Pictured is the steamboat Lizzie, loading bales of cotton in Houston in 1873. This is exactly the type of ship Lark is based on. Notice how the lower deck extends to accomodate more cargo. Bales could be stacked so high that the only thing visible would be the smokestacks, the wheels, and the pilothouse.
Also note the barges. Steamboats often towed barges along with them to increase their capacity. The Lark would not have been doing that, as she would not have been doing the business in 1900 to require one. Also, I have noticed this practice was used in Buffalo Bayou, Galveston Bay, etc . . . but no mention of it in the Brazos. It may not have been feasible, what with the shallowness and other difficulties of the river.
Picture courtesy of the Maritime Texas Blog.
http://maritimetexas.net/wordpress/
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