Jasper County Democrat, Volume 15, Number 74, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 18 December 1912 — USES TOES TO PILOT BOAT [ARTICLE]

USES TOES TO PILOT BOAT

Man Without Arms Is One of the Most Skillful of His Profession in the World. Vacation visitors at Grand Isle, in Lake Champlain, have been much Interested in Charles A. Lutz, who is without arms and is yet a capable boat pilot. He claims so be the only armless pilot in the United States. He operates a 25-foot power boat easily and skillfully, carrying passengers about the different lake resorts. When Lutz appeared at the office of the inspectors in Burlington, yt., and asked for a'pilot’s license tlie inspectors thought he was disqualified by physical disability. However, they put the matter up to the commerce and labor departments in Washington. Word came back from Washington that if the inspectors were convinced Lutz could handle .the job to give him a license and let him try it Lutz took the inspectors for a ride in his boat. They went around a dangerous breakwater and passed a tug. The man piloted the craft without a bit of trouble. When finally the inspectors saw him take the engine to pieces with his toes and handle a wrench with them as well as most mechanics would with their hands they granted his license. Their wisdom in doing so is indicated by the fact that he has not had an accident this season. Lutz lost his arms when a child in the west.