The Red Cloud chief., 1881-11-10
TIE STORY.

THE SEALEk'S SIOkf.
1t was the second winter we used the
"shoot" of the Black Stoss down into
the north branch of the st. Margarite.
This shoot, rs they called it, was a lum-
Der slide; a kind of inclined trough,
leading from the table-land back OF the
"Stoss," down to the river; the side OF
the mountain here being quite too ledgy
and precipitous to admit of using Ordi-
nary logging sleds and cattle upon it.
Our company owned a large tract OF
spruce and pine in the back country
above, and the shoot was built TO run
the saw-logs down from the brow of the
mountain to the water, where they
could be RATED to the mills. 1t had
cost upwards of ten thousand dollars.
and was rather more than half a mile in
length, being carried in a straight line
downward at an angle of not tar from
thirty degrees. The bed of the shoD II
was Of hewn logs, matched and tree
nailed together, forming a smooth, in
clined plane five feet in width. with
'.shores," or sides, of the same squared
timber. two feet in height. A kind OF
huge spout was thus made down which
the logs could be discharged upon the
ice in the branch. This was rs it stood
and was used through the first winter;
but during storms, the snow troubled
us a great deal, drifting over it and
fouling the slide. and, before commence
ing work the second winter. a plank
boxing or shed, was built over n great
part of it, to keep out the snow. Joists
were spiked to the Shores on the
outside, and to these the planks were
long box, five feet in length by about
six in height. high enough, in fact. for a
man to stand erect in. From the top
of the shoot sled-roads led off into the
forest in all directions. As fast as the
loads of logs came in, they were tum-
bled upon the inclined brow. or
''apron,' and thence set in motion,
with pike-poles, into the throat of the
great spout. One set sliding, no far
Their care for them was needed. Down
they would 90. gathering Roadway
rapidly on the steep. smooth slide. and
would come out at the toe with tre-
mendous force and NEUTRALITY-SUSPICIOUS.
ing into the frozen earth. or glancing
along the ice across the river. In fact,
the logs .'broomed' and split so badly
that a ''slow" was rugged to catch them
on; this latter continuance being a
continuation of the timber spout. car
ried for a hundred yards or more
across the stream, on a level surface.
Three men were kept at the toe, to see
that the logs did not foul there. From
the brow nj the top. a strong wire ran
down the foot, where there was a bell.
A lever at the top worked the wire.
When a load of logs had come to the
brow and was ready to be sent down.
the men at the top first gave the lever
a wrench. to notify the men below to
stand clear. A big pine log. thirty feet
in diameter, weighing at least two tons,
and coming out on the slow with the
velocity of a cannon bell, was no play
thing. Sometimes The logs would 60
end over end, clean across the river. A
log plunging down made a peculiar,
roaring noise. The whole shoot trem-
bled and seemed to hum under it. 1t
was something as when, in a saw-mill.
agreat circular goes tearing through
long log.
Week after week the wooded noun
Odiil- cluC uCtOoS tuC lHC piduCu cSuOSu
to that deep, prolonged ,~cdir-r-r-r!
We had thirty teams drawing in logs to
the brow. At least q thousand logs
were sent down every day. Only one
log was let 60 at a time. But each
passed down the shoot, a distance of
about three thousand feet, in less than
half a minute, particularly in the morn
ing when the slide was icy. Besides
the men at the brow and at the toe, we
kept a boy on the shoot, halfway up,
to tend the wire and to report if any
trouble occurred. That winter we had
hired for this purpose a lad whom they
called Tort Guillot. What Tort was
a nickname for l am sure l do not
know. His father, Clam Guillot, a
French Canadian, worked for us and
kept Tort stimulated to his work bv an
occasional birching." The boy had
drivers "corks'' in his boots. and
used to walk up and down on the plank
boxing over the slide, or lie on it look
ing through the cracks at the logs as
they shot down under him.
About three o'clock one afternoon,
rs l was sealing a pile of logs beside
the slow. I heard a heavy crash away
mp the side of the mountain, and q mo-
ment or two after saw Tort hurrying
down the top Of the shoot. He ran out
where / vas standing.
I'm btsche," he said, had '.stubbed,'
and jumped the glissade, tearing
through the plank boxing.
Tort wa not a little excited, and no
wonder. for the log had jumped not
very far from where he had been sit.
ting at the time. While ne was telling
me this, we heard the bell strike-fol-
lowed almost instantly by another
crash way up the side Of the Stoss. A
second log had jumped. Running to
the semaphore, l set the signal to stop
sending down logs, then climbed ur
with Tort to see what was the matter,
Not quite halfway up from the slow
we came to a great ragged hole IN
the plank covering. Spiinters lay
scattered on the SNOW in all directions
The logs had dashed through the plank,
ing. Is If it had been brown paper, anc
flown on like arrows. W. saw a Of
them standing end up against . tree
two or three hundred feet below. Get
ting into The shoot through thehole, We
crswled up the slippery bed on GU
hsnds and knees. It was q queer place.
Nod of woody fiber lay about. secured
No from the hewn timbers which formed
the 1oor; and every nook was driven
mn Of bark meal, from the logs Herr
~ there long sliverS stuck IN the