Courier Democrat., 1904-04-07

American pioneer expects to encounter
as a matter Of course.
The jobber Of course pushed his
roads as rapidly as possible, but was
greatly handicapped by lack Of men.
Winter set in early and surprised him
with several of the smaller branches
yet to finish. The main line. however.
was done.
At intervals squares were cut out
alongside. In them two long timbers
or skids were laid andironwise for the
reception of The piles of logs which
would be dragged from the fallen
trees. They were called sideways.
Then finally the seasons cut began.
The men who were to fell the trees
Radway distributed along one bound
ary of forty" They were instruct
ed to move forward across the forty
in straight line, Telling every pine
tree over eight inches in diameter.
While the saw gangs, three in number,
prepared to fell the first trees, other
men called swampers were busy cut
ting and clearing of roots narrow lit
tie trails down through the forest from
the pine to the skidway ut the edge
Of the logging road. The trails were
perhaps three feet wide and marvels of
smoothness, although no attempt was
made to level mere inequalities Of the
ground. They were called travoy
roads (French travois). Down them
the logs would be dragged and hauled
either by means of heavy steel tongs
or short sledge on which one end Of
the timber would be chained.
Meantime the sawyers were busy.
Each pair Of men selected tree. the
first they encountered over the blazed
line of their forty. After determining
In which direction it was to fall they
set to work to chop deep cash in that
side of the trunk.
Tom Broadhead and Henry Paul
picked out a tremendous pine, which
they determined to throw across lit
tie open space in proximity to. the
travoy road. One stood to right, the
other left, and alternately their axes
bit deep. Tom glanced up as a sailor
looks aloft.
"She'll do, Hank" he said.
The two then with a dozen half clips
Of the ax removed the inequalities Of
the bark from the saws path. The
long flexible ribbon of steel began to
sing, bending so adaptably to the hands
and motions of the men manipulating
that it did not seem possible so mo-
bile an instrument could cut the rough
pine. In a moment the song changed
tmbre. Without word the men
Strengthened their backs. Tom firted
along the blade thin stream Of kero.
sene oil from a bottle in his hip pocket.
and the sawyers again bent to their
work, swaying back and forth rhyth-
mically, their muscles ripping under
the texture Of their woolens like those
Of panther under its skin. The out
er edge Of the saw blade disappeared.
"Better wedge her, Tom." advised
Hank.
They paused while, with a heavy
sledge, Tom drove q triangle of steel
into the crack made by the saving.
This prevented the weight Of the tree
from pinching the saw. Then the
rhythmical TIT. TIL. again took up
its song.
When the trunk was nearly severed
Tom drove another and thicker wedge.
'"Timber!' halloed Hank in a long
drawn melodious call that melted
through the woods into the distance.
The swampers ceased work and with
drew to safety.
"Crackw called the tree.
Hank coolly unlocked his saw han
die, and Tom drew the blade through
and out the other side.
The tree shivered, then leaned ever
50 slightly from the perpendicular, then
fell. at first gently, afterward with a
crescendo rush, tearing through the
branches of other trees, bending the
small timber, breaking the smallest
and at last hitting with tremendous
crash and bang which filed the air
with fog of small twigs. needles and
the powder Of snow.
Then the swampers. who have by
now finished the trayoy road, trimmed
the PROSTATE trunk clear of all pro-
tuberances. It required fairly skillful
az work. The branches had to be
shaved close and clear. and at the
same time the trunk must not be
gashed And often a man was forced
to WELD his instrument from con-
strained position.
The chopped branches and limbs had
now to be dragged clear and piled.
While this was being finished Tom and
Hank marked OF and sawed the log
lengths. paying due attention to the
necessity or avoiding knots, forks and
rotten places. Thus some Of the logs
were eighteen, some sixteen or four
teen and some only twelve feet in
length.
Next appeared the teamsters with
their little wooden sledges. their steel
chains and their t09gs. They had been
helping the skidders to place the par
allel and level beams. or skids, on
which the logs were to be piled by the
sade Of the road. The tree which Tom
ana Hank had just felled lay up gem
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