The Columbian. [volume] (Bloomsburg, Pa.) 1866-1910, 1902-02-27
THROUGH "A
pENSTOCK
BY HILBERT W. TOhMAN.
"HILE on railway journey be-
Xv fMeen Snrin rfield and Rns1on

M aAa1As Ob a runway Jun w
w tween Springfield and Boston
a few months ago l shared my seat
with a quiet, well-dressed man of
middle age. Some trivial circum-
stance engaged us in conversation,
and ! learned that my fellow passen-
ger was an assistant superintendent
in Maine pulp mill.
On his watch chain hung a wooden
charm, a dogs head, carved with such
grotesque and peculiar ugliness that
had difficulty in keeping my eyes
away from it. Whenever he looked
out of the window my glance returned
TO the charm. At last could restrain
my curiosity no longer, and with an
apology made some comment on the
strangeness of the ornament. He
took my inquisitiveness in good part.
and was kind enough to tell me the
story of the charm.
"Yes," he said, "it's queer-looking
piece of wood. 1t was carved for me
20 years ago by friend who had a
knack for that kind of work. It's the
only thing have to remember him by,
and so 1 think a good deal of it. But
I've another strong reason for recall
ing the birch snag he whitfield it from,
ind it may interest you to hear it.
when / was between 25 and 30
years old l was at work in mill on
the Kenebec river. My regular posi-
tion was that of foreman of one of
the departments, but as l was very
handy with tools, l often did odd jobs
10 accommodate the superintendent.
"One August morning there was
trouble with the wooden CRATE that
kept drift stuff from getting into the
penstock, which is, as you know, the
great tube of iron or banded plank
conveying the water from the mill
race to the wheel. In the last high
water log had broken one of the
upper spruce bars.
"The mill was running overtime to
fill extra orders, and the company did
not wish to close it for half a day un-
less it was absolutely necessary. So I
was asked to repair the damage with
out shutting the gate at the headtbf
the race. / looked at the break and
saw that it would be no very difficult
task to patch it while the water was on.
provided the CRATE were swung back
against the side of the conduit. So 1
sent for my tools and went to work.
at was drowsy midsummer morn
sng. Dragon flies and swallows were
darting over the surface of the river,
and from the stubble fields on each
side came the shrill rasping sound of
the grasshopper In the street above
group of little girls were laughing
and playing. Several hundred feet up
the river, under a grove of leaning
willows, was a swimming hole, where
q half dozen boys were disporting
themselves.
IF had not been interrupted three
OF four times by messengers from nv
department in the mill, / should have
finished the job in less than an hour.
AS it was, it was almost noon before
the break was repaired to my satis-
faction. The hot sun beat down on
my head as / worked away at the
grating; below, the smooth, brown
water ran steadily into the fiume.
with my back to the race, was
putting a few final touches on nv
work close to the water, when some
thing happened that for minute
frightened me horribly. There came
a sharp clutch at my sleeve.
81 whirled round in surprise, and
sAw something like a lean brown arm
rising from the water! I shook it off.
and another arm rose slowly and de-
liberately and seemed to make a me-
chanical effort to grasp me, while the
first as slowly sank out of sight.
"They were the long roots of a water
soaked stump that had lain for
months, perhaps years, on the river
bottom, and had now been swept by
the current to the head of the fume.
1t was against just such unwelcome
visitors as this that the CRATE was
designed to be a barrier.
"Now appeared huge octopus-like
body, revolving gradually in the food.
1t hung for moment at the opening
of the penstock, and then disappeared
down the dark cavity, its roots scrap
ing against the sides and top as it
rolled over.
II snatched boat-hook that lay on
the embankment and made an fort 20
fix its steel tooth in the Shiny stump.
For a moment thought / had succeed
ed. / leaned over little farther; the
earth crumbled under me, and / fell
head foremost into the racel
"As fell caught with my hands at
the lower part of the grating. My
weight swung it out into the current
which Immediately whirled it to; and
there l hung, my body failing off into
the penstock, dragged down by the
clutch of the water.
my position was terrible one. ]