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Show Kolb- D 837 being wet, mixture of quicksand, silt, mud, sand and rocks. BY THE SPECIAL MASTER; Q Was it possible to make a portage of light boats around the rapid there? A In Cataract canyon the engineers never rode a boat through the rapids; they worked on the shore all the way through; they had to make two or three crossings; they could go for twenty miles without crossing the river. Cataract canyon is exceptional in that way, in that respect, and it would be possible to take a boat out at every rapid, with some difficulty, and get it around the rapid. Every rapid in Cataract, you could avoid it if you wished. BY MR. BLACKMAR: Q Portage it as distinguished it from lining a boat through? A Lining a boat is standing on the shore and manuring it with the ropes to keep it away from the rocks; nosing a boat is wading in the shallow water and holding the boat and working down in that way. We would frequently do that, two or three men hang to the side of the boat. We did that on our first trip; if we knew that water was shallow enough that we wouldn't be over waist deep, we would work it in that way. But a portage is taking it out, or dragging it by main strength over the rocks. We couldn't life the boats; we could drag them; we would use rollers, takes the cotton- being 2807 |