Old Times on the Mississippi

by Mark Twain

This historic book may have numerous typos, missing text, images, or index. Purchasers can download a free scanned copy of the original book (without typos) from the publisher. 1876. Not illustrated. ... OFFICIAL RANK AND DIGNITY OF A PILOT. THB RISE AND DECADENCE OF THE PILOTS' ASSOCIATION. In my preceding articles I have tried, by going into the minutiae of the science of piloting, to carry the reader step by step to a comprehension of what the science consists of; and at the same time I have tried to show him that it is a very curious and wonderful science, too, and very worthy of his attention. If I have seemed to love my subject, it is no surprising thing, for I loved the profession far better than any I have followed since, and I took a measureless pride in it. The reason is a pilot in those days, was the only unfettered and entirely independent human being that lived in the earth. Kings are but the hampered servants of parliament and people; parliaments Bit in chains forged by their constituency; the editor of a newspaper cannot be independent, bat must work with one hand tied behind him by party and patrons, and be content to utter only half or two-thirds of his mind; no clergyman is a free man and may speak the whole truth, regardless of his parish's opinion; writers of all kinds are manacled servants of the public. We write frankly and fearlessly, but then we "modify" before we print. In truth, ever man and woman and child has a master, and worries and frets in servitude; but in the day I write of, the Mississippi pilot had none. The captain could stand upon the hurricane deck, in the pomp of a very brief authority, and give him five or six orders, while the vessel backed into the stream, and then that skipper's reign was over. The moment that the boat was under way in the river, she was under the sole and unquestioned control of the pilot. He could do with her exactly as he pleased, run her when and whither he chose, and tie her up to ...

Genres: Nonfiction, Classics

192 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1876

About the author

Librarian Note: There is more than one author by this name in the Goodreads database.

Samuel Langhorne Clemens, known by the pen name Mark Twain, was an American writer, humorist and essayist. He was praised as the "greatest humorist the United States has produced," with William Faulkner calling him "the father of American literature." His novels include The Adventures of Tom Sawyer (1876) and its sequel, Adventures of Huckleberry Finn (1884), with the latter often called the "Great American Novel." Twain also wrote A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court (1889) and Pudd'nhead Wilson (1894), and co-wrote The Gilded Age: A Tale of Today (1873) with Charles Dudley Warner.

Reviews

[Haley Anderson · Rating 2 out of 5]

I found the descriptions of the Mississippi distractingly boring to be honest.

[Jaime · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was a good book and very funny about being a steam boat captain. Really opened my eyes to how hard it is.

[Lindsay · Rating 5 out of 5]

By the mark. Mark one! Mark twain! Half-twain. Mark three. Mark four. Deep four. Ocean D-e-e-p.

[Xavier · Rating 4 out of 5]

Always a good time reading someone talk about their trade passionately. This does a great job of explaining the technicalities of piloting a steam boat while keeping the prose casual.


The topic was a bit boring but the exuberance of the author undertaking his task more than balanced it out.

side note: When Bixby is asking MT if the river is rising or falling I got flashbacks to the dragging or rushing scene from Whiplash. The master student dynamic here is timeless.

[Alyssa · Rating 1 out of 5]

I read this for a class; or better yet, I was supposed to. I didn't finish it because I couldn't make myself care about what it as like to be the pilot of a steamboat. I pushed through the first three chapters, read chapter four, and only skimmed the rest so I would be able to pass the online quiz I had. I found the lengthy details to be insufferably boring.

[Audrey · Rating 2 out of 5]

Mark Twain writes about his experiences as a steamboat pilot on the Mississippi River before the American Civil War. There were a lot of challenges to face and lessons to learn since the river was constantly changing. It was somewhat interesting and informative regarding a past era in history.

[Heidi Buker · Rating 4 out of 5]

While this isn't normally the type of book I'd choose, I found it quite interesting. If you want to know what life as a pilot was like on a river boat in the mudv1800s, this book is a wealth of information.

[Mar Falcon · Rating 3 out of 5]

maybe interesting if you read into its (socioeconomic) implications at the time and the kind of statements it’s interested in making (about associations/unions, etc) but the reading experience itself was boring

[Hassan Awan · Rating 5 out of 5]

What an insightful book. If you find yourself drawn to Twain's character and hunger for a dive into his young years, this book is a great place to start.

Punch in the presence of the passenger!

[Sanzana Jess]

Quite a nice reading, this one.

[Ellis S · Rating 3 out of 5]

Mark Twain’s writing is excellent, the subject matter is dry but at the same time it’s well described. I kept thinking of my dad while I was reading

[lnor · Rating 3 out of 5]

Boy you talk too much

[Brennon Shanks · Rating 4 out of 5]

“And doesn’t he sometimes wonder whether he has gained most or lost most by learning his trade?”

[Stormcrow Hayes · Rating 4 out of 5]

A delightful account of life in the 50s, the 1850s, as Twain apprentices as a "cub" to a riverboat pilot.

I found this book thoroughly delightful, but I could just as easily see how other readers might find his detailed account of the mighty Mississippi too detailed or boring. I found it neither and delighted in every detail and anecdote.

Early on, he writes of how the captain would remark, "This is Six-Mile Point, this is Nine-Mile Point" but when quizzed on it later, Twain had no idea he was supposed to remember the names of those points. He thought the captain was just being "entertaining." His answer unleashes a tirade of profanity that, once spent, allows the pilot to inform Twain that he must remember every point along the entire river and so much more. Twain cannot believe how much he is supposed to remember and does not think it possible, but soon he learns the ways to read the river as his knowledge and skills increase.

Rich in detail and full of fun stories, I thoroughly enjoyed this very select period of Twain's autobography.

[Joel · Rating 4 out of 5]

"Old Times on the Mississippi" reminded me of a miniature, less absorbing Moby Dick, with a river instead of a whale. Humorous tales of heroics and failures mixed with Twain's firsthand experience as a pilot/cub, giving me an appreciation for an artform I hadn't thought about much before now. Huckleberry Finn inspired my love for rafting and the river, but after finishing this I cannot confess the same inspiration, but rather a melancholy that steamboating and all of it's intricacies have gone the way of the librarian. Oh wait

[Paul Harsin · Rating 5 out of 5]

Interesting to History buffs

This autobiographical work was used as a rough draft for Mark's Life On The Mississippi. It pulls the reader along by the lapels to the end. I have read must of Mark's published works over the past 60 years, always imagining I could put myself in his shadow. No other American humorist can equal his sense of "style".

[Dan · Rating 5 out of 5]

I liked it more than Huckleberry Finn. :)

I learned more from it.

[Rat Boy Hedonist · Rating 3 out of 5]

They call out mark twain to gauge the depth of the water....he spent a lot of time on boats...he heard mark twain a lot...he wrote about it....OH MY GOD THATS WHY HIS NAME IS MARK TWAIN

[Bobby Daugherty · Rating 3 out of 5]

Twain's recollections of having been a riverboat captain in his youth. A highly technical job at the time.