Millheim Journal. [volume] (Millheim, Pa.) 1876-1984, 1884-10-16
Dying for his Master.
A SHEPHERD Doa's ENCOUNTER WITH
A RATTLESNAKE.

ever sheltered. She had been we'll
brought up, but had no fortune. had
81, 500 which | had made by running q
sawmill. We were young and had The
world before us, and we concluded to
go West. Going West in those days
didn't mean, as it seems to now, going
beyond the Mississippi. Going into
York State was going West then.
had a cousin in Cattaraugus,a "a little vii
lage on the Erie Railway, 30 miles east
Of Dunkirk, and We concluded to &c
there.
1t was late in August when we reach
ed Cattaraugus. My cousin gave US a
hearty welcome, and set about look
ing for spot to build. Cattaraugus
is curious sort of place. The viii
lage is surrounded by hills, and the
wonder to me is that it doesn't slide
down into the washbowl- like valley on
the side Of which it is built. A little
creek runs through the village, and a
mile to the west finds itself in a deep,
narrow valley, with almost perpendicu-
lar sides, 100 feet high. This valley is
called Skinney Hollow, and is one of
the most picturesque spots on the Erie
Road. / went down into the hollow
prospecting. The sides, where they
were not too steep, were covered with
heavy growth of first-class pine, and
for miles around the hills were thick
with the same timber. / saw there
was money in sawmill right down in
that hollow, and I built one on the
stream, which l could see was a good
sized creek most OF the year. 1t is one
of the branches of Cattaraugus Greek,
which empties into Lake Erie 80 miles
west of Buffalo.
81 built my mill there, and close to
it little house, so close in fact, that
the two joined. took Katie, that is
my wife, down there, and we began
housekeeping. That was well into the
winter, and began logging at once. |
hired a gang of men to help me, raised
money by contracting my lumber ahead
and started in. We cut logs on the
hills close to the mill, rugged up slides,
and ran them down to the logway. l
tell you it was music to me when the
saw ripped into the first log and a
clean-cut slab dropped away from the
teeth. We had a little iolliication.
That was the first log ever cut in Skin
ner Hollow, and people drove miles to
see it. Business was good. There was
lots of snow, which made it easy work
getting logs to the mill and drawing
the lumber out to the village, besides
giving me all the water I wanted. In
fact water was running over thStail of
my fume every hour from the time /
turned it into the race till the middle
of July. Then dry spell came on,
and I had to shut down for two or
or three hours every day to let my race
fill up.
But dida't mind that. I had a
tip-top season and had made money. l
had logs enough at my door to keep me
busy for year, and 1 knew where
there were plenty more when those ran
out. And, besides, had two to look
after instead of one. You wouldn't
think if you'd see Harry, with all his
refined ways and education, that the
first music he ever heard was saw
tearing through pine knot. But it's
so. He was pioneers son and knock
ed around a sawmill till he was into
his teens. Well, when business was
slow worked around the house. fixing
up things here and there for Katie, SD
as to make her comfortable. She
couldn't have been more contented.
She used to think ti.at sawmill was
just about the pleasantest place in the
country. Hour after hour she'd stay
out there with me, and we'd keep up
the conversation while the log was run
ming back and stop when it went up to
the saw. Dear me Dear me Why,
can see her as she used to look in
those days in that little sawmlll just
as plainly as if 1 stood there with her
to-day. She used to jump on the log
and ride up pretty close to the saw and
then, just as L would get scared and
juuip to drag her away. off she'd go.
Nobody was ever happier than we were
and We have never been as happy since,
though we've been pretty happy and
are yet."
The yellow sunlight flickered into
the room where the two sat, and the
wine looked like blood as the dan
cling rays shone through it. The old
man was lost in happy reYerie, and the
Young man ventured to remind him
that there was snake story promised.
"True,o said the old man. starting,
''I'm just coming to that. l lost N.Y.
self thinking of those old days. There
was snakes then, and we had killed
them. RattIers used to come out on