The Cheyenne daily leader. [volume] (Cheyenne, Wyo.) 1870-1884, 1882-08-15
Ancient Saw Mills.

The saw mills of half q century or more
ago were very crude and inefficient in COM
parison to the better class of saw mills OF
the present day and, in fact, to what they
have been for the last thirty years or moro.
But, during this later period. the march 81
Improvement has been so rapid and radical,
that what would have been considered y
frst-class mill in every respect, twenty-five
or thirty years ago, would be ranked as far
behind the times at the present time es-
pecially for the larger class of mills, by
which extensive forests are rapidly de
youred, as by an herd of insatiate mon
sters. As an example of the saw Ioills of
the period first mentioned, l select for de-
scription the one of when | have the ear
lest recollection. 1t was built a little yyer
sixty wears ago. 1t was located ON, and
received its power from a small branch of
the SusquehaDna river, which diverged abb
ruptly from the main channel, encompass
sing about two-thirds of the boundary of a
large island, returning to the main chan
mel ms abruptly as it departed, about a milo
and a half below the point of departure,
A timber dam was built across The branch
at the mill, by which, in favorable stages
of water, a head of from three TO four feet
was secured for operating the saw mill, and
a grist mill contiguous thereto.
The saw mill contained two water wheels,
as was usual in those days, and still is TO
some extent at present, in small mills in
tended for local or peighborhood custom.
In this mill the saw was driven by what
was termed a side vent reaction wheel, Of
about six feet diameter, revolving hori-
zontally on an upright wooden shaft. A
large wooden cog wheel, with wooden
cogs, shanked and itted into mortises in
il, and projecting from its lower face, was
attached to the upper part OF the Shalt, by
arms secured in mortises made through it.
The rank was supported in wooden bear
ings on beams, which were termed crank
bents, which were some three or four feet
apart, and located about midway the
length of the mill, and forming a part of
the frame thereof. On the crank was a fly
wheel and a cast-iron spun pinion of coarse
pitch, into which the cogs of the aforesaid
wooden wheel meshed, to drive the crank;
the wheel and pinion performing the Office
of bevel gear, though in a comparatively
imperfect manner The gig wheel was of
the same kim as the one mentioned, but
only about three feet diameter. 1t had n
wooden trundle-head on the upper end of
its shaft, which meshed into wooden cogs
in the face of the rag wheel, by which
means the carriage was gigged back for n
new cut of the saw. The sash, or saw gate
as it was termed, was placed in rabbits
in the corners of the fender posts, and
held there by -four wooden hooks having
one shoulder and a side tension each. which
latter was secured in mortises extending
from front to rear through the fender posts,
the shoulders or hooks projecting over the
face of the side pieces of thes saw gate, to
hold it in place in the rabbits in the fen
der posts. Thu the wooden saw gate was
guided in its operations in wooden ways
with tallow as a lubricator in warm wealth
, or, and lard in cold weather; notwithstand-
ing the rate of motion was only about fron
80 to 125 strokes of saw per minute, the
friction of the outer edges of the stiles of
, the sash, when sprung out by u heavy
) strain on the saw, would be so great as to
! raise what the fire-iends might deem a
very promising degree of smoke, causing
them to dance. with demoniacal glee, in
high anticipation of n fiery jubilee.
/ have seen many an old sash stile, with
pretty thoroughly charred surfaces, and
6 the rabbits in the fender posts ditto. Tie
{ give an appreciative idea of the wonder
full rapidity of the saving done in that
mill, when the head of water was consider
. ably below par, l have known the sawyer
: to hoist the gate for a cut through a 1t
Q feet log, and 90 to his meal fifteen or tweuy
I rods away, and keep a child at the door 4
watch and tell him hen the saw wa
+ nearly through the log, and on warning be
ing given, he would leave his meal and &,
hAo kAk 0ANR a. wa ~ ~ ~ - 49,
Q cut, and then return to h house and fin
s ish his meal, and get back to the mill il
time for the next gig and set. How is tina
/ for fast saving? o! the millions of fee
such a mill would saw ii you only gave !
O time enough. But, however captivating t
the modern sawyer the picture may be
however much he may sigh over the de
parture of those good old easy going mills
and in imagination fancy himself remand
- l R1 hnpl in N1n W~Ls1.-.- e ii - 49,
= fortably snoozing in the old mill, after
) spree of the night before, while the saw il
leisurely gnawing its way through the log
or anon reading the news, or some roman
|, sic story of love in a cabin or n castle i
may not matter SO much which, for in re
atty, happiness may not so much NOR,
abide in the latter thar in the former, a.
many suppose. l must awaken him from
his comfortable ~reverie, while l give hin
an account of the provisions for the cas-,
and comfort of sawyers, as connected witt
some of the old mills, and especially witt
the mill under consideration. l refer IL
, the log-way. In this case the log-way wa,
: about $50 feet long; extending from tn,
front side of the mill, slightly ascending
until it struck the gently inclined ground
This log-way was made of five or six
strings of timbers laid on bents of various
heights, the stills of which rested on the
ground; the. bents near the mill being
eight or ten feet high. By this benefcent
contrivance the sawyer was furnished with
n fair amount of healthful outdoor exer.
else, in rolling in logs along this conve-
nient little log-way; and to further fill in
bis time and keep him from snoozing and
DOING while waiting for the saw to arrive
in the neighborhood of the tail dog, OF
rather uice cersd, he could fill in his odd
spare time by butting or squaring off with
an axe the ends of the logs, many of which
were cut with an axe, and one end left cut
s~lanting from each side, pointing the log
in theform of a stunt wedge. No one will
doubt but what these varied exercises,
temperately indulged in, were healthful.
l commend the consideration of the sub