The Wheeling daily intelligencer. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1865-1903, 1900-08-18


expert for they are skilled riYermen by
instinct and bringing up and under
stand the requirements of&nayigatlng.
the Elk in food This is .no,small mat.
ter. Thaj river Is "a succession OF long,
placid pools, ndSswitt riffs, through
(which. at high water the current races
lat q speed of fifteen or twenty miles an
hour. To bring an ungainly r al
OF logs, through one Of these riffs calls
for technical skill physical strength
and endurance, ready judgment and
great agility. There are. the powerful
seddies caused by the inpou- OF the big
creeks to be reckoned with, and the dan:
gerous rocks to be remembered. SCI.
bdom does a raft make the full Journey
without'a break, hut the Elkers, bound
to get everything through in shape, pa
tiently and with great labor get the logs
together and ngaih prepare shoot the
next rift. On one end of the raft there
is little shanty built for them, but,
except when the raft is anchored to q
tree to give them q chance to rest, they
get no use Of the shelter. s.!
First Gets Few Drinks.
Five dollars apiece is the standard
price for bringing a raj. dowp tozthe
Kanawha. On this capita; the Elker.
proceeds to see the city. First he gets
a few drinks OF the cheapest whisky or
gin he can find. Then, II he is short Of
ammunition. he supplies himself with
that essential line of goods, His, next
move is to buy q pair Of shoes, Why
IN Elkers should Ieem It necessary to
possess shoes is something of a .mys7-
iterys He very seldom wears them. and
then with extreme discomfort on. the,
occasion OF funeral or. wedding or.
church service. Rut for some reason
the possession of footgear Is regarded
as Q mark OF arlstocracy. and though
some, OF the first families of the Elk reti
gion may not wear leather once a year.
there is always pair OF shoes carefully
and consplcuously hanging by a string
from the cabin wall In the case OF THE
man who has been: to the city several
times there may three or four pairs. OF
shoes In the cabin, all carefully creased
and In good repair. Proud, indeed. Is
that family that can show four pairs of
shod feet at q Sunday service. To
save wear and tear the owners Of the
shoes carry them to within a rod or, so
of the church. and there. sitting on a
convenient rock. draw them on with in
finite pains. hobhle the rest OF the dis
lance and sit through the proceedings
heroically enduring the fortunes Of the.
damned from the ankles down. The
only way In which these valued articles
sof,apparelige destroyed is through the
agency Of the doEs;;llwho will drag them
down. II they are1 not hung high. and
gnaw them. Tho Elk river dog is not u
well-fed animal, and he lets no chance
OF appeas!ng his appetite go by uniln-
proved. ss'r
a Shoe That viii Wtar.
Observation-Disclosures regard. amount.
ing almost to reverence which the true
Elkcr entertalns for his shoes, he, does
not lean toward the ornamental In the
choIcs Of them. What he wants is
shoe that will wear;.a shoe that, bar
ring accidents. he lean hand on to his
eldest son togrtheTlwith his Gun. For
such an article he will pay from So to 81.
but he wants to be. sure that he Is get
ting the right thing They tell 4 story
here Of how q new clerk In an old store
nearly lost the Elk1river custom for his
employer. Hc was alone in the store
when two stalwart sons OF the noun
tains came in and announced that they
had come TO buy pair OF shoes apiece.
The clerk brought down sample after
sample and each time the mountaineers
said politely: ~ 49,
"Them's all right lookin' shoes. sub.
fob city man. butwe want someth!n'
q little mo- -wearin'." ri
Everything that the clerk had shown
them had been heavyand strong and ne
finally bethought him OF an old box OF
sh noes INA. were us sun as IRON ana as
heavy as lead. In the rear OF the store.
SO he brought out some patent feathers
LOT tue customers 70 amuse themselves Sc
win @n,.e ne went 10 5look up me Inc, old
STOCK. "hen ne returned he iounc the
pair standing near the window;to get Il
glimpse OF me sunlight on tha patent
leather and admtrins It intensely.
Mou.a" mem liookt puh l' N q
meg ~ frame one OF the TWO was say
Ing 70 me other as me clerk approach