"I heah dat yo' hab engage Gabe fur pilot ye' down to New Yorleans. Dat
niggah don' know nofing 'bout de riber, sah, no sah, me do dough, an,
me'll go down fur nothin' sah."

"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
fishing 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