THE NOTED RAFT-BOAT "SILVER WAVE" 113 



we got off in pieces. Then we lost two more days by 

 wind, before getting away from this place. It was slow, 

 hard work putting the raft through the canal as we had 

 to cut it up in small pieces at each of the three locks in 

 the old canal around the Lower or Des Moines rapids 

 which ended at Keokuk. 



We were twenty-eight days on the trip but after all 

 our delays and mishaps I got a clear receipt for the raft 

 from the agent of the Eau Claire Lumber Company 

 when we turned it over to their steamer "Pete Kirns" 

 at Hannibal. In fact he complimented us on the good 

 condition of the raft and the time we had made with it. 



As our pilots had not been running below Muscatine 

 for a few years they sent me ahead to Davenport to se- 

 cure a "posted pilot" to go down with us and show them 

 the way. 



Several of the large Saint Louis and Saint Paul 

 packets had been laid up on account of the low stage of 

 water and I was fortunate in getting David LeClaire 

 who had been on the "Belle of LaCrosse" and was well 

 posted. "Dave" LeClaire, then a very strong, healthy 

 man about sixty-five years old, was a half-brother of 

 Antoine LeClaire, the founder of Davenport, Iowa. I 

 found him very intelligent and sociable. I enjoyed his 

 company very much and told him so when he left us on 

 our return to Davenport. That was Dave LeClaire's 

 last trip. A few mornings later when his wife called 

 him, he did not answer. He had made his last "cross- 

 ing" to the other shore. 



Racing between raft-boats going up the river (usu- 

 ally without anything in tow) was very common, but it 

 was always interesting and often exciting though there 

 was nothing at stake, except the pride of the crews in 

 their respective boats. 



