Steamboat Willy Ch. 01

I shifted to neutral then into forward. The paddles stopped, then turned the other way. I added a little throttle and off we went. We got to the river channel and she started to turn to the left, down stream. I yelled, "Turn right!" She did it and looked back at me

"If something breaks we can drift back this far. Let's test up river first." She smiled and we tried our first turn. We didn't make it. I had to quickly shift into reverse to prevent the boat from hitting the trees on the side of the river. When we were clear I yelled for her to engage the bow rudder. I shifted back to forward and pushed the throttle way forward. The wheel thrashed behind me and the bow turned away from the bank and we were headed up the river again.

I told Sally to put the steering in FULL. She moved the lever and eased to the right to get ready for the left turn coming up. We made that turn but with no room to spare. The next turn was not as sharp and had a bit of straight river after it. I pulled back on the throttle until we were standing still in the current. I told Sally to put the steering in OFF and I ran forward and shifted the push rod end to the next outward position on the crank. I ran back and told her to shift back to full. When she was ready I added power until we were moving along nicely. She had no trouble with the remaining turns.

We turned around in a wide spot and headed back down stream. Now it was harder to adjust the speed because we were going with the current. Sally had a near miss on the first turn. The current wanted to push us in to the side of the channel. Sally quickly learned to turn hard into the up stream side at the start of each turn, that gave her room to drift into the next turn putting her on the upstream side again.

We saw an outboard boat coming the other way and I tooted the horn to alert them. They gave us a wide berth and we just missed them. I tooted at them as we went by. They all waved and smiled at us. I pulled the lever that sent a blast of steam through the boiler to clean the tubes and stack. A cloud of black smoke poured from the stack for a minute or two. I tooted again. Sally laughed at me. "You are just a big kid."

We had an uneventful cruise back to the dock. When the launch was all secured and the was fire out Sally hugged me. "I could never have done this without you. Let me run in the house and check my calls." She was back in just a minute. "I'll ride with you to take Jeb home. OK?"

I said, "Super, load up Jeb." I grinned." This is the second day in a row you haven't worked."

"I know, I am easing off and will quit altogether soon."

"Hey! Great!"

"Is this something new?"

"No, I have planned all along to quit about now."

"What do you plan on doing with the boat now?"

"I want to talk to you about that. I want to sell steamboat tours of the river. What do you think?"

"Hey! Good idea. I can have Jeb trained to be your Engineer in a week or less."

She was looking at me. I looked at her. Tears were rolling from her eyes and down her cheeks. "You are quitting me?"

"Somebody has to work on the big boat."

She wiped her eyes. "Don't scare me like that."

She smiled, "Can you rig the steam whistle so I can blow it too?"

"Sure, easy."

When we were almost back to her place she said, "Would you like to come in for a drink?"

"I would love to."

We entered the mobile home. It was spotless and very nice. She asked what I would like to drink. I said I would have a light rum and water if she had it, if not what did she have. I remarked, "I have been limiting myself to one drink a day, beer or booze. I need to loose a little weight."

She looked me up and down. "Maybe one or two pounds, no more than that. You don't have much fat on you from what I can tell."

"You can't see my love handles."

"Lift your shirt and turn around."

"What?"

"You heard me."

"Yes Ma'am, there, see what I mean?"

"Bah! You don't have love handles. None at all."

"Well I think I have something there."

"I do not see it, I only see a strong healthy looking back. No fat."

I turned and smiled at her. "I showed you mine now you have to show me yours."

She laughed; she lifted her shirt and showed me her flat belly. "Are we even now?"

"That's fair. We are even. Really I am way ahead."

Sally looked at me. "I don't know what you mean by that."

"Nothing Girl, nothing at all. Your belly is very cute and my back is nothing. OK?"

I said, "Sally, is everything alright, I mean with your work and all."

"No, everything is fine. I am happy about ending it. Very happy."

"I know something is bothering you. Can you talk to me about it, perhaps I can help you."

"Honey, I'm fine. Maybe, someday we can sit down and talk."

"Sometimes it helps to talk it all out."

"Come over for breakfast in the morning and we can get another test run before I have to get ready for work."

"I thought you were through."

"Not quite yet. Four or five more nights and I'm all done."

We sat and talked for hours. I desperately wanted to tell her how I felt about her. I was afraid I would frighten her. I said nothing. I was home by 10 o'clock and was ready for bed when my phone rang. It was Jack Sloan, my old fishing buddy I hadn't seen in months. He had been fishing in Australia for three months. We talked for a long time and he invited me to go to an exclusive Club he had joined. He was a widower and he said there were usually some single ladies there to dance with. He laughed and said that if the ladies were members they were very wealthy.

I laughed and said I would be happy to go with him if the food was good. He said it was great, the best he had had in town. He said the club had a few vacancies and that the membership was limited to 500 members. You had to be very wealthy and be sponsored by member. He said he would sponsor me.

"Will you lend me the money so I can qualify?"

"Don't give me that shit Rich, I was your Vice President for nine years. I damned well know what you are worth. I know you like to live alone in a double wide and pretend to be an average guy, I know better. I know you have yachts and airplanes and stuff stashed around. This club is very exclusive, no one is after your money."

I told him I would see if I liked it, and then decide.

I met Sally in the morning onboard 'WILLY'. I had the steam almost to the right pressure. She was happy and relaxed. I showed her the new pull cord for the whistle right over the steering station. I also showed her the new brass bell I had installed by the steering wheel. She wanted to know what the bell was for.

I told her that Navies for nearly a hundred years had used a bell to signal the engineer what the commander of a vessel wanted the engine to do. There was less chance for misunderstanding a command than with a verbal command. "We will use one bell for AHEAD, two bells for NEUTRAL, and three bells for REVERSE."

I told Sally that Jeb was going to be the engineer on this trip, he grinned from ear to ear. She grinned at us and said, "OK, then Rich is the Captain and I will be the deck hand."

I looked back at Jeb, "Pressure up?"

"Yessuh, Skipper. She ready now."

I yanked on the bell three times; we slowly backed toward the river. I turned hard left and we swung to the left. I rang two bells, let the boat slow some then rang one bell. The boat surged ahead. When we entered the channel I turned north. It took me a turn or two to get comfortable with the steering.

After a while we made the turn that ended with us heading due east. The river was straight here, the turns had been removed. There were huge areas of tree stumps poking above the water. It was the remains of the forest that had been flooded when they dammed the river. Sally was by my side, I looked at Jeb and told him to put on more throttle. The wheel was really turning now. I looked back again and said, "All of it but be ready to yank it off if anything breaks."

We were really going fast now, I guessed 15 to 18 miles an hour. I heard Jeb open the door to the firebox and throw in a couple more logs and slam the door shut. I looked back And Jeb pointed back behind the boat. We were throwing out a wide wake and a trail of black smoke followed us. I gave a long blast of the whistle. We all grinned.

Sally turned to me and said, "Let's go on down to the locks on the canal and see if we can arrange to have them open for us with advance notice."

"Are you planning to run this boat on the St. Johns or the Ocklawaha River?"

"This boat I would like to run on the Ocklawaha and the bigger boat on the St. Johns. There is no place on the Ocklawaha that could accommodate the big boat with dockage and loading and unloading and parking. We have to have all that. And we want to be able to run dinner cruises at night. That would be a nightmare on this river."

"God yes. That would be crazy even with lots of lights."

We were approaching the locks and I stayed well to the right and started my turn to head up against the current, The bow rudder helped get the bow around. I yelled, "More power." I felt us surge into the current. I yelled,

"Ease the power off."

"Sally, be ready with the bow line."

"Jeb, hold us in place with the power. Good, Perfect." I rang two bells and tooted the horn with a long blast. I turned and saw Jeb getting the stern line and tossing it to Sally. I said, "Good work guys. Jeb stay onboard. No visitors aboard. Keep the fire going but you can let the pressure drop some. We shouldn't be long." I climbed on the dock and ran after Sally and caught her as she entered the building. We went to the main desk and asked if the person to ask about the locks were around. The clerk there said she would check. A few minutes later a man came out and talked to us. Sally introduced us and told him what we were interested in learning. He said that he was sure we could arrange for a one time opening and locking through of a large steamboat. The publicity would be good for both parties. He wanted to know how often we would want to lock the smaller boat through.

Sally said, "We envision perhaps out in the morning and back in the afternoon; maybe twice a month." He said he would check and let us know.

He looked at us, "Was that train whistle I heard a bit ago from your boat?"

I answered him, "Yes it is the smaller boat, would you like to see it?"

His face lit up. "I sure would, is it at our dock?"

We walked out and he admired the boat, "Is the other boat bigger?"

"Oh! Yes, this boat is 45 feet long, the other boat is almost twice as big."

He walked the length of the boat, "It is beautiful, I love the steam engine, you burn wood?"

"Yes, nothing but wood."

He grinned and Sally and I got aboard. Jeb had thrown a log or two in the fire as we talked. I saw him release a little steam and said, "Sally, the steam pressure is up, we have to go." We shook hands. Jeb took in the stern line and Sally hurried forward and cast off the bowline. She jumped aboard as I rang one bell. The boat moved slowly into the current. I reached up and pulled on the lanyard to the steam whistle and gave a long toooot. I nodded to Jeb and he opened the throttle and the paddle wheel thrashed as we picked up speed up the river. I looked at Jeb and told him to clean the stack. He held the lever open and a loud roar of steam was heard and a belch of black soot emerged from the smoke stack. I looked back and waved to the grinning people on the dock.

Sally stood close to me and hugged my arm. She looked up at me and said, "You are quite a showman aren't you, I loved it."

"I'll bet he will be telling his wife and kids and his boss and everyone he meets about us for weeks. You need to schedule some rides and demonstrations with the press and with State and County Officials along for the rides."

"Rich, you are right. First I need to get a Coast Guard inspection for use as a Commercial Vessel. Then I have to get insurance. We need to train a crew. So damned much to do."

"Sally I'll help all I can."

"OH! Rich, I know you will, I could never have gotten this far with out you, I know that. I love this boat, don't you?"

I looked around at the boat, the wide wake, the trail of smoke, and the grin on the face of the Engineer. Yeah! I loved it all right.

I pulled her to me and kissed her on the lips. We held the kiss for a long time. She stayed pressed to my body long after we stopped kissing. She looked up at me and smiled softly, "How can I ever thank you. You made my Daddy's dream come true."

"Hey, you were half way done when I came along, I had the most fun I have had in many years."

She looked in my eyes and whispered, "I hope it doesn't end soon."

"Me too!"

We secured the 'WILLY" and I drove Jeb home after telling Sally I would see her in the morning. I dropped Jeb off and went home and relaxed for a couple of hours. I shaved and put on a featherweight Armani suit and some light Italian shoes. I hear a horn and went out to join Jack Sloan in his Bentley.

He wanted to know how I liked his car. I told him I loved it. It was elegant. We arrived at the Club. There was little to indicate it was anything special. We passed the entrance that bore a small brass sign saying it was a private club. A large man stood by the door. We went around the corner and turned into a gated driveway. Jack inserted a card in a slot and the gate opened. We moved down a ramp to a door and another key device. Jack pressed his finger on a pad and the door opened into a large parking garage. The parking spaces were very large and were numbered. I noticed a few at the other end that held long limos. We got out and I followed Jack to a door. A very large black man said, "Good evening Mr. Sloan, how are you this evening." He nodded to me and smiled and said, "Good evening Mr. Murphy."

He opened a large door for us. We were in an elevator. Jack pressed a button and the car lifted then stopped. We were in a lovely foyer and were greeted by an older man who asked if we needed a table for two. Jack said that was correct. The man nodded to another man and said "Please show Mr. Sloan to his table.

The room was quite large. There was soft music and a dance floor. It appeared that there was a bar on the other side of the dance floor. Several people were in the bar, and most of the tables were filled.

We had a wonderful meal, every thing was excellent and the service was superb. I enjoyed it. We were sipping a brandy after dinner and talking about old time when I saw a familiar figure on the dance floor. It was Sally. She looked elegant in a cocktail dress of emerald green. She was dancing with an older gentleman. They were laughing and talking as they danced.

Jack said, "Beautiful isn't she?"

I said, "She certainly is!"

"That is Sally, she is out of your price range. As a matter of fact she only goes with two or three older guys here. I understand she used to have more guys she 'Dated' but only goes with a couple now."

"What do you mean, 'Price Range'?"

"She is an escort, a hooker. But a super high priced one, but never act like you think she is anything but a lady, insult her and every guy in here will help throw you out the door. Every one in here loves her for some reason. She talks to all the help and most of the members. I haven't met her yet."

I couldn't take my eyes off of her. It appeared she adored her partner. She looked at him in a loving way. They look like a married couple. Older man with a young trophy wife. Then they passed close to our table and she saw me. She blanched and stopped dead in her tracks. The man she was with stopped too.

"Rich! How nice to see you. You look quite handsome tonight. This is my friend Charles Passault. Charles this is Richmond Murphy, I believe I have mentioned him."

"Yes you have Darling, many, many times, I am happy to meet you young man." I stood and introduced them to Jack. They walked away.

Jack stared at me, "Hey man, you know her? Wow!"

"Yes I know her, she is a friend."

"Do you know her professionally?"

"No, she is a friend, we just share an interest in old steamboats." We left shortly there after. I was stunned and wasn't very good company. Jack wanted to know what was wrong. I told him I wasn't feeling well.

I sat and stared at the wall most of the night. I just couldn't understand what I had learned. Sally a hooker, a whore. I couldn't believe it. My life seemed to end. I don't know how long I sat there. Then I had a terrible headache. It was daylight. My phone was ringing. I was crying. I picked up the phone, it was Jeb, and he asked if I was going to work. I told him I was sick and hung up. I looked down. There was an empty bottle of my favorite 120 proof Captain Morgan rum. I just bought the bottle the day before. Must have leaked out. I tried to walk to the bathroom to pee. I couldn't get up. I felt so damned sad I wanted to die, I couldn't remember why. Then the phone started ringing, I tried to answer it but dropped it. At least it was quiet then. I went back to sleep.

Then there was a banging noise. It just wouldn't stop. I tried to go back to sleep then someone came in the door. It was Jack. He wanted to know if I was all right. I assured him I was fine, that I had just fallen asleep when I got home the night before.

He looked at me. "Shit Rich, that was night before last. You stink. I've never seen you like this. You are still wearing the same suit. Let me help you to the shower. I heard a voice say, "Is he all right?" It was Sally. She said, "Let me help you with him. We need to get him in the shower. Oh! He stinks, I think he wet himself."

Jack said, "Yeah! More than once too. I hope that suit will clean up."

I felt my clothes being removed as Sally helped me in the shower. I felt the warm water run down my body, it felt good but I couldn't stand up, someone was holding me up while someone else washed my body. They washed my face and my hair. I just wanted to go back to sleep. I heard someone say "Don't let him lay down, keep him walking. I'll fix some coffee. I looked at the guy holding me up, he was black, Jeb! Someone had the other side, Jack. "What the hell kind of dance is this?" I asked. "Let me rest a while, please."

"No keep walking." A while later I felt better. They let me sit down if I promised to drink some coffee. Sally looked beautiful, I didn't know why but I started to softly cry. I heard her say, "I think it will be all right to put him to bed now. Jeb, please call me after a while, you too Mr. Sloan. I'll stay with him."

"OK Miz Sally, is he going to be alright?"

"I think he just needs some sleep. Help me get him to his bed."

I felt soft gentle hands washing my face with a warm damp cloth. My eyes were washed too. I felt soft tender lips press against mine and as I fell asleep I heard a sweet voice say, "I love you Richie, I really do."

I woke up, my head pounded. I felt terrible, I tried to set up. There was an arm across my chest. I looked over next to me. Golden hair spread across the pillow and my chest. A head was on my shoulder. I turned my head and my nose was in the hair. It smelled of sweet violets and vanilla, Sally! Sally? What was Sally doing in my bed? Yeah, it was my bed. I remembered being sick. My head sure felt as if I had been rode hard and put up wet. I had to pee. I tried to move without disturbing Sally but her eyes flew open. She looked at me with a blank expression, then she smiled, "How are you feeling?"

"Terrible, don't go anywhere I'll be right back." She giggled. I got up, I was nude, I hurried to the bathroom. When I was done I peeked out the door. She was looking at me.

"Come on, get in bed, I've seen you before when I gave you a shower last night."

"What?"

"Hush and get in bed and I'll get you warm." I got in bed and she cuddled right up to me. It felt good, I went back to sleep.