of which it is the capital, were settled by a company of energetic and thrifty Swiss immigrants, about the year 1805. Their family names are still dominant in the town. I recall the following as familiar to me there in my boyhood: Grisard, Thiebaud, Le Clerc, Moreraud, Detraz, Tardy, Malin, Golay, Courvoisseur, Danglade, Bettens, Minnit, Violet, Dufour, Dumont, Duprez, Medary, Schenck, and others of Swiss origin.

The name Thiebaud, used in this story, was always pronounced “Kaybo” in Vevay. The name Moreraud was called “Murrow.”

The map which accompanies this volume was specially prepared for it by Lieut.-Col. Alexander McKenzie of the Corps of Engineers of the United States Army. To his skill, learning, and courtesy I and my readers are indebted for the careful marking of the practically navigable parts of the great river system, and for the calculation of mileage in every case.

G. C. E.

Contents

Chapter Page

I. The Rescue of the Pigs 9

II. How it All Began 17

III. Captain Phil 27

IV. A Hurry Call 33

V. On the Banks of the Wonderful River 40

VI. The Pilot 47

VII. Talking 56

VIII. The Right to the River 62

IX. What happened at Louisville 71

X. Jim 77

XI. The Wonderful River 86

XII. The Wonderful River’s Work 95

XIII. The Terror of the River 105

XIV. In the Home of the Earthquakes 118

XV. In the Chute 131

XVI. “Talking Business” 147

XVII. At Anchor 161

XVIII. At Breakfast 170

XIX. Scuttle Chatter 179

XX. At Memphis 190

XXI. A Wrestle with the River 198

XXII. In the Fog 209

XXIII. Through the Crevasse 219

XXIV. A Little Amateur Surgery 228

XXV. A Voyage in the Woods 236

XXVI. The Crew and their Captain 245

XXVII. A Struggle in the Dark 251

XXVIII. A Hard-won Victory 261

XXIX. Rescue 278

XXX. A Yazoo Afternoon 291

XXXI. An Offer of Help 304

XXXII. Publicity 312

XXXIII. Down “The Coast” 324

XXXIV. A Talk on Deck 336

XXXV. Looking Forward 348

XXXVI. The Last Landing 361

XXXVII. Red-Letter Days in New Orleans 370

XXXVIII. “It” 379

The Last of the Flatboats