Evening Republican, Volume 16, Number 267, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 7 November 1912 — TRIP ON THE OSAGE [ARTICLE]

TRIP ON THE OSAGE

Voyage on River Never Has Been Duplicated. Steamer Carrying a Load of Balt la Nearly Btranded in Falling Stream, but Cargo Was Sold for sll a Barrel. Clinton, Mo. —How a steamer once navigated the waters of the Osage river, delivered a cargo of salt at Suns Point, Kan., and made a good profit on the deal is told here by Richard Fuqua, a carpenter, who was the boat’s carpenter on the trip and for several years after. Now the once navigable Osage river is a prize sought by water power men and promoters, and Kansas, instead of importing salt, is exporting it. The steamer that accomplished what no other boat has evd,V done, the navigation of the Osage fiver, was Itself named the Osage. The hull was laid and launched at Linn creek in the winter of 1856-57 by the owners, who were residents of Linn creek. The hull was towed to St. Louis, where the boat was finished. It was 130 feet long, 22 feet wide and when loaded to Its capacity of 200 tons drew nearly three feet of water. It was pronounced the finest little boat afloat in its day, with a cabin capacity of seventy-five passengers, double engines, double boilers and side wheels. It was sold to Capt Lambert of New York, an old sailor and experienced boatman, who later traded It to Maj. R. H. Melton of Warsaw, Mo., for Benton county land, the consideration being $22,000. Maj. Melton placed Elijah Melton, his brother, in charge as clerk and the Osage made regular trips for eight months in the year from St. Louis up the Osage river, often as far as Papinsville In Bates county, M issouri, but more frequently going to Osceola, St. Clair county. Those were boating days on the beautiful Osage river, and as many as eleven boats have been tied up at Warsaw, Mo., at one time. Before the war the ffeight and passenger service made a profit to the owner of the boat and $1,500 was not an unusual amount for the round trip. The crowring feat In navigation was in taking a cargo of 200 tons Of salt to Suns Point, In Bourbon county, Kan. The civil war had destroyed the boating service on the Osage river and salt was so scarce that a pound would sell at times for sl. Maj. Melton found plenty of salt at St. Louis In 1867, which had come from Michigan down the Mississippi. He knew if he could get it to the western counties of Missouri the people would pay a handsome profit for it. With George Crawford, an Osage river pilot, the boat was loaded to its capacity with salt In barrels and sacks and the voyage begun. y ' At Osceola the news came that heavy rains for a week at the head waters of the Osage in Kansas would keep the river at high water mark; and Crawford, the daring Osage river pilot, said he would try for Suns Point, or, failing, he could try for Bell View, a few miles below. Suns Point was reached at 4 o’clock on the afternoon of the following day, and the river was bank full, but very narrow. It was so full that the presence of the boat forced the water out of its banks on to the low land. In an hour the water began to fall, and all hands rolled off the salt. Everybody who would work w r as hired to help. The unloading continued all night without Interruption until 4 o’clock in the morning. It was then observed that the narrow stream was not wide enough by ten feet, to turn the boat around. Every available tool was put into use by deck hands and the bank of the river was dug down low enough to allow the stern of the boat to back into it; and by the aid of ropes and capstan the turn was made. The unloading was completed and at 5 o’clock the race for'deep water began. The wood supply was running low when a wood yard was seen in the distance on the bank, some thirty miles below Suns Point No time was lost in tying up and appropriating all the wood In the yard, and the little steamer was on

her way to escape the shallow water. The mouth of the Osage below Jefferson City was reached before noon the following day. Major Melton left his brother In charge of the salt at Suns Point At first the people were afraid to buy it at sll a barrel, giving as a reason that it probably was gotten dishonestly, and the rightful owners of the entire cargo might call later and get the goods or charge a higher price. But in a week Elijah Melton had sold the last of his boatload of salt and was returning with $2,700, representing the profit of the trip. There were many more cargoes of salt taken up the Osage to the western counties of Missouri, but none to Kansas.