Page:California Inter Pocula.djvu/176



side, one  end  of  their  pole  upon  the  bottom  of  the river, and  the  other  placed  against  their  shoulder, smoking with  perspiration,  their  deep  chests  sending forth volumes  of  vapor  into  the  vapory  air,  their swollen sinews  strained  to  their  utmost  tension,  and keeping time  to  a  sort  of  grunting  song,  they  step steadily along  from  stem  to  stern,  thus  sending  the boat rapidly  over  the  water,  except  where  the  cur- rent is strong. The middle  of  the  channel,  where the water  is  deep  and  the  current  rapid,  is  avoided  as much  as  possible;  yet  with  every  precaution  the men frequently  miss  their  purchase  and  the  boat  falls back in  a  few  minutes  as  great  a  distance  as  it  can  re- cover in an  hour. Evsry now  and  then,  ceasing  their work, the  swarthy  boatmen  disrobe  with  the  most  im- perturbable sang froid,  and  wholly  insensible  to  the presence of  horror-stricken  females,  and  with  perspira- tion streaming down  their  naked  sinewy  limbs,  cry " bano  1"  and  running  the  bow  of  the  boat  into  the bank, they  fasten  it  there  with  the  poles  and  plunge  into the stream. Or if  overtaken  by  rain,  which  here  falls with scarcely  the  slightest  warning,  they  strip  them- selves to the  last  rag  of  whatever  they  happen  to have  on,  and  rolling  up  their  clothes  put  them  in  a dry  place  until  the  rain  is  over. In places  poles  and paddles are  wholly  ineffectual,  and  the  boatmen  are obliged to  take  to  the  bank,  and  tow  the  boat  after them with  a  rope,  or,  wading  in  the  water,  bear  it  by main  force  up  the  rapids.

One boat  after  another  is  pushed  along  amid  sage  re- marks, coarse jests  and  yells,  and  the  firing  of  pistols. There is  a  humorous  side  to  every  scene;  and  this was the  side  usually  uppermost  in  early  Californian times, however  trying  the  ordeal,  or  incongruous  the' grouping, or  dismal  the  moral  shades. To these  ad- venturers so lately  liberated  from  the  nauseating  con- finement of a  rolling  overcrowded  steamer, — not- withstanding the heat  and  moisture  which  hung  in the  air,  and  folded  them  about  like  a  wet  blanket —