Butler citizen. [volume] (Butler, Pa.) 1877-1922, 1892-03-18

could find out, although he OCCASIONAL
ly spoke of log driving in Maine, which
led the boys to think he must have
originally hailed from that state.
In personal appearance he was at
once conspicuous, if not to say ridicul-
Gus. Long, bony, ar, with great,
lorg arms, which he never seemed to
know what to do with unless he was
handling pike pole and pushing logs
here and there in the river. To add to
the ungairliness of his form he habitu-
ally walked, or rather slouched along,
with his body describing an obtuse
angle, and with a movement some
thing resembling a dromedary. His
hair. which was black as an Indians,
he generally wore long, and his beard
was equally unkept-
But he was known as the most dar~
ing and slkillful log driver in the upper
| Wisconsin, and many was the time he
fearlessly rode some rolling, tumbling
timber through rapids where no other
riverman dared venture, with only his
pike pole to assist him in keeping his
footing, he often being compelled to
leap from one log to another, even
while they were rushing at tremen-
dous speed through some rapids; and
he could break up a jam and get the
logs to moving again while the ordi-
nary logger was de batting how to go at
it. True, he often lost his footing, and
was several times in imminent danger
of being crowded under the water by
the logs. but somehow he seemed like
duck and always came up in time to
throw those long arms over log and
pull himself up again.
During the winter season, when the
men were in the woods. River Jim's"
long arms served him equally as well,
and there he had the reputation of be-
ing the best chopper.
Jim was as modest as he was un-
calmly. 1t was seldom any of the boys
could get him to speak of himself, and
when he would accomplish some daring
feat of log driving and the men would
speak of it he would say:
'Oh, thet's nothin'."
During the summer season, when
the mills at Cameron were all in opera
ton. Jim was employed by the owners
as general overseer in the boom, where
the different logs were separated, and
to see that each mill got its own cut, a
work which was always well done by
himself and his men.
Jim had one great failing, prev
alent one among rivermen. For day
or two after each pay day, which came
once a month, he would BE- the richest
man in town. and every man who
didn't take 4 drink with him while his
money lasted either did not drink or
failed to come under Jim's notice 1t
| got to be such regular thing that the
boys always expected it and when one
day, after receiving his usual months
wages. Jim put the money in his
| pocket and walked quietly out of the
Office and over to the hotel where he
boarded, they wondered what was up
with River jim" Some of them even
went over to the hotel, and one Of the
boys said:
whats ther marter, Jim; be ye
gettin' stingy?"
"Nothin's ther marter. boys. I'm
| jist goin' ter stop thet kinder bizness,
thet's all"
Many were the conjectures among
the Toys as to the cause of River
Jim's" sudden reformation, and when
the next day Jim was at his post Of
duty instead OF putting in his time at
Tom Nogan's saloon, as he generally
did after each pay day, as long as his
money lasted, they concluded somc-
thing unusual had happened to him.
There had change come over River
Jim's" lie, that few, if any, of the
rough rivermen knew anything about,
as no one would suspect by his daily
/ life that he was even capable of SYM
| pathy With humanity in general, m uch
less taking friendly interest in any
one.
That was where they failed to under
stand the great, good-natured. awk-
ward fellow Behind all of River
Jim's" rough exterior and uncouth
manners there beat heart as tender
as child's, and capable of an affection
as sincere and honest as the most re-
fined and polished society man.
One of the hotels or boarding houses
which was the headquarters of large
number of the rivermen and loggers,
when in town, was owned and man
aged by widow :;y the name OF Mrs.
Franklin. This lady had three chill
dren, girl of twenty and two boys,
one seventeen and the other nine.
Ever since Jim cane to the place he
had made this his home, when he was
/ not rp in the woods.
One day shortly after River Jim"
came to town, Mrs. Franklin's little
boy Willie, and several other boys of
his age, were playing on the logs near
| the mills when the little fellow slipped
and fell between them. and would have
! been drowned had not Jim, who hap
pened to be working near, heard his
companions cries and ran to where he
had fallen in and succeeded in pulling
him out, more dead than alive.
The little fellow was soon around
again. however, and from that day
"River Jim" at least had one staunch
friend in Willie Franklin. In TACT,
there seemed strange friendship
! growing up between the pncouth, un-
lettered man and the little boy, and
almost any fine day one could see
Willie running around on the logs try
ing to assist i'm in his work, and Jim
would say:
81 tell ye what, Billy, I'll make er
I great log driver out o ye yit, if yen
/ jist tend to yer l1nittin'."
Say, Jim, do get around over the
logs pretty handy, don't I?'
River jim" never seemed to have
any ambition higher than to be known
as the most fearless driver on the
river. and he really had an idea that he
might have n promising pupil in Willie
, Franklin.
One day when Jim and the little fel.
low were together on the drive Willie
said:
Say, Jim, it's pay day tomorrow,
amt it?''
Guess it's, Billy. What's ther mat
ter now? Do ye want me ter git ye
some new fiummerdiddle?"
''Oh. no, jim; I wasn't thinking of
that. But heard ma and Jennie
talking this morning about it, and
Jennie said she wished you wouldn't
get drunk every pay day and spend all
your money, and ma said she didn't
like to have me with you when you
acted So
Now, say, Billy, did yer ma and
sister say thet?"