The times. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1890-1903, 1902-10-05

ST don't know which Of you boys
is coming first" said he quietly, but
he is going to get it good and plen-
ty.''
If the affair had been serious, these
men would never have recoiled before
the mere danger of a stick Of hard
wood. But this was q good-natured
bit of foolery. test Of nerve, and
there was no object In getting
broken head for that. The reptilian
gentleman alone grumbled something
profane.
IF YOU banker for trouble SO
much. drawled the unexpected voice
of old Jackson from the corner,
''mebbe you could put on the gloves
The idea was acclaimed. Some
body tossed out dirty torn old set
of buckshin boxing gloves.
The rest was farce. Thorpe was
built on true athletic lines, broad,
straight shoulders, narrow flanks,
long. clean. smooth muscles. He
possessed. besides, wha hereditary
toughness and bulk which no gymnas-
ilm will ever quite supply. The 9TH
er man. while powerful and ugly in a
his rushes. was clumsy and did not
use his head. Thorpe planted his
hard. straight blows at will. Finally
he saw his opening and let out a
swinging pivot blow. The other pick
ed himself out of corner and drew
off the gloves. Thorpe's status was
assured
':rhe young feller's all right" OBJ
served Heath; "he cuffed Ben up to a
peak all right
Went down like peck of wet fish
nets. replied Jackson TRANQUILITY.
In the office shanty one evening
about a week later, Railway and his
scaler happened to be talking over
the situation. The scaler, whose name
was Dyer, slouched bacl>.n the shad-
ow. watching his great honest superior
as a crafty, dainty cat might watch
the blunderings of a ST Bernard. Dyer
had a precise little black mustache
whose ends he was constantly twisting
into points, black eyebrows. and long
effeminate black lashes. The two men
conversed in short elliptical sentences.
using many technical terms.
That seventeen white pine is go
ing to undarrun.'' said Dyek. TT
won't skid over three thousand"
ITS small stuff" agreed Railway.
and SO much the worse fer us: but
Tie Company'll stand in on it because
small stuff like that always over-runs
on the mill-cut.
The scaler nodded comprehension.
when You going to dry-haul that
Norway across Pike Lake?''
Tomorrow. She's springs. but the
book says five inches Of ice will hold
a team. and there's more than that
How much are we putting in a, day,
ncw?"
About forty thousand
1sadwav fell silent
That's mighty little for such a
crew he observed at last, doubtfully.
II always said YOU were TOO easy
with them. You got to drive them
more
well, its rough country" apollo
rized Railway. trying, as was his Gus
tom. to find excuses for the other
PARTY as soon as he was agreed with
III his blame. there's any amount of
ro:holes: aud. then. we've had so
much snow the ground amt really
frozs ;,nacrneath. It gets pretty soft
in some of them syamps. Can't figure
on putting on as much in this country
as we used to down on the Muske-
gon.''a
The scaler smiled a thin smile all to
himself behind the stove. Dyer knew
perfectly we'll that the Work was be-
hir.l. ana he knew the reason For
some time the men had been relaxing
tIlci1 efforts They had worked hon
estly enough. but a certain snap and
vim had lacked. This vas because
Railway had been too easy with them.
Your true lumber jack adorss of all
things in creation 4 man whom he
feels to be stronger than himself. II
his employer is big enough to drive
him. then he is willing to be driven to
the last ounce of his strength. Eut
once he gets the notion that his boss
is afraid Of or for, him or his feel
ings or his health. he loses interest
in his working for that man. AS you
value your authority. the love Of Your
men, and the completion of your work,
keep a bluff brow and an unbending
sinsleness Of purpose.
Thorpe had already commented on
the feeling among the men. though,
owing to his inexperience. he was not
able TO estimate its full value The
men were inclined to a semi-apologet
air when they spoke Of their connec-
ton with the camp. Instead of being
honored as one of a series Of Jobs,
this seemed to be considered as mere
~ d temporary laltins-place in which
they took no pride, and from which
the. looked forward in anticipation or
back in memory to better things.
"Qld Shearer, he's the bully boy"
said Bob Stratton. I remember when
he was foreman of N. and D. at Camp
o. Saw. we Gid hustle them saw
logs, I should rise to remark! Out
in TIL woods by first streak o day
recall one morning she was pretty
cold, an the boys g,-urnbled some
about turnin' out. Cold says Tim,
YOU sons Of guns! You got your
hice. Il may be too cold for you in
the woods, but It's q. damn sight too
hot for you in hell, an you're goin
to one or the other!' And he meant it.
too. Them was great days! Forty
million a year. and not a hitch
The next morning Roadway transfcrr-
ed Molly and Jenny. with little Fa-
bian Leveque and two of the younger
men. to Pike Lake. There, earlier in
the season. number of pines had been
fe,led out OH the ice. cut in logs. and
left in expectat;ni. OF ice thick enough
to bear tie ,rayoy ''dray." Owing to
the fact that the shores of Pike Lake
We're extremely precipitious. it had
been impossible to travoy the logs up
over the hill.
Railway. had sounded carefully the
thickness of the ice with an AK. AL
though the weather had been suf-
ficiently cold for the time of year, the
cnaw a & often ha bod f,1,..,