The Story of Paul Boyton | Page 2

stairs to release him, and to her
consternation found that he had escaped. Three minutes later an excited
woman stood on bank of the Alleghany, vigorously waving her hand

and hailing the youthful navigator. The forward end of the one by
twelve inch board was reluctantly headed for shore, and slowly idled in.
As the child reached land, he was grasped by the angry and anxious
mother, who beat a merry tattoo on a tender portion his body with a
shingle.
This was not the first time that the young hero had received punishment
for loving the water. His home was within one block of the clear and
swift flowing Alleghany; and whenever he could escape the vigilant
eye of his mother, he was found either on the bank or in the water. One
day, Mrs. Boyton, who had a continual dread of his being drowned,
was going on a visit, and she determined to secure Paul against
accident. She took him upstairs, undressed him and removed his clothes
from the room. She locked the door and went away content.
The day was lovely; the water lay clear and blue in sight and Paul could
hear the delighted cries of the boys as they plunged into its refreshing
depths. The temperature was too strong. Paul searched the room
carefully and to his joy, discovered a pair of his father's drawers. He
got into them and tied the waist-string around his neck. Then forcing a
window, he slid down the convenient lightning rod like a young
monkey, and was found in his usual haunt by his astonished mother
some hours later. From this time on, she gave him more liberty to
follow his natural bent. From early May until late in October, when not
at school, Paul spent most of his time in the water.
In those days, driftwood, consisting of slabs, logs and boards, were
continually floating down the river from the headwaters, where the
great forests were being cut down. When he saw a nice piece of wood,
Paul would cut through the water like a young shark, and swim with it
ahead of him to the shore, where his lumber pile was a goodly sized
one. He kept his mother's cellar well supplied with firewood and sold
the surplus to the neighbors; the proceeds of wich were devoted to
gingerbread and even at that early age to the abominable roll of tobacco
known as the "Pittsburgh Stogie."
Great rafts of lumber were coming down the river daily and a favorite
amusement when he saw one, was to run up the river bank about a

quarter of a mile, swim off and board it. In this way he became
acquainted with many of the hardy "buck-tail" boys who piloted the
huge rafts down the river. His knowledge of the different bars that were
formed by the bridge piers was utilized, and often proved of great
assistance to his friends, the raftsmen. One day, he boarded a raft, the
captain of which was evidently a stranger to the channel in the vicinity
of Pittsburgh, and Paul saw that it was certain to run aground. He told
the captain and was so earnest in his manner, the course was ordered
changed. Less than 500 yards further down, the ugly bar showed up not
five feet from the side of the raft, as it went gliding by. The raftsman
insisted on keeping the little fellow by his side until he was safely
moored to the Pittsburgh shore; then as a reward for his services,
presented Paul with a little flat boat about twelve feet long by five feet
wide and ordered two of the crew to tow it with a skiff to the Alleghany
side.
The generous present was most joyfully and thankfully received, for
Paul's sole and only ambition for a long time had been to own a boat.
As the two sturdy oarsmen with the boat in tow, neared the Alleghany
shore, Paul stood erect in the stern, his eyes shining with triumph and
satisfaction, and loudly hailed his playmates to come and see his prize.
It is safe to say, that no commander of a vessel, ever viewed his craft
with more pride, than Paul did his little flat-bottom boat. He named her
"Gray Eagle." He was ever tired of overhauling, scrubbing and cleaning
her. All the money realized by the capture of drift-wood, was devoted
to the purchase of paint. He selected and shipped a crew from among
his playmates. They were soon able to drive her where they liked upon
the river with long poles and paddles, and many a successful battle
royal was fought with their old enemies across the river, the Pittsburgh
boys. The "Gray Eagle" was generally half loaded with nice, round
stones that served as