hand in hand, as you will see; for Mr. Horatio Nelson followed in Mr. Aitken 's footsteps, only he represented the Massey- Harris Co . When Mr. Nelson passed on, his son Guy, who had always worked with his father took over the business. John A. MacDonald , Vernon River , carried on both occupations, and I have been informed that Thomas McKenna does the same thing. Now, what are the requisites of a successful auctioneer? I believe they are patience,, wit and a good strong voice. We must admit that our friend, the late Guy Nelson possessed these qualities to a marked degree. Mr. Martin MacKinnon represented the Deering Co . He did not engage in auctioneering, he was the exception. All the farm machinery com¬ panies have amalgamated. Now we have the Massey-Ferguson Company , and the International Harvester Company . SEA CAPTAINS Sea captains whom I have known to have lived in Montague at one time or another. Captain John Dewar was born here. This man built and sailed vessels; the Nereid was one of them. After this vessel was sold the owner-captain of her was bringing a cargo of coal to Montague. It was late in fall or early part of the winter. There was a thin sheet of ice on the river. The steamer Electra, captained by Captain William fCapt . Billie) MacLaren was making about her last run between here and Pictou, N.S. , and took the Nereid in tow. The Electra beam was narrower than the Nei'eid's; so much so, Che ice cut the planking of the vessel; and they barely got her to the dock when she sank. Captain George Allen was sailing out of Montague at that time. So the captain of the sunken vessel made a bargain with Captain Allen to float his vessel for him. It was agreed that the cost or charge would be the load of coal (about 65 tons). Capt. Allen went to work, patched the hull under water with heavy canvas, driving the nails under water with a sort of a patent hammer. He pumped the water out, and in a short time he floated the vessel and loaded his own (the Happy Go Lucky) with the coal, and made money on the deal. The Happy Go Lucky had a little story too. This vessel was driven high and dry on the rocks at Sydney , N.S. Captain Allen purchased the ill-fated craft, which seemed to be damaged very little. He soon succeeded in getting this "unlucky" one to go "lucky" once more. Captain Allen 's ancestors were sea-faring men—the Aliens. They and the Islanders of Cape Traverse were the men who manned the "ice boats" in keeping up communication with the mainland. Captain Langille , a coastal captain, was the first of the captains whom I knew. Then there was Capt. Poirier , Capt. Rhuds who was in command of the government S.S. Aranmore , Capt. Bruhm who sailed vessels for George Wightman (merchant), Capt. Frank Lemon , who with Amos J. Robertson had a half interest in, and sailed the schooner Fanny Young , and Capt. Leeming Peardon. All these men whom I have men¬ tioned have answered the Supreme Harbour Master's call, and gone to sail on the great sea of Immortality, with the exception of Leeming Peardon who is quite smart and active yet. I had the privilege of chat¬ ting with him quite recently. I believe Captains Joseph Kennedy and MacDairmid sailed coastal vessels. I did not know these men. Captains Langille , Rhude, Bruhm and Porior were Nova Scotians. All the rest were Montague men. Capt. George Allen 's oldest son Alvah Allen must not be forgotten, for he has had a very early experience on the water. Alvah was sailing with his father when he was only eight years of age. His father would place him at the wheel, and tell him to turn it from him or to him as the occasion demanded. For some years Alvah sailed a vessel for himself up to the time he started working for The Maritime Electric Light Co . —44—