It was a scene of quiet, yet imposing, grandeur. The strong, muddy current of the Ohio, fully a mile in width at flood, pushed forcefully out in opposition, and for a time seemed to have the mastery; but soon the more voluminous, stronger, and even muddier current of the great Father of Waters prevailed, and with a thousand boiling eddies and vast upheavals of the contending streams, the Ohio was forced to yield and was borne away captive.
It was a matter of no little surprise to Lewis and Moses—this being their first voyage—to find the Mississippi below the confluence with the Ohio no wider. But the depth was manifestly much greater and the current more rapid. Before noon that day the ark was passing Iron Banks, a line of dark-red bluffs along the left shore.
A “KEEL” FROM ST. LOUIS CAME ALONGSIDE
The breaking of a sweep, however, compelled the men to tie up for two or three hours, and while they were here a “keel” of forty tons, from St. Louis, came alongside and spoke them, in the hope of buying eggs and poultry.
Thus far they had seen but few boats on the Ohio, and had actually spoken but two, both from up the Wabash—the one a broadhorn, the other a keel from Vincennes. Yet now, as a chance result of the erratic navigation of those days, the Mississippi seemed suddenly to swarm with ascending and descending flats, keels and skiffs. Merry salutes from the horns and bugles of the boatmen were heard every few minutes.
A ship, too, was lying-by in the bay below Iron Banks; and a “smithy” also passed while the captain of the keel was hailing them—a cheery ding-dong from the blacksmiths’ anvils resounding from the steep bank.
Soon after the keel had left them two large arks from Kaskaskia veered in, to pass the time of day and ask whether any late news had been heard from down the river. For the attitude of the Spaniards toward Americans at New Orleans was now the absorbing topic of interest. Whether they could make a market or not meant much to these arksmen, whose all was often at stake on the chances of a voyage.
A skiff and two “covered sleds” from Cincinnati, loaded with horses, also came in sight up-stream, and seeing the three arks lying-by in company, they also veered in and joined the little flotilla at the foot of Iron Banks.
No such warm weather had as yet been experienced, not even at Big Bone Creek.