February  16 Monday – Sam boarded the packet Paul Jones (353 tons), on its way from Pittsburgh, for passage to New  Orleans, commanded by  Hiram K. Hazlett and piloted by Horace E. Bixby (1826-1912), and Jerry Mason [Branch,  “Bixby” 2]. Branch presents evidence for this date over Apr. 15.

Sam  claimed in his autobiography that his intention was to travel to the Amazon,  but could not find passage once in New Orleans.  His other longtime dream of becoming a steamboat pilot then took over and he  approached Bixby about becoming his assistant. Bixby had a sore foot, which  made standing at the wheel painful, so Sam did “a lot of steering” for him.  Sam’s impressions of the Paul Jones:

“I was in Cincinnati . . . I packed my valise, and took passage on  an ancient tub called the PAUL JONES for New Orleans.  For the sum of sixteen dollars I had the scarred and tarnished splendors of  ‘her’ main saloon principally to myself, for she was not a creature to attract  the eye of wiser travelers” [ LM Ch.5].