The Columbus journal., 1883-06-27

Billings, the front O4rSm8n, ana billy
King, the hind Oarsmsn, sat In the
smoking car ON their way to Big Eddy.
from where they were to start down the
river with . three-Oared raft. The
train WAS booming along at twenty-five
miles An hour. ..
This is . gettin' over the groun'
pooty tol' able scrumptious, I'm . tskin'
on it." said the hind osrsman, IAN
ruthr knocks the sswdust OUT n raftin'.
l reckon that 'we'm . scootin' long .
leetle bit faster thin the riptsarinest
fresh ON record ever druv hemlock
raft, don't yo' think we be. Curley!
''Not by powrful sight. we hain't.
said the steersman. II guess il you'd
q ben long o. me on . raft o t0ggle-
timber that l run from the Gap to
Easton bridge, ON the rosrin' old fresh
ez come from the big June rain, back
in 81, you'd think this yer train o
keers want more thin keepin' out'a The
way of funer'l percession."
s.See yer. Curley," the front Oarsmsn
put in. ''y' haint agoin'te ter run US up
syin that baldheaded yarn. be ye? The
las time v tole that lie. which it were
up in the Long Eddy tavern. don't y
reckOmember that the tavern were
struck b. lightnin'. an we was longer
futchin' YOU to thin ef y'd clum out
sid'n three drinks o the Eddy rums II
YOU steer Us foul o the blame thing
again I'm sfeerd they'll be wreck on
this yer train, sartin ez hemlock. Head
year timber clear O. thst snsg an give
Us chance to tie up safe. wont y'T
..Hsin't tn yarn true!" asked the
hind hand.
..True?" said the front oarsmsn.
True? They hsin't NO more truth in
it than they Is sap in u forty-year-old
tombstOne!'
."Jo Billings" said the steersman.
eyer pinted dead wrong. fur If they
ever were reg'lsr old sessoned-in-the-
log fact. warranted to cut four foot 1T
the butt an to work up without nary
knot, this yer one is'the stick o timber
es'll git the csnt-hoOk fust, ev'ry time,
ant don't We furget it!''
''Dhst's all right. Curlsy." replied
the front Oarsmsn. ''but ef was you
and 'spectsd to keep ON tellin' that air
story I'd git my life insured. Annyniss
and Sspfry would a left their folks .
durn sight better fixed ef they'd done
it. too. But. pull out! pull out with yer
'tarnsl ole yarn an jes see whsr ye will
land us.
And 10 Billings lit his pipe and re-
signed himself to his fate.
IL b'lieve said ez how I run that
airrsft from the Gap to EastOn bridge" "
the steerSmsn began. ''but that WASH t
the way on jt. That raft run me an
done it durn han some. and no mis-
take.
They hadn't been sech q rain
know'd long the Delywar' fur forty
years ez come . dippin' through the
valley in June. 81. 1t jest came down
in hoyshesds full fur three days and
nights. The river begun to raise, an
it KEEP on q rsisin' till they want
scarcely no more land fur it to git hold
onto. an folks begun to give out con-
tracts fur the buildin' o Noxr's srks.
, Long in the fall o 81 I had started
with five-oared raft from the head o.
the river fur tide. but the fresh didn't
turn out to be nothin' but scrub fresh.
a. when we got to the Gap we run out
o water an had tOtie up. They didn' I
come NO water sgin that season. an we
didn't git mono o NO conscience till the
big June fresh. Soon ez they want
no doubt that we was agoin' ter have
water 'nough to aost the Great Eastern
clean to the startin' place O. the DEFY
war. I struck 'sm in fur the Gap to
git my raft in shape fur gittin' her the
rest O. tho way to tide. They were .
good fresh by the time / gst to the Gap.
an we overhauled the raft an frightened
her up. BY the time we had her in
shape the river begun to raise like ez Il
1t WAS . tub an some one were q
pumpia' water inter it through six
inch pipe. 1t riz so fast that when We
went to work on the raft At seven clock
in the mOrnin' she lay at the foot Of q
big buttOnwOod tree ez stood on tha
bank. By ten o'clock We had to cut
away the branches o that tree 80 ez We
could stan up an work, an them
branches was thirty feet from the groun'
by activsl measure! An it seemed 81
II that water was = runnin' mOre'n q
hundred mile an hour. Wall. we see
they want no use o thinkin' o. startin'
out on such water ez that, an We un.
shipped tho oars to wait for . fresh o.
'twere safe to run on. The two fellers
ez was helpin' o. me had left the raft
an / were pickin' up some tools to carry
of when one O. the snubbin' ropes
snapped in two. Quicker'n lightnin'
thet eend O. the raft swung down
stream. and kerbsng! went t'other rope
In two seconds that raft were maxim
its way down that tiver at rate ez rail
rosd keers mebbe kin come up to one O
these days, but the fss'e time ez evel
were done yit ON the best road in this
kentry is ike an OK train long side 9
2:4O hoss when you come to talkin'
bout how that air raft went slidin'
long. An thar l were on the durr
thing, without nary an oar. an KNOWN
that when she stove up they want nc
more show O. me = gittin' ashore thu
they was fur me to steer her with q pine
shingls. The only thing 1 could Dc
were to lest set down an take in thu
scenery an wonder how much they q
lind O. me arter the fust bridge pier W.
met had got through with US. All of 9
suddint I thort O. Foul Rift. which i,
takes . man ez knows every rock an
bush they Is on the shore an in thu
river to steer inter without stavin'. an
says to myself: We may run clear o
sv'rything till we git to Foul Rift, bu,
when we git thar Mrs. Curlsy Peters il
. widdsr. ssrtin OF sap in spring.
wall. we got to Foul Rift. Ths
openin' to it 'twixt the rocks did't loOl
no Ader n this kser, an the watel
Jest got up an howlsd. The raft endet
for the rocks. and I shet my eyes an
tried to pray, but. durn sing lar ez 20,
mebbs II think It. I couldn't git my
mind on nothin' but wonderin' who my
widder would marry. While 1 wer'
tryin' to settle ON the man ez d be mos
likely to hook ontsr her an the thre,
hundred dollars had in my chist .,
hum. felt myself goin' up lords tn.
clouds an . sailin' through the air. e,
If I'd . ben settin' on powder ksg. IN
somebody had touched q match to it
I opened my eyes to see what were the
matter. e I turned Q summersst
zee that l were suthin' like . couple
hunderd yards ahead o. tho raft, an j,