Jasper County Democrat, Volume 9, Number 51, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 23 March 1907 — The Catamaran. [ARTICLE]

The Catamaran.

While it Is rarely employed by Europeans as a method of travel, even in emergencies, the catamaran of the Madras fishermen of India Is by all odds the roost extraordinary of water vehicles. It consists simply of three logs lashed together and flush with the surface of the water. On these a fisherman (sometimes two or more fishermen) stands and with a single oar paddles himself far out to sea. A Madras fisherman will venture out when boatmen will not launch their craft, and even In weather when boats cannot be launched he will go through the surf and out to ships with letters for the delivery of which he gets a few pence. In order to catch their ships a few belated travelers have been known to trust themselves on catamarans. They are united In the statement that the ride on the logs was the most nerve trying experience they had undergone In a land that holds a new thrill for the stranger at every turn. The sea and an occasional ducking have no terrors for these natives, not even the extremely young, and in reality the catamaran Is not entirely to be scorned, for It is after all nonsinkable.