The colored patriot., 1882-05-18
The Lumberman's Story.

1t all happened in q supply store. one
rainy day, way up in the lumber woods
of Michigan. The neighboring settlers
had gathered in to trade, and have q
quiet, social chat. As usual, the con
versation soon drifted to the extraordi-
nary pulling done by different yokes of
oxen. All had told their little story on
this subject, but the man on the tea
chest. He did not as much rs utter q
comment. This being noticed, he was
asked to chip in his yarn. He baShful-
ly declined, and being pressed the hard
er. lifted one leg over the other, and re-
marked:
when was a small boy in York
State"
"Quiet, there" remarked the red
whiSkered man, "until we hear this"
g. small boy in York State" con-
tinued the man on the tea-chest, "about
the year 1920, lived with my gram
ther. He owned one of the wickedest
steer teams to pull that ever stood on
hoOfS. There was new railroad being
built by the farm that spring, and the
steers were comm three. The old gen.
tleman and had been across the new
railroad one day a-logging. Coming
home about five o'clock we crossed the
track where the railroad men were put
ting in a bridge. The steam engine was
trying to haul big stick of timber to
the place. They had it on rollers, 1t
was hitched to the tender by a six-inch
cable. Every time the engineer would
let on steam to pull, the drive-wheelS
would spin around and around on the
rails. She would not bulge an inch.
Then they sanded the rails and tried
again and again, but it was no use, they
couldn't move il"
How large was the stick?" queried
the red-whiSkered man.
"Well, it was about four feet square
and so long that it took a man and a
small boy to see the end of it." modest
ly resumed the narrator. 1.-The engineer
gOtmad finally and jammed the fire-box
full of wood, and got up power of
steam. Then he directed the men to
leave their work and come with
hand-spikes and levers to lift on
the big beam when he gave the
word. When all was ready he opened
the throttle full length and shouted to
the men. Every one of them broke
their hand-spikes a lifting The stick
didn't move. The engine went though;
it snapped that cable like a thread, and
went ahead good many rods before it
could be stopped. The boss was just
going to telephone to the Superintendent
foranOther engine, when my grandfather
stepped up. Said he: Squire, ] can
draw that stick with my steers They
all laughed at him. He got his dander
the end of it, took a rolling hitch.
Started them little on the haw. Great
Caesar! but you shOuld have seen them
pull! When grandfather shouted Come
do-o-wn on it boys, they walked off with
that big timber as though it had been a
clothespin."
A small boy in the corner tried to
break the silence by feeble attempt to
whistle. He did not get half through
before a big red-shirted lumberman
slowly arose and, reaching out softly,
exclaimed: You old moss-back! can
prove to you in five minutes that there
wasn't foot of railway in the United
States in 1920"
Then the man on the tea-chest
got so mad that his seat caved in with
him. He was rescued from n grave of
Young Hyson by the spasmodic efforts of
the stOre-keeper and the red whiskered
man. Although pressed to stay he
wouldn't, and when he left the store
was in such an absent minded mood
that he took his own umbrella. Detroit
E,.aa D,.1uo