Spirit of the age. [volume] (Woodstock, Vt.) 1845-1913, 1883-06-27
CHASED BY A LOG.
Experiences Of the Michigan River
Drivers,


Drivers,
Few people have any adequate idea
of the dangers and discomforts attend
ing the life of a river driver" -Four
months Of the year, and these during
the raw and chilly spring, when he is
working from daylight to dark in the
water, his clothes are often wet and
frequently frozen for week at time.
If he falls into the cold river in the
morning, he must keep on with his
work till night. Often the heat of his
bed -. for the riyerman's etiquette
teaches him that clothes are to be worm
not hung on chair at nights only
sufficient to thaw out the garments
without drying them. | talked with
one of these river drivers Every bit
of information was given grudgingly'
though earnestly and with candor.
He said.
II have followed the river every
spring for twenty years and there are
mighty few streams in Michigan that
haven't gone to the bottom of.
Dangerous business? Well, that
depends on what part of the job you
are working at. If you are the cook,
there amt much danger. unless the
boys find pebbles in the beans, or mice
in the blackstrap. But if the crew are
breaking a jam and the old man sets
| you to 'hitching on things are liable to
be pretty lively. What is 'hitching on
and 'rollwayY Ever see high bank
at river2 Well, loggers draw their
logs during the winter to the highest
bank of stream they can reach, and
roll them down it onto the ice below,
piling them up by thousands and tens
of thousands. In the spring these
piles of logs have got to be loosed 50
that they will float down the river.
That is what is called breaking jam.
Now about 'hitching on
sometimes they break a jam by
prying out the logs with canthooks
and sometimes they run rope across
the river A yoke of oxen are 'hitched
on to it, and it is thrown around log.
The oxen are then started, and snake
out the log. Why is that dangerous? ?
1t often happens that one log is wedged
in such shape that it holds from fifty
to thousand others and to save time
this log must be hauled out first.
Then if the logger isn't minllng his
concerns when the pile starts, the whole
lot is onto him in a iiny. Did | ever
meet with any accidents? Yes; but
the most serious accident | ever met
with didn't turn out very badly. We
We're breaking a.jam' at the highest
rollway on the ManiStee liver. There
were millions of logs on the bank, and
it was pretty ticklish work, | hadn't
as many turns of rheumatic then as
have had since, and | called myself as
timber man as ever lodged Norway
| was 'hitching on and after | had
been at work Il while the boss, whc
was giving orders from across the
river, sung out DO you see that l0ost
log up near the top? | looked up
The rollway was about 100 feet high
and there was II big log ten or tfteer
feet from the top that appeared to bt
loose.
i started up over the logs with IN.
peevy in my hands The log wa
about twenty feet long, and | shovel
my peeyy into it to sort of see how
much work it was going to be to loosel
1t. found out, tell you. no soone
touched her than she started like hasl
of lightning down the rollway. Ther
was no chance to run around the en-,
of the log, and it was too high to jun
over, 50 the only chance | had was t
turn and give her a foot-race. W
were, as said, near $50 feet from tn
drink. The river was about sixty fee
wide, and was pretty deep. That wa
in my favor, if could only reach il
| didn't stop to calculate chances o
, pick nice stepping places, but l jus
made jumps for all was worth, an
before I'd fairly light away I'd g
. again, and you bet that log was rigf
, after me. could feel the wind frol
. it, and it seemed every time struc
that it was on to me- don't believ
my heart beat, or that breathet
t going down that rollway, an | / though
, of every tear had ever been on an
every mean thing had ever done.
= kept ahead all right until got With
q about twenty feet of the river, an
|. then she struck me. | was in the al
and when the blow came | went like
cannon ball out into the river and
the bottom. AS came up dozen {
t the boys grabbed me and brought IL
j ashore. They had been watching II
9 from the other bank, and when the
h saw me shoot out into the stream the
$ rushed into the water to bring O'
: what they thought would be- my corps
= But | wasn't hurt particle, though
r took some time to get my 'bellus' I'M
: running shape again. That log stru'
$ me on the hips and threw me ful
Il fifty feet. and that was what saved II
g life: for if had landed near the bar
that log would have crushed me-"
q "rhat was a close call!'
"T0lerable, tolerable." e."-DetjOH FL
: Press.