The Saint Paul globe., December 28, 1902, Page 20, Image 20

About The Saint Paul globe. (St. Paul, Minn.) 1896-1905

Image provided by: Minnesota Historical Society; Saint Paul, MN

                
20
s^Tromi the Canoe to tim Modern Palm Steamer—lo2
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WATERWAYS THAT
LED TO GREAT WEALTH
The Remarkable St»ory of the Development of Water Com
merce in an Inland Empire—Father Hennepin's Coming—
The Dawn of Civilization Heralded By a Priest Explorer—
Notable River Captains—Golden Days on the Mississippi
—The Commerce of t»he Greet* Lakes—A Seaport in the
yeart of a Continent*.
Father Hennepin entered the Mississippi March 8, 1680.
The first steamer on the Mississippi came in 1820.
The first line of steamers began running in 1842.
Russell Blakely began steamboating on the Mississippi in 1847.
William ~*\ Davidson became a river magnate in 1864.
Norman W. Kittson established a line of steamers on^the Red in
IS6O.
Navigation on Lake Superior began over 200 years ago.
The first "Soo" canal was completed May 21, 1855.
Jerry Simpson commanded a boat on the lakes in 1564.
Over 26,000,000 tons of freight passed through the "Soo" last year.
One big steair.er now carries the wheat of 100 farms.
Several have recently carried 250,000 bushels in a single cargo.
If put in barrels after being made into flour the grain carried
through the big canal last year would reach 11,000 miles.
Not a pound of iron ore was mined in Minnesota in 1883; now the
mines and other equipment of the big companies in this state
are conservatively valued at $500,000,000. ,
The value of the freight carried through the "Soo" in 1860 was's6,
--• 000; in 1901 it was $259,906,865.
: The first steamboat company ever
formed dissolved because of the "un
ceasing ridicule" which it met. Dur
. ing the past year there passed through
the "Soo" canal 52,812,636. bushels of
Wheat, 24,640,547 bushels of other
grains, 18,090,618 tons of iron ore, 7,-"
634,350 barrels of flour, 4,593,136 tons of
coal, 1,072,124 feet of lumber, 558,041
. tons of -general merchandise, 143,744
barrels lof salt, "206,443 tons of manu
factured iron, 98,600 tons of copper and
46,584 tons of ■ building stone. . :: ■■%' ' -.. ':'
John Fitch lies buried in the grave
yard at Bardstown,;; :c Nelson ' county,
Kentucky, without so much as a pebble
to mark: the spot. Robert Fulton is
famous -as the inventor- Of the steam-'
boat. Fitch failed because his back
ers were laughed out of cGurt; Fulton
succeeded because his "angel," a cer
tain Col. Livingston, who lived on
■ the . Hudson early in the nineteenth:
century, turned a deaf ear to the mer
ry, multitude which: called Fulton a
lunatic and demonstrated to the world
• that steam as a force propellant was
' destined to revolutionize water trans
. portation. '■ .-';■ • ■■-, '■'. \' ;i-'. • - ■•■
When Father Hennepin came up the
Mississippi in the winter of 1680 he
predicted that the vast territory which
is now Minnesota would some day be
the home of 50,000,000 of people, i but
. he never dreamed that a few leagues
to the north was a chain of lakes over
which would two centuries; later be
carried more freight than on any other
route in the world. :. This, . however,
is ', literally true. Its only competitor,
gjthe ■ Suez canal, was left far behind
* a decade, ago. . > _."" ." . -
And a fact of which every resident
a cf the North Star state can well be
'„'.' proud, is that very much ,, the largest
proportion of this traffic is either sent
from or brought to Minnesota. From
the great wheat fields of the Red River
.valley and from the mines of the Ver
million and the Mesaba come annually
grain and iron enough to keep a tre
mendous fleet of lake craft busy from
! the opening to the close of navigation.
But from the Indian's birch bark ca
noe to the magnificent commerce of
the great lakes was a long, hard strug
gle, thickly studded with failure.
Dozens of brave, brainy pioneers have
■ been forced to succumb when success
seemed just over the hills because the
money to r push their enterprises was
not to be had when the pinch came. .
From Flatboat to Steamer.
The growth of navigation in the
■; West; particularly of the Mississippi.
" Is a study cf much interest. One hun
' dred years ago there were few people -
other ; than red men. : But these .; few
• had furs and other things they desire-!
to trade with •these further south foT
clothing and other, necessities. ,Only
; heTe and there a road had been cut
through the forests and the river was
then the cne route which could be trav
eled with cheapness" and a . fair degree
of safety. Of course, a - trader' could'
not haul pelts to any considerable
'number in a canoe, so he had to devise
S seme other means. \ TJie flatboat was
the first thing that suggested itself
to him, and for a number of year.she
: grot along with a fair degree of suc
cess with this primitive craft. The
f flatboat was followed -by the pirogue,
the mackanaw, the keelbcat, the barge,
the horseboat and finally by %he
"broadhorn." For the fur trader at
Mendota, for instance, it was fairly ■
easy to load up "one of - these • queer i
craft, push it out into. the current and
float down to La Crosse. The re
.turn trip was an altogether different
matter. It ,was - now a long, steady
pull against water flowing in an oppo
site . direction. In those early days
■ this was a problem of great weight.
Many were . the devises u^ed to aid
_: in getting the boat home again. ' The
tiver men used sails to some extent.
: With the wind blowing ■ strongly from
! . the south, the spread ■of canvas was
tpund ef material assistance, v But ] the
| win! was capricious and those pioneer
j traders - frequently. found that r shortly
1 after starting with a good south wind .
a shift ' in the breeze brought them
s face to- face with a fight against both
air ani water." For such contingen
cies they had to be.prepared. They had
big, Triad-pa oars, poles and
ropes with which to work.. Sometimes
in ' shallow water they were " able to
make , considerable. headway by put
-1 ting poles _ on the river bottom • and
pushing, the : craft along. One of the
mest interesting of the methods of get
ting- up stream was, however, to use
the rcpe. -j In the first place, jit was
.. necessary :t&. gc along bcth shores r'cf
v the stream and here ; and , there ■ chop
: off a small tree about six feet from ;
, the ; src-undl By poling or rowing to
within fifty to seventy feet of the shore
a looped rope' was thrown over ;one
of these stumps. and. the ' vessel ■':. pulled!
" up. to it.' Then another stump, one
Bide or the other of the river, was pick-
Ed out and the process repeated. Of
ten in places Where the channel was
narrow-- this method of "getting some
where" was quite successful. In those
days, too, people were in the main
merely trying to get enough together to
live comfortably instead as now of at
tempting to get rich in six months.
As a matter of fact it required four
months to travel from New Orleans to
the falls of the Ohio.
Robert Fulton's Clermont.
Compared with a great lake passen
ger liner,, like the Northwest, Robert
Fulton's Clermont, which sailed the
Hudson in 1807 was a queer steam
boat. A pedestriari can haniily walk
four miles an hour. Fulton's steam
boat traveled over the surface of the
Hudson at the rate of five miles an
hour. It was a strange looking vessel.
Its engines were fully exposed, it had
no wheel guards and its rudder was
■like that of a sailing vessel and work
ed with a tiller. The passengers got
a regular ducking from the spray shot.
-off by the wheels. At the outset it
could net be turned around by its own
machinery even with the whole breadth
of "the Hudson as a turntable. Its
boilers soon began to leak and fifty
seven hours after the Clermont began
its proud career on the water its en
gines refused to work and it had to
be laid up for repairs. The steamer
was soon repaired and resumed regular
trips. Repcrting his first trip to Col.
Livingston, Fulton" spoke, with evident
pride of having made "110 miles in
twentyLfour hours. One of the passen
gers, with a tinge of disgust, said:
"We met many sloops and schooners
beating to the windward and we actu
ally passed them."
Fulton foresaw what an immense
help his invention would be to com
merce, for on Aug. 2, 1807, he wrote
Joel Barlow, of Philadelphia: "It will
give a cheap and quick conveyance on
the Mississippi and Missouri and other
great rivers, which are now laying
open their treasures to the enterprise
of our countrymen, and although the
prospect of personal emoluments has
been some inducement to me, yet I
feel infinitely more pleasure in reflect
ing with you on the immense advantage
my country will derive from the in
vention."
But Robert Fulton was not the real
inventor of the steamboat. As early
as 1788 John Fitch took out a patent
for the application of steam to naviga
tion. It is known that he 'Tiried his
boat on the .Delaware in front'of Phil
adelphia in the summer of 1786. He
interested a number of men in his plans
and a company was formed. This or
ganization "took to the woods" be
cause, as one of its members stated,
it was afraid to meet the "unceasing
ridicule" which Fitch's project had
excited. The Philadelphia people, al
ways slow to grasp the full meaning of
new ideas, .asserted that Fitch was
crazy and those who were behind his
invention were engaged in an insane
speculation. - Fitch, poor, broken
he&rted man,, laid away his models, the
dream of a lifetime, with this prophet
ic exclamation: "The day will come
when some more powerful man will
get fame and- riches from my inven
tion, but nobody will believe that poor
John Fitch can do anything worthy of
attention." Fitch drifted hither and
thither, and finally died In an obscure
Kentucky hamlet.
HENNEPIN COMES IN 1680.
Courageous Catholic Makes a Hazard
ous Journey.
Every schoolboy knows that the
Father of Waters was discovered by
Hernando DeSoto in 1541, but the peo
ple of this" section are much more in
terested in a later event concerning the
river and the part it had in making
Minnesota a great center of civilization
—the coming of Father Hennepin in
16S0. It was the 29th day of February,
that year, that the great Catholic ex
plorer left Crevecoeur, reaching the
Mississippi on the Sth cf March.
Thence his expedition proceeded slow
ly northward to the Lake of Tears
(Pepin). Stopping here a short time
tc rest and secure fresh meat by shoot
ing game, the little party took to its
bouts and moved northward, a few
days later reaching the famous falls of
St. Anthony. There was another con
siderable stop at this point, whence
Father Hennepin piloted his boats
northward. After a trip of great hard
ship he reached Lake Itasca. On the
return trip the whole expedition* was
taken prisoners byjfche Indians on the
11th of April, 168O,"and the reds held
many long parleys as to whether they
should kill theif white captives. N They
were set at liberty several months
later.
The first big vessel to enter the Mis-
THE ST. PAUL, GI.OBB,- SUNDAY, DECEMBER 28, 1902.
sippi from the sea was that of M.
D'lberville, in 1700, at the head of a
French fleet. The river's name was in
grave danger in 1712, when Ki»g
Louis, of France, issued a decree that
the Mississippi should henceforth be
known as the River St. Louis. The
people living along the great water
course had, however, become charmed
with the peculiar sibilant sound of the
Indian word Mississippi and refused
to listen to their sovereign.
It is just sixty years ago. that navi
gation on a large scale began on the
upper Mississippi, although the first
steamer was the Galena, which reached
Galena, 111., in 1823, having come to
that point not to engage in the carry
ing of freight and passengers, but to
tow keelboats which were then in large
use as common carriers. The first real
upper Mississippi steamboat organiza
tion was the St. Louis and Keokuk
Packet company, which was launched
on the Ist of January, 1842. It was
a company and yet it only owned one
steamer, the Di Vernon, which cost
$16,000. Eight years later the cor
poration built another Di Vernon at a
cost of $49,000, then considered an enor
toous' sum to-put into a steamer. Just
at this time there was a tremendous
rush of people to that portion of the
Northwest which now includes the
states of Minnesota and Wisconsin. So
great was the movement" that, there
was a shortage of means of transpor
tation and there was a consequent
immense increase in the number and
character of steamboats. Thousands of
new settlers thus reached Minnesota,
and these hardy pioneers, such of them
as are now living, are now the old
settlers of St. Paul, Minneapolis, Still
water, Wi'nona and Red Wing.
About this time the railroads of the
West, acting with susceptible con
gressmen, began to make trouble on
the Mississippi. Speaking of the con
ditions, E. W. Gould, in his "History
of River Navigation," says: "The
careless and Indifferent manner in
which the government has allowed the
railroad bridges to be built seems to
have pretty nearly accomplished two
objects, whether intended or not, viz.:
to change the course of trade from,
north and south to east and west, and
to so obstruct navigation as to destroy
competition."
WILLIAM F. DAVIDSON ON RIVER.
One of the Pioneers of the Mississippi
—His Industry and Courage.
It was in 1864 that William David
son, who died in St. Paul May 26, 1887,
became a star of the first magnitude
on the Mississippi. He had been
known on the river before, but in that
year he did something to make himself
a name in the transportation world.
For some years, under the name of
the Northwest Union Packet company,
he had been running a line of boats
between St. Paul and La Crosse. In
1864, nettled by some action of the
companies to the south, he began run
ning his boats through to St. Louis.
This made trouble for all parties con
cerned, as there was not enough traf
fic for so many concerns and continu
ance in the competition meant the
bankrupt court for the weaker con
cerns. In 1868 there was a partial con
solidation, taking in Jwenty steamers
and many barges., The following year
there was a compromise, and the Keo
kuk Northern Line Packet company
was formed with a capital stock of
$750,000. In these days of billion dol
lar trusts such a sum of money seems
like a mere bagatelle, b.ut this capitali
zation was for that period too large
and soon got those interested in it
into disagreeable complications.
In 1881 the St. Louis and St. Paul
Packet company was formed as the
successor to the Keokuk Northern
Line company, with William F. David
son as president and F. S. Johnson
secretary, with a capital of $100,000.
This corporation was in successful
operation up to the time cf Capt. Da
vidson's death in 1887.
The Diamond Joe line was estab
lished in 1867 by Joseph Reynolds, of
Dubuque, although at that time Mr.
Reynolds conducted his "line" with
only one boat. He was a man of much
energy, however, and considerable
wealth, and since that time boats and
barges have been added in large num
bers. The Diamond Joe line is still
doing business. The St. Louis and
St. Paul Passenger and Freight line
was incorporated in 1880.
One of the pioneers of the steamboat
business in the Northwest was Capt.
Russell Blakely, who died only a short
time ago. One of the organizers of
the Minnesota Packet company, which
became a legal corporation June 88,
1847, was Capt BlaKely. The first
SBHB SS S3B S JB B% 816 ill en ' ■ * j4&^^
i ml"AnlnSilAL C^^J
H^i; ;^^^^^ I : | The Entire Stock of St/PauPs I. ;>v^^x-v--^W^
/ : Z \ • Greatest Housefurnishing Store s — —\
RED TAGS m ft? est Stock of Furßiturß'CarpetSt RBgSf Drapßr)f 'Cr6clKrlfi LafflpSr st5WSi Sacrlficß , Di jir '■ TfIPQ
■ . -M ■■■UW t To-m^row morning we begin our Semi-Annual Colored Ticket Graded Discount Sale, now so well known \ -- , ULUL I HIIO
s^^ffl/ fllFfl" - b the residents of St. . Paul and the Northwest Everything bears an honest discount ofat* ■ mm ** / #%Bip
HI I / ;''ll&'ia least 10 per cent,. Other articles range from ;:- ; r ..?. ; v ■/ •■;'■-•";^..-:.'.;'.. — v '.;-'.. J*% / 139 i^.
JU/0 Uri 15% TO 50% OFF fSOSSSt Ld'O Uf I
.*&/ Hjsf, ,vh b . I «s^/O B *JPUP/o Vr r ject, to Discount,. , mm\J v VII
UliC-nALr rnlbt Vv^ kniw of no more conscientious nor a more convincing way of;; showing to the public the absolute :- ' : TKIIEE-FGURTHS ,OF FRIGE
Wri I hill TIAA -' gftvigneness of this GREAT SALE than to otter Discounts from the plainly marked prices pre. „ . .;' ■Vo-^-—-^-. : i >:.. ■ '
: Yrll'llW i BIJ\ viohjslfprevaiiing. The amount of discounts from regular valuss is denoted by an additional tag attached UiUITC Tfl P 0
; ■;V>;J/ ILLLy.ff:^:ljnUjU|/.:f ; article, allowing the price tags to remain, 'which many of you will recognize as the same seen ; _ (11 I L I fIUU ■
3': 0% I ffc '■• / ' ''(F^W^W* ■' before ■ Christmas, but now subject- to , : ''--y';'-) ;. }; r ; '-..-^V";- ;•:-".;. '.'-.y ■ ;.;■;>. '■-.:^ _.' .:-- ,•>:■-;: ■;; ; __^^±v^-v--f: •'■ ■Jm.-'M"'.^,''
fJ fijlly lift 5G^, 33(3, 25, 15 ®S* 10^ DISCOU3HT 1C 0/ ||L C
(JO 1/0 OB 1 ■■■ Don't fail: to take advantage of this opportunity to sa^e money. ; Buy Now— pay a small amount to . ; 111/@ ' 1I \ W
-V^y/'-u. -^.■:^^- a r-"-- ; secure the goods, and have them delivered later: 4 Liberal Time granted on payments. '"_;-> \ ' :■%#%-:•; ' >,VV^--lsl'.Bvß'"v
' TWO-THIRDS OF PRICE -^ | / riniiiri I OnMDftMV '■ ' ■ v-^^ - FROM REGULAR PRICE
sms!Mz:^T JJmITH & FARWELL COMPANY, nochrp?c^o r co= D s
out-of-Town Points |J Complete HoHsefuniishers. ~ Sixth & Minnesota Sis. for shipment
steamer of this company was the Dr.
Franklin, which was purchased in Qin
cinnati and put on between Galena
and St. Paul in the spring of 1848. The
following year the steamer Senator
was added and in 1850 the Nominee,
the Ben Campbell coming tlie follow
ing year. From 1850 to 1853 D. S. and
R. S. Harris conducted a rival line.
In 1853 there was a consolidation un
der the name of the Galena and Min
nesota Packet company, four steamers
being kept in the passenger traffic.
The Northern Belle, then regarded as
a beauty, was added in 1855.
Did you ever hear of Dunleith, 111.?
It those early days it became a rail
way terminal point and a city of many
pretensions. The Illinois Centre! com
pany completed its line from Chicago
to Dunleith in 1855 and entered into
a compact with the packets of the
Blakely company to carry its freight
northward. The name of the river
company was ■ changed in 1856 to the
Galena, Dunleittt and Minnesota Pack
et company. The season was a most
profitable one, to the immense
emigration to Minnesota, and resulted
in the usual thing, the formation of a
rival company. At the head of this
concern was J. B. Farley, who after
wards became famous because of his
fight against James J. Hill and the
late Norman Kittson for a portion of
the shares .pf a great railroad.: The
headquarters of the Farley company
was Dubuque. Again the usual thing
happened. Two. companies not
make money where one was in 1 clover.
Another combination resulted in 1856-
7 under the name of the Galena, Du
buque, Dunleith and Minnesota Packet
company. During the fall and winter
of 1856-7 an arrangement was made
with the Milwaukee and Prairie dv
Chien road to^yt in a line of boats to
run in connecßpn with the railway
from Prairie d% Chien to St. Paul.
This was caile^ the Prairie dv Chien
and St. Paul Packet line. In 1858 a
line of boats of the company was run
from La Crosse to St. Paul in con
nection with the Milwaukee and La
Crosse Railway 'company. The boat
line was dissolved in the summer "of
1862. Capt. Blakely made his home in
St. Paul. He was born at North
Adams, Mass., April 19, 1815. Capt.
Blakely was Ane of the city's most
highly respected citizens. He took
much interest in public affairs. His
hobby was horticulture, to which he
devoted many enthusiastic years.
Capt. William F. Davidson was also
',a man of such resources that- he was
highly regarded by all men in. St. .Paul
misin'ess\\Hfe. He began bis career
a|i a stearnTJoat man on the Ohio, hav
ing been born at South Point, that
■ state, Feb. 4, 1825. He conducted
boats on the Big Sandy, the Ohio and
the Sciota. He first became interested
in the steamer Gondola, then the Relief,
the United States. 'Aid, the Jacob Tra
ber, the Frank Steel'and the Favorite.
Capt. Davidson made his first visit to
St.' Paul i'ti 1855J He went back to
St. Louis to live in 1870, but returned
to St. Paul in 18S2,
Commodore Daridson was in the lat
er years of his life interested in relig
ious and temperance reform.. He-was
identified with both the St. Louis and
St. Paul Bethel associations. ,After he
became interested in religious work he
abolished the bars on. all his steamers
and duT a great deal of personal work
to reform employes on the river, giving
special attention to intemperance and
immorality. Capt. Davidson was con
nected with many St' Paul enterprises,
including the ownership of the old
Grand Opera house and numerous
other buildings.
THRILLING GAME OF : POKER.
Mississippian's Eyesight ;v Causes Him
V.,vr-.^t6" Lose More I han $3,000,
•• One of ,t|e"€^ls T of the : Mississippi in
those early days was poker playing.
It; -'-' is ;J*ia: -matter _£^£ of history
that a i steamer once , ran on ,a > snag
.in ' midstregjn sank, the passengers '
being got' -asJtore with the greatest
difficulty, the inquiry: which follow- .
Ed ;.< it ;,i deve*OTjifp f_ k to a certainty ; ;r that
the cause/'^ifJxfie" accident was the pi
lot's •■■: carelessness, being at ; the r time
the boat struck iin the cabin playing
poker wity tlj^; passengers: :'-'■■; ' ~
11 One- of jiie hicst r thrilling of ; those
early gamis tfas played ;on the sth :of
; July, R^pccurred ; on- the North
ern Belle. JEt^vas ah ; extremely hot
day and #me > was played on the
; shady side 4cf?the.;" deck. ,: The players -
• were ■:; a Wisconsin cattleman named
Blaylock, a soldier ? boy : named Hyatt,
who had just finished serving = his 'full
time at Fort Snelltng; : Col. Shoreham,
of Missouri; Ben.Tucker, a ; young I fel
low of twenty-six from Chicago. Capt.
Benson, of the Northern Belle, and
Francois Gaulois, a French planter
from Mississippi. A jackpot had been
called, everybody stayed and the cat
tleman had the cards. The soldier boy
askea for one card, Col. Shoreham for
ore, Tucker for three, Benson for one
and the Mississippi planter announced
with satisfaction that he couldn't use
any more. Uncle Sam's young hero,
in the face of a long line of one-card
draws, made an immediate attempt
to steal the pot with a bet of $50. Col.
Shoreham, looking only at the last card
he drew, raised the soldier $100. To
all outward appearances this excited
Tucker to a high degree. He laid his
hand down on the table, picked it up,
"skinned" it over, laid it down again,
grunted a couple of times, and then,
after a minute? raised, the bet $350.
This set Benson to thinking in ear
nest. That he had a good hand was
unmistakable, but he felt uneasy,
nevertheless. He didn't look at his
cards, but stared hard at Tucker, with
the apparent hope of gathering some
information from the movement of his
eyes or features. Tucker was a
sphinx. Benson began talking to him
self. "Drew three cards and raises
$350. Well, well! Some of you fellers
are bluffing, bat I'll be blamed if I
know which. I'll just call you," and
he laid $500 on the table. Gaulois
smiled a funereal smile, went over to
the boat rail and stood there a full
minute looking apparently at scenery
along .the river. Returning to the table
he bit his lip and shied $1,000 into the
ring, a raise of an even $500.
The Wisconsin man had already
tossed his hand into the deck and it
was again up to the soldier boy, but
there was a storm breaking and he
threw up his right hand to indicate
that he had hadrenough. Col. Shore
ham, in spite of the ract that he ac
tually had a good hand, also bolted for
the woods. Tucker pretended to be
in a highly nervous state, looked long
and intently at the two players beyond
him, and then remarking that he didn't
propose to lay down the best hand
without seeing who had beaten him,
tossed two $1,000 bills into the center
of the green. Benson had had enough.
He wouldn't take the chances of call
ing so big a bet.
But the Mississippian wasn't
through. He said: "I'm down to $385,
but I'm willing to bet you my two
niggers out there that I have the best
hand.".
"Trot the niggers in here and let me
see rem>" said Tucker.
Ganlois summoned the two colored
men with a whistle which they seem
ed to understand. After sizing them
up the Chicago/boy agreed that they
should be put in on the basis of $1,000
each. It was now a showdown, and,
tossing $1,385 into the pot, Tucker
asked the Frenchman what he had.
"Oh. -nothing but a straight flush,"
said the Southerner, and he laid his
hand down triumphantly. There the
cards were—the five, six, seven f.nd
eight of clubs and the nine of spades—
merely a straight, a very different,
thing from a straight flush!
Tucker, who had in that thirty sec
onds sweat a gallon of brine, laid down
an ace full and raked in the pot, in
cluding the two niggers.
An error of the eyesight had cost
the Mississippian $3,385. The pot
which young Tucker wen was worth on
its face $7,470. As a matter of fact it
was worth $700 more, as Tucker sold
the negroes next day for $2,700.
The draw had proved one of the
most remarkable- on record. Col.
Shoreham had made a five full, on fives
and trays; Tucker had filled up on
two aces by getting a third ace and
two queens; Benson had made a nine
full, on nines and deuces, and Gaulois
had made a straight on a four straight
club flush.
LOUIS N. SCOTT AS A NAVIGATOR.
Manager of the Metropolitan Opera
House Becomes Reminiscent.
Only one steamboat man of note now
lives in St. Paul—Louis N. Scott, man
ager of the Metropolitan opera house.
Mr. Scott entered the business as a
mere boy, his first position being that
of clerk on a Tennessee river boat.
He came to St. Paul on the steamer
Clinton of the St. Louis and St. Paul
line, April 26, 1875. The Clinton was
the first steamer through Pepin that
year. Getting through this lake first
was an item of importance in the ear
ly days, as then the first boat through
got free wharfage at St. Paul for the
year. Speaking of his steamboat ex
periences yesterday, Mr. Scott said:
"When I reached St. Paul in April,
1875, I was just seventeen years old,
but I was fortunate enough to get a
position in the office of John H. Rea
ney, general manager of the Davidson
fleet. I started in as check clerk, being
advanced to cashier and ticket agent,
and succeeded Reaney as general man
ager when I was twenty. »I remained
in the business steadily until 1882,
when I took the management of the
old Grand opera house on Wabasha
street.
Those were big days in the steamboat
business on the Mississippi. We
brought in settlers in immense num
bers and carried freight for a vast
territory. We gathefed freight from
all over the Southwesf, sending much
of it from this point west over the
Northern Pacific to Bismarck, whence
it was carried by Missouri river boats
to Fort Benton, from which point it
was transported to its destination by
ox carts. In return for the westbound
freight we were brought carloads of
buffalo skins, hides of other animals
and a great deal of silver ore, as in
those days there were no smelters
north of St. Louis. We had a boat
each way every day and we averaged
fifty carloads north and south every
twenty-four hours.
"The boats from the St. Louis and
St. Paul line in those days were the
Clinton, Minneapolis, Minnesota, Du
buque, Centennial, Belle of La Crosse,
Alexander Mitchell, St. Paul, Gem
City, Davenport, Rock Island and War
Eagle.
"The business on the river continued
immense until 1880, when the Northern
Pacific was cut through from Bismarck
into Montana, thus taking away a
large share of our far West business.
Then the Burlington parelleled the riv
er to Dubuque, thus taking away an
other large section of our traffic.
"In the days when I was connected
with river business accidents on the
upper Mississippi were few and sel
dom serious. This was due in large
measure to the fact that on this end
of the river there are not many of
those snags which are constantly jeop
ardizing the boats en the lower Missis
sippi. Our biggest accident happened
late in the seventies, when the War
Eagle struck the bridge piers at Dav
enport and sunk, being a total loss.
The Golden Eagle, which was in the
St. Louis-Keokuk trade, was burned-
Outgide of these two accidents there
was* nothing of a serious character.
Even in these two there was no loss
of human life.
"I think Commodore William P. Da
vidson was the greatest of the steam
boat men of his. day. He had lots of
foresight and industry, and dris ener
.gy was so he could in his
prime work to death three ordinary
men. He began steamboating when
seventeen years old. He once told me
a story of a thrilling 1 experience he
had while in the Cincinnati-Kanawha*
trade. Skilled help was hard to get
in these pioneer days, and Davidson
found on one of his trips that he had
to act as captain, clerk and pilot. Af
ter an unusually busy day in Cincinnati
he started for the 1 Kanawha about 5
o'clock in the afternoon. He had had
no sleep for twenty-four hours but, in
spito of this, after attending to his
duties as captain and clerk, he went
into the -pilot house for the night. Here
after a time he fell asleep on his wheel.
Awakening with a start he found his
cr,aft not twenty feet from a great
rock cliff. Ringing the bell instantly
he succeeded in geting the boat backed
up before he reached the cliff, where
the vessel would certainly have been
dashed to pieeqe. •
"When Davidson came to this section
of the country he brought the steamer
FavorUe all the way from Cincinnati.
He made a great deal of money, the
funds which gave him a start on a
large scale in the steamboat business
on the Minnesota river. He ran up to
Shakopee, New Ulm and Mankato and
brought out the wheat of the farmers
of that section. The crops of that
section were large in those days,
prices high arid freight rates excellent.
"Commodore Davidson continued to
own boats of the St. Louis and St. Paul
line up to the time of his death in 18S7,
when they were sold by the estate to
a syndicate composed of Richard T._
O'Connor, Thomas A. Prendergast,
Wiliam Hamm, Edward C. Long- and
others. This company operated the
line about two years, when it sold its
steamers and wharfs to the Diamond
Joe line, which still controls it.
"The stage of water on the upper
Mississippi has always been a perplex
ing-problem. It has frequently hap
pened that when business promised
best there -was so little water, particu
larly north of La Crosse, that naviga
tion was extremely difficult or impos
sible. It' is also of ten the case in sum
mer, when tourists want to see the
beautiful river scenen', that the water
is so low that steamers of large siza
cannot run. This is unfortunate, aa
there are always many people in the
hot weather who desire to take the
St. Paul-St. Louis river trip.
"Commodore Davidson's career on
the river was meteoric. He came to
Minnesota with one boat. At that time
his competition was ten boats on the
Norhern line and three on the White
Collar line. Inside of ten years he
owned all of the boatiTTTf importance
on the Upper Mississippi. With the
money he made in the business he fcuilt
the Davidson block, Fourth and Jack
son streets; the Union block, Fourth
and Cedar streets; the Court block,
Fourth street; the Grand opera housa
and Grand block, Wabasha street, and
his home at Tenth and Jackson streets.
He also owned a block in Third street
at the corner of Cedar. The Grand
opera house on Wabasha street, the
first St. Paul theater worthy of the
name, was built by Commodore David
son without a dollar of aid from any
body.
"Few of the old steamboat men now
live in St. Paul. When business in
that line became slack here most of
them went elsewhere. One of the old
timers, however, is still here; at least
he was a few years ago, I hare not
heard of his death. This is Capt. Jerry
Weber, whose life has been spent for
the most part in pilot houses. Weber
has worked^ at his calling over a wide
territory. He was once a pilot on the
Nile and later kept craft off the shoals,
the rocks and snags in the Red river
of the north, the Saskatchewan, the
Missouri and the Mississippi. Weber
is a typical river man, a good story
teller and always popular with those
with whom he came in contact in the
boom days of Western rivers."
KITTSON ON RED RIVER.
St. Paul Pioneer Runs Line of Steam*
ers and Red River Carts.
The pioneer navigator of the Red
River of the North was Norman W.
Kittson, who shipped furs in Red River
carts 500 mfles from Pembina to Men
dota as early as 1843. These Red
River carts, by the way, were unique
as modes of transportation. They were
constructed wholly of wood. They
were merely a big box attached to
shafts and set upon an exle connect
ing an enormous pair of wheels. The
tires were of rawhide drawn tightly
around the wheels. The axles of these
queer vehicles were never greased and
the noises they sometimes made are
said to have been sufficient to wake
the soundest sleeper.
Acting as agent of the Hudson Bay
Fur company, Mr. Kittson established
a line of steamers on the Red River
of the North in 1860. The St. Paul &
Pacific railway had been completed to
Grand Forks, and the Kittson boats
for a time got a tremendous traffic
intended for Winnipeg and other Can
adian points, much of it being broughi
to St. Paul over the Mississippi, seni
by the St. Paul & Pacific to Grand
Forks and thence north to that sec
tion of the country known as Mani
toba. When the Manitoba and the
Northern Pacific roads were extendec
along the Red river to Winnipeg, traf
fic on the river was killed. Mr. Kitt
son, however, one of the shrewdest mci
of the Northwest, got in on the "groun<
floor" on the St. Paul & Pacific an<
made a great deal of money. Mud
of this he expended in building in St
Paul, including a $140,000 residence on.
Summit avenue, the Globe building and
the Astoria hotel. He also took a
great interest in horses, expending on
the stables and track at Kittsondale
and on horses over $1,000,000. One
of his holdings was the famous pacer,
Johnston, who held the pacing record
for many years. Another of his horses
was Minnie R, who paced a mile as
early as 1884 in 2:03%. This however,
she did with a running mate.
Not more than one or two white men
came to Minnesota before the time of
Norman W. Kittson. He came to Fort
Snelling in 1834 when just twenty
years of age. He began to reside in
St. Paul In 1852 and was chosen the
city's mayor in 1858. Previously, he
had represented what was known as
the Pembina district in the Territorial
Commenting on the farms of the Red
River valley, four of which made a
total of 75,000 acres, a traveler of the
early eighties said:
"Big farms! _Great Scott! Why,
there's farms out there bigger'n the
hull state of Rhode Island. A man
starts out in the mornin' to plow a fur-
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