ch by his bugle and never having heard of him
before, rowed out in a skiff and were very indignant when they found
that he would not be rescued. All day Sunday he drove ahead on the rapid
current. By consulting his maps, which he fortunately saved and dried
on the deck of the Irene, he found that he could not make the run in
four days as he had expected when he started. Sunday evening he
obtained some provisions from a miller and though feeling very sleepy
and much fatigued, he kept driving along all night. The roar of the
waters as they dashed against the mills, put him on the alert. Monday
morning he was faint and fast becoming exhausted; but was encouraged by
the hope of soon reaching Piacenza. There he expected to meet his agent,
get a little rest and a full supply of much needed provisions.

The agent in question, was a Scotchman, he had met in Milan, before
going to Turin. His occupation was that of a tenor singer; but he failed
to make a success of it, he was open for anything that turned up.
Finding that he was a good Italian scholar, Paul engaged him. He was not
exactly Paul's idea of what an agent ought to be, as he showed too much
fondness for the good things of this life. When seated with a dish of
cutlets and truffles flanked by a generous sized bottle of wine, he was
apt to make statements that were rather unreliable. Before leaving
Milan for Turin, Paul told him, as the Po was to him an unknown river,
he could not tell at what time he could make on it, so that he must
use his judgment from the reports he would get from above, in regard to
the progress he was making down the river. He then instructed him to
go to Piacenza on Saturday as he expected to be able to reach that
point on Sunday evening. Paul afterwards learned that instead of
waiting until Saturday; his courier, full of self importance, started
for that city the same day Paul left on his way to Turin. On
arriving there he introduced himself to the Sindaco and newspaper men,
by whom he was feted and ample opportunity was given him to indulge
in his favorite dishes. On his own responsibility, he informed the
journalists that Captain Boyton would be sure to arrive on Sunday
evening, and at that time almost every man, woman and child in Piacenza
was on the banks of the river two miles away from the town. Finding that
the Captain did not appear at the time he announced and that the
crowd was gett