The Vancouver independent. (Vancouver, W.T. [Wash.]) 1875-1910, 1882-05-11
The Lnmberlnan's Story.

The Lnmberman'S Story.
1t all happened in supply store, one
rainy day, way up in the lumber woods of
Michigan. The neighboring settlers mad
gathered in to trade, and have quiet,
social chat. As usual, the conversation
soon drifted to the extraordinary pulling
done by different Jokes of oxen. All had
told their little story on this subject, but
the man on the tea chest. He did not as
much as utter a comment This being
noticed, he was asked to chip in his yarn.
He bashfully declined, and being pressed
the harder, lifted one leg over the chair,
and remarked:
when was small boy in York
State"
"Quiet, there" remarked the red whis-
kered man, "until we hear this"
t. small boy in York State" con-
tinued the man on the tea-chest, "about
the year 1920, I lived with my gran Their.
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 8. The old gentleman and l had
been across the new railroad one day
Alleging. Coming home about o'clock
we crossed the track where the railroad
men were putting in a bridge. The steam
engine was trying to haul big stick of
timber to the place. They had it on roll
ers. It was hitched to the tender by
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 it,"
"How large was the stick?" queried
the red whiskered man.
"WeIl, it was about four feet square
and so long that it took man and
small boy to see the other end of it,"
modestly resumed the narrator. "The
engineer got mad finally and jammed
the fire-box full of wood, and got up a
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 through; it snapped that
CdDle ike u UNREAL, anu WeuU aueau u
good many rods before it could be
stopped. The boss was just going to
telephone to the superintendent for
another 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 up and backing
Buck and Bright up to the end of t,took
a rolling hitch. Started them little on
the haw. Great Caesar! but you should
have seen them pull! When Grand
father shouted: Come do-o-wn ON it,
boys; they walked off with it as though
it had been a clothespin."
A small boy in the corner tried to
break the silence by feeble attempt to
whistle. He had not got half through
before red-shirted lumberman slowly
arose, and reaching out slowly, ex-
claimed: "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 grave of Young Hy-
son by the spasdmodic efforts of the store
keeper and the red-whiskered man. AL
though 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.