03- Ihqyonecan

APRIL 10. 1951

Ring Reminiscences .. Fights and Fighters - (By JAMES PENDIIGABTI l

The Tanana was a much shal- lower river than the Yukon. Sand bars are constantly shift- ing. Good steamboat men have an almost uncanny knowledge of the whereabouts of bars by close observation of ripples, curren-ta. tloatjng,,,debris, etc. A captain gets his Ippointment by his pow- tars of observation and Judgment In that respect. it is not neces- sary that he have a "deep sea" capmrrs papers. If a boat strikes a bar going. down streamiit is I serious affair. if left even for a few minutes. the swift. current digs the sand away from under and the boat is forced farther on the bar. A long log "sweep" is attached near the stern and let out at a right angle. secured ny wire cable. The pull of the swift current on the "sweep" w-iii graduallyltow the boat off the bar. If she gets in too far nn the bar and the sweep is in- effective. a wire cable must be zun to a tree or "dead man" on more as early as possible dir- ectly astern. Then the steam captain aboard will gradually puillthe boat clear. Striking a um-g going up river causes little troufble. The current soon drives

me sand from underneath and the boat floats off. 0 I O 0

Nearly all the officers were

'nrmeriy steamboat men from the Mississippi and Fraser rivers- They were past masters in river navigation. By reason of their ,)cl'SplC3Cll,V they could navigate my and all rivers. During World war I the British Government mok several to the Euphrates -ivcr in Asia Minor to transport Her Indian army up the river to Hght, the Turks. Turkey was an ally of the Kaiser at that time. IL was quite an object lesson in the resources of the Empire at that time. One of our own "na- live" sons in the person of Capt. Orr, a steamboat captain on the Fraser, made a visit to his home in French River, P.E.l. while en route to the. l3.UP:lT3.l-'35-

I had a bit of experience on a bar on the last trip out from Dawson. Oct 15. Hill. The Bar- rgnggm, brothers, formerly of Seattle had a smart steamboat

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CIIAILOYYIVOWN, P.I.l. Near: v to s or in mutmmiv

named the Vidette-a former N. W. M. P. craft. They , carried freight up and down the river during the summer. and just be- fore their last trip to White Horse to lay her up for the win- ter they announced that they would take passengers. She could take forty or fifty. immediately the White Pass Co. which had I monopoly of passenger transport announced a'cut in passenger rate from 350.00 to :1.00. Naturally the Barnington boys had to meet the "cut"-about thirty or thirty five went on the Vidette. We pulled out at 12.30 a.m. They planned to go up niver two or three miles and tie up till morn- ing. Aibout six o'clock in the morning I was awakened by A heavy thud and a scraping sound. There was quite a commotion. Some one shouted "We're on a bar". Daylight was just break- ing. I dressed quickly and went down the companion way to the lower deck. I met Syd Bar- ringion on the lower step of the stairs. He asked "what's the matter?" I told him we were on a bar. His face blanched white. My first thought was that it was a plot to wreck the ship and col- lect insurance. It looked suspic-

t ious-but one glance at Barring-

ton's dispairing face changed that idea. A deck had had made a careless insecure tie of the cable to a tree. and it had worked loose with the motion ofthe boat in the wind during the night. and it dnifted silently down stream about a mile till it struck the bar. Several "lines" were run to the bank and "dead men" sunk. but the pulls were too diagonal- a mom dircct fore and aft pull was required-and the boat was being pushed farther on the bar every minute. 0 I O I

Everyone was getting anxious. We were supposed to get to the polling booth at White Horse (430 miles) in five days. The Yukon Territory election at that time was deferred a month after the general Federal election. Aiboui. twenty of the passengers went ashore to scan the situation and see if we could help. There was a small piece of rock beach in direct line with the boat. It was impossible to dig into it to place a "dead man" to which to attach the ca-ble leading from the capstan on board. For those not familiar with the operation I might explain that it is put in by digging a trench about 6 or 8 feet long and two feet wide and putting in a fair sized log. strong enough to stand the strain, and attaching the cable around it at its centre. than driving stakes obliquely above the log and fill- ing the trench with earth or rock.

0 I I I

Chances for a modus operandi looked pretty poor. but I hap- pened to look closer to the river bank and saw a bunch of flat posphyry rocks of all sizes-many tons of them. which gave me what must have been a new idea for the experienced river men. I told lhcm, "boys we can lay our log on the flat rock bottom," many hands make light work. we can carry ten tons of rock and place it over and in front in a short time." Night was coming on and everybody work- ed with willing hands and hearts. Capsian, cable and "dead man" stood the hcavy strain and the Vidette was off the bar at 6 o'clock a.m. with full steam for White Horse after 24 hours on the bar. When the boat goes free with cable slack. it is cut as close to the "dead man" as pos- sible and the short piece left. Only a. few feet of cable are lost and the cable cuitcrs man their small boat and get aboard. I have been told that the big mound of rock still remains intact and is called by the name of yours truly. it is strange that the spring break up of ice, or high water from the mountain tributaries in July'did not scatter it. The remaining part of the trip was serene and lovely.

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