The times. (Owosso, Mich.) 1882-1897, 1882-04-28

men towork the boats up the river. They
had to make RATS to cross the river upon,
and slept on the ground nights without
any shelter. Game was plentiful, and
they saw many deer and elk. On the
way Mr.. Roberts was taken sick and
thought he would die. He was so blind
that the men had to lead him. He took
some medicine, and lay down and went
to sleep, while the guide and two men
went on to the Falls, n distance of six
miles, where a Canadian Freedman had
been all winter making shingles. and get
ting out timber. They came down the
river the next morning in boat after
him, bringing with them some 'nick-
nacks,' pan of fat pork, and some bread
they had made. AS he felt much better,
he got on the boat and rode awhile, and
then walked the rest of the,way. Found
the Falls dismal looking place, with on
ly shanty covered with dirt to live in
Went to work and built block-house IS
x2O. We're short of provisions until the
boat came. He Immediately put the whip
saw going. cutting out lumber at the rate
of $50 feet a day, and put up carpenter
shop and blacksmith shop, then took
twelve men into the woods to get out tim
Der for the mill, and set the rest of the
men to work upon the mill-race 100 rods
long, and IS of it through solid rock,
which kept them cannonading all summer,
blasting it out. The mill-timbers were
then drawn out for framing. About July
LIST, a heavy rain with thunder and light
ming commenced and continued for two
days, which caused the river to raise so
that they had to move out of the house
and fasten all the buildings down with
ropes and chains to trees, to keep them
from floating away. The water was five
feet deep in the warehouse, and all the
provisions had to be loaded on boat.
After the water went down, the mill,
65x40, was framed, and on the 4th of Oc-
tober the raising began. 1t was done
with oxen and tackle, and took about a
week. Winter set in about Nov. LIST, and
during it he worked most of the time
making gearing for the mill, and getting
out timber for a double boom seventy five
rods long About the middle of January
the Fur Company made them visit of
about week, bringing many presents and
butter and cheese. One Of the men,
Enoch Dole, was taken sick in February,
with quick consumption. They had to
| send eighty miles for medicine, and he
died on the 9Th of March, before the man
got back with the medicine. They laid
out burying ground and buried him de-
Gently. and Mr.. Roberts placed two grave
stones Mt his grave.
The night that Dole died Roberts went
out to cut some wood from pole, which
flew up and struck his leg, hurting it bad
ly, it swelled and turned black, and for a
week or so grew continually worse. A
squaw came to the house and saw the
condition of his leg, and said she could
cure it. He offered her silver dollar to
do so. She went into the woods and gath
cred some bark and roots and boiled them
in kettle, put them into tub, and had
him place his leg in the tub, and covered
it with blanket and gave it good
steaming. She then broke off a piece of
flint and lanced the leg in seventeen
places, and aquantity of black blood came
out, although he tainted during the ope-
ration, in three days he was able to go out
to work again. AS they were three hun
dred miles from Post Office they did not
hear from home very often.
About May LIST they got one saw going,
and soon after second one, their power
being water with a fall of twenty-five feet.
He built shop at the end of the mill COX
rs, two stories high, a single machine,
turning lathe, and grindstone. Then built
a store 1880. and got everything in run
ming order about June 18th. He then
bnilt skiff, and taking one man with
him bid farewell to Chippewa Falls They
lay on shore nights, camping among the
bears and wolves, and on the fourth day
arrived at Prairie du Chem, where Mr..
Densman, the head of the Fur Company,
settled with him, paying him $94O, mostly
In American half dollars"
NUMBERING IN MINNESOTA.
Minnesota, like Wisconsin, has rich lum-
Der regions, but work was not begun
as early there as in Wisconsin, nor at
tended with as many difficulties. It rath-
er waited the advance of settlements, and
was not as fruitful of wild pioneer Incl
dents as were the pine forests of wiscon-
sin. Indians roamed the woods and were
the friendly companions, and sometimes
guides of the early Minnesota lumbermen.
Sometimes the snow would be deep, and
covered with heavy crust. Game would
be scarce, and the poor, balf-starved In
dian would be glad to beg little provi-
sions at the lumbermen's shanty, and, to
their credit be It said, they were seldom
refused, or turned away empty handed
But everything had to be closely guarded,
for these same friendly Indians were in
veterate pilferers, and would carry of
whatever they could without detection.
Sometimes horse OF an OK belonging
TO the lumbermen would die, and If the
Indians happened to be in destitute cir
cumstances, they would carry it to their
camps and feast on its carcass. And, for
the benefit Of science be it said, but few
cases have been known where they were
T. a l. "A ii. - -