Encounters
''prairie'' ▫ᴱᴺ｜encounter｜ENC｜20260904120411-29-•
Just as success seemed within reach, the water level began to drop, forcing the Talisman, on which Lincoln served as assistant pilot, to turn back. The boat retreated slowly in the face of stiff prairie winds, making only 3 or 4 miles a day. A sense of déjà vu may have overcome Lincoln when the vessel stuck on the same New Salem mill-dam that had snagged his flatboat a year earlier. By this time, the boat was in sad shape, with the cabin and upper portions severely damaged by trees overhanging the sluggish river. The crew tore away part of the dam and retreated ignominiously to Beardstown, their mission a failure. After pocketing his $40 fee, Lincoln trudged back to New Salem, where his warehousing business met the same melancholy fate as Offutt’s store.
Source: Abraham Lincoln ∶ A Life ▫𓂃
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