BARGEMASTER
a novel containing historical data
The two other crewmembers came running and jumped on to the boat. Kok told them
to sit down and relax while he would use the pole for the last stretch. Peter
enjoyed the obvious amazement of the resistance boys as they watched Kok’s
skill. The boy had purposely gone to the bow to sit with them. When he
manipulated the pole, Kok didn’t need anybody at the rudder. As it sped along,
the barge remained at an exact equidistance from the shores.
“There is no doubt that Joop knew exactly what he was doing when he insisted
that there is only one guy who is perfectly suited for the job,” the tall guy
remarked.
“We got lucky! And he is doing it all at no charge,” the short guy added. Then,
turning to Peter: “Does he know exactly where to stop?”
“Not if you guys didn’t tell him; but, don’t worry. As soon as he’ll get behind
the Verhagen residence, he’ll slow down. He knows it is one of those houses.”
“Then, he knows as much as we do. I venture to guess that Joop’s upper body will
be hanging out of the window of the house in question.”
“And he’ll be frantically waving a flashlight,” Peter added with a laugh. “And
that will probably be unnecessary. Uncle has cats’ eyes. He frequently takes a
barge from one municipality to the next all in the dark.”
There was a burst of laughter from all three when they saw the moving flashlight
up ahead. Uncle continued at the same speed for another fifty meters. Then, he
took his pole out of the water and calmly walked to the rudder. He sat down and
let the barge float against the shore. At the gentle touch, uncle stood up and,
holding a short pole upright against the boat, drove it into the mud at the
back. As he walked to the front to repeat the action, Peter went aft to wrap the
chain around the upright. Uncle did the same at the front and the boat lay
motionless. The open window was pretty well exactly at the midsection of the
hold.