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Show Record when we were compelled to pull the scow off sand bars with a block and tackle, but ordinarily we were able to get free and proceed by piling our freight and shoving and reversing the paddle wheel on the Marguerite. At the wide shallow place in the river the bars would usually shoot the water over against the bank at a bend where there were occasionally rock banks, and it took a little work to get around these and keep the outfit off from them; but we would all get poles and oars and we got by those place. 2100 There were two such places that I distinctly remember. Exhibit 264 is a picture of our light barge on a surveying expedition that proceeded the one I have been talking about, and Exhibit 264 shows our survey barge, the Betsy Ann, struck on a sand bar. Mr. Wimmer had charge of the expedition when we took the drilling outfit down, which trip was made in the latter part of August, 1914. 2101 The other boats frequently grounded. We had plenty of help and when we got struck on a bar we just dropped overboard in the shallow water and proceeded. We drilled or first hole at a point approximately five hundred feet below the confluence of the two rivers, anchoring the drilling outfit at that point with two iron anchors similar to ship anchors for front anchors; later we had lower anchors consisting of rocks weighing four or five hundred pounts tied to inch hemp rope. During the drilling operations I was compelled 2103 to go out at times. Our purpose was to locate bed rock for a possible dam site at that point, but although our deepest hole went down one hundred and twenty- five feet, we did not find bed rock. I 2104 think we drilled six or seven holes between September 1 and the first part of November. One morning while there were just a few of us in camp there was a sudden eight foot rise in the Grand River, accompanied by immense quantities of driftwood, this driftwood came down so thick a chicken could nearly walk across the river dry shod; we had difficulties in getting over to the drill barge in a row boat, but succeeded in so doing; the driftwood accumulated on the |
