WESTERN RIVER STEAMERS. 63 



Tests made with the steamer A. M. Scott in handHng a tow descending the 

 Kanawha River demonstrated the fact that flanking is not necessary with the tunnel 

 type of boat, owing to its perfect steering when going ahead. This has been 

 demonstrated several times by this steamer in descending the Missouri River, thus 

 showing that the saving in backing up a tow to allow the current to swing it side- 

 ways to flank it out of a bend may be saved by the boat steering the tow out of the 

 bend, thus many hours a trip may be saved by a to\ying fleet, with properly designed 

 boats. Many accidents have happened at landings in flanking onshore, where a 

 snag appeared after the sidewise movement of the boat began, and, with an 

 onshore wind she is blown against the bank, as no control of the boat is possible 

 without either headway or sternway, which accidents may be prevented by maneu- 

 vering with wing propellers on a tunnel boat. Damage from drift and logs is no 

 more harmful to the tunnel propellers than to the stern-wheelers. The easy access 

 to the propellers admits of as quickly replacing wheels or blades as repairs to 

 buckets and wheel-arms require on stern-wheelers. The building cost of both types 

 of boats is about the same. 



Now the general idea is that boats descend rivers faster than they ascend 

 them, but in the way we work them this is not the usual result. In ascending the 

 lower rivers we take advantage of slack water and of eddies behind points, and make 

 almost as good running time upstream as down. But, with the present type of 

 boats, we are handicapped by not being able to go ahead on the engines and run out 

 of a landing ; if the wind is onshore, we have to back downstream and work our 

 nose out to windward, thus straightening up and, in many instances, passing the 

 same landing twice. One packet boat required twenty minutes to pass the foot of 

 Conti Street, New Orleans, which landing she had just left. This waste of time 

 occurs at many landings, so that, if a tunnel boat were to be used in the packet 

 trade, a vast saving would result in upstream navigation. 



In descending the rivers, hour after hour is lost, even in our best managed 

 lines, as the boats have to round to and head upstream, since they can be handled 

 only at one end in loading and unloading freight. In making the turn, much care 

 is necessary, should the boat be deeply loaded, as she has to stop out in the river be- 

 fore making the turn and wait for her following sea, caused by the stern-wheel, to 

 pass on downstream, so as not to cause working of the hull and washing of the 

 deck. This requires different time in diflferent current, and finally the landing is 

 made with the bow upstream. 



In leaving this landing, the boat is backed out and, in almost all cases, the 

 backing around this half circle is done without cutting oflf steam, as many of the 

 old-time engines cannot cut oflf when in the backing motion. From five to fifteen 

 minutes are lost in maneuvering the boats at almost every landing made down- 

 stream, as from one-fourth to one-half mile backing is done under this great loss 

 of steam, and from five to fifteen minutes' valuable time is consumed. Taking a 

 smart packet boat as now, we have a loss of time and mileage of about 120 min- 

 utes in fifty landings and 10 miles' unnecessary run upstream, and 600 minutes 



