The Quarterly of the Texas State Historical Association, Volume 3, July 1899 - April, 1900 Page: 11
294 p. : ill., maps ; 23 cm.View a full description of this periodical.
Extracted Text
The following text was automatically extracted from the image on this page using optical character recognition software:
Adventures of the "Lively" Immigrants. 11
word for me to call and see them. Messrs. Wilkins & Linton, the
consignees, were satisfied that my "turn over" was right, and they
did not want me to quit. They offered to advance my wages to
$100 per month, and said they had sent a note to Kelso & Richard-
son to that effect. I said that my engagement was such that I could
not violate it to go back on the boat.
My account gave me a small balance of some $18 or $20. Captain
Buckner made the amount $50. The next thing I did was to hunt
up a Mr. Peter Nichols. This man was a "nonesuch," as we call
them. He was a mechanical genius, a "jack of all trades," but
claimed to be a gun and lock smith. He had been with Lewis and
Clark up the Missouri and its tributaries as gun-smith to the expe-
dition. This man had been sick at my store with fever. My at-
tention and kindness had laid him under a small obligation, which
he often expressed. I found him at Brown & Lee's Publishing
House on Common St., in a large old frame building. I in-
formed him of my intended trip and asked him if he would oversee
making me the necessary outfit for twelve months' travel in the
Texas country and what would be the probable cost. He said that
one thing, and perhaps the most costly and essential, was a good
rifle. I replied that I had that as a present and wished him to in-
spect and pass judgment on it. I told him it was with my "traps"
on the Natchez. He told me to bring it with me, and he would
figure out the probable cost of the balance. I said to him that I
wished the outfit made as though for himself. In the evening I
took my rifle, Butler going along with me, by Mr. Nichols' room.
He took the gun and examined it externally and said it had been
made by a workman. He could not say anything more about it
until he took it to pieces. As to the other things, it might take
$30 or perhaps $40 to buy them. I handed him $50.
We, Captain Butler and I, went to see Colonel Austin and the
party. He, Butler, was employed to assist in looking up a suitable
vessel to take charge of the outfit for the trip and was to employ
assistance if necessary. The agent of the expedition was an elderly
man, a sort of iron monger. He was known as Captain Rinker. I
think he became purchaser of the vessel or responsible for any
balance due on her purchase. When Colonel Austin left in com-
pany with Mr. Hawkins via the land route, this Captain Rinker
was cashier for the outfit and the necessary provisions by virtue
of which fact he claimed the right of naming her captain-a most
Upcoming Pages
Here’s what’s next.
Search Inside
This issue can be searched. Note: Results may vary based on the legibility of text within the document.
Tools / Downloads
Get a copy of this page or view the extracted text.
Citing and Sharing
Basic information for referencing this web page. We also provide extended guidance on usage rights, references, copying or embedding.
Reference the current page of this Periodical.
Texas State Historical Association. The Quarterly of the Texas State Historical Association, Volume 3, July 1899 - April, 1900, periodical, 1900; Austin, Texas. (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth101015/m1/19/: accessed April 25, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu; crediting Texas State Historical Association.