Daily Republican., 1885-09-01
SHOOTING THE CHUTE.


"This," said the brakeman, "is Lock
Haven, which. being interpreted, is the
place Of a jam. There is log floating
down the river, If you care to get out and
look at it."
In fact, there were two or three logs
floating down, rs the pilgrims could very
easily see from the car windows for three
days past. Their journey had led them by
the side of rushing waters, the Susquehanna
and it's tributaries and they had been racing
with pine and spruce and hemlock and bass
wood and maple ever since they sighted
Clean. Every trout brock seemed to be
full of logs, and when the pilgrims reached
the west branch, the independent logs that
had been choking the streams and racing
with each other, were crystalizing into
RATS. Not mile on tho river but was dot
ted with them, RATS of round logs and
square tmbers, and spars, and yet the num-
Der of independent logs did not seem 10
diminish.
And here, at Lock Haven, the scene cul-
minated in picture of the brightest ami
nation. In the great boom above the city
there was seventy five million feet of lum-
Der, and they lay in the river piled up in
places above the water, and crowded down
below the river level to depth of fifteen
feet Below at the bridge the Jam" that
was ordered for the pilgrims from the
prairies was choking the river, and bridge
f,F 81. Il, A.
branch of the Susquehanna, aud this great
bridge was spanued with raftsmen, work
ing to bring, what seemed to be impossible,
order out OF that surging chaos. But moth
ing seems to be impossible in the water to a
raftsmau, and little by little they untangled
the great snarl of RATS, and one by one
they swept through the bridge, and shot
through the chute below.
The Jester WAS offered a place on the
| raft that was making the trip, but moi
knowing just when he would land he de.
! clined. You see q great dam lays across
| the river, and ut one side is this narrow
| chute, just about wide enough to receive
raft-oh well, it may be three or foul
inches wide, through which the water runs
like u uill race. Very skillful are the
| pilots who guide their RATS through THU
straight and narrow way. Tho pilot stand
at the bow of the raft and handles an GA
| as long as the Kansas amendment, while
his crew of two men manage the great oal
| aft. 1t was exciting to watch the grea
raft, apparently unwieldly as wreck
swinging down the current toward tn
chute. Here it comes quartering along
it will never get through in the world
seems to be swinging broadside to the chut
the men on the raft don't seem to tax
much interest i'll 1.-THE pilot will never &c
it Strengthened out in the world-no, sir, b
can't do it-he's wrecked sure as snakes
there it comes-now she'll bang against th
head OF the chute and sweep over the dam
yes sir! There she goes.
And Just then the pilot drops his Ion
sweep into the water, o wave of the han
carries a signal to the raftsmen aft, ii
great raft sweeps around just in the nick {
!. time straightens out, and goes shootin
= past us through inc polilhB "atef e"ii'
| the flight of an arrow.
The Jester drew q .long breath and S
!. down on the lock again.
Best" he said to his friend, 81 won
= have bet fifty thousand dollars that fello
couldn't get in"
We'll" replied Mr.. Best. don't was
your lecture fees making bets on the raft
melsat Lock Haven, or you'll get left. U
less you vsE5 t-,t = go. csasS1ccA .:
: excite yoursAA iRAo O nCvs<ss fever waite
& ing the RATS . SS1n - chute, let's
= look at some Dsss logs. '-BurEtngt
V | HdnkeYe