The news & observer. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 1894-current, 1904-09-18
The River Boss
BY STEWART EDWARD WHITE
Copyright S. &
Copyright by S. S. Mcclure & Coz


there-but he also had Judgment. He
knew how to use the water how to
recognize the key log of jams, where
to place his men--in short. he could
get out the logs.
Now, Jimmy, also knew the river
from one end TO the other. SO he had
arranged in his mind a sort of
schedule for the twenty days. Forty
eight hours for the rollWays; a day
and half for the upper rapid: three
days into the dam pond: one day to
sluice the drive through the dam;
three days to the crossing. and SO on.
If everything went well, he could do
it, but there could be no bitches in
the programme.
Even from this imperfect fragment
of the schedule the inexperienced
might imagine that Jimmy had allow
ed an altogether disDroportionate time
to cover the mile or SO from the
upper rapid to the dam pond. As it
turned out, however. he found he had
not allowed enough. for at this point
the river wa speculiar and very try
ing.
The backwater of the dam extended
upstream half a mile: then occurred
rise of five feet to the mile. down
the slope of which the water Whirled
and tumbled, only to spread out over
broad fan of gravel shadows. These
shadows did the business. When the
logs had bumped through the tribu-
lations of the rapid, they seemed to
insist obstinately on resting on the
shadows, like a lot of wearied cattle.
The rear crew had to wade in. They
heaved and pried and pushed indus
triouSly, and at the end of it had
the satisfaction of seeing a single log
slide reluctantly into the current.
Sometimes a. dozen of them would
clamp their peevies on either side.
and by sheer brute force carry the
stick to deep water. When you re-
feet that there were over 10000
pieces in the drive, and that good
so per cent. OF them baked below
the rapid. you can see that the rear
crew had it's work cut out for it.
Jimmy's allotted three days were
almost gone, and his job had not ad-
vanced beyond the third of compile
ton. McGann, the sluice boss. did a
little figuring.
She'll hang over thin tWlnty
days. he confided to Jimmy. "Shure!'
Jimmy replied not a word but
puffed piston-like smoke from ms
pipe Mccain shrugged in Celtic de-
spair.
But the little man had been f1gur-
ing, too and his arrangements WereN
more elaborate and more nearly com
plete than McGann suspected. That
very morning he Sauntered leisurely
out over the rear logs, his hands III
his pockets. Every once in a while
he stopped to utter . few low-voiced
rments to one or another of the
men. The person addressed first
looked extremely astonished, then
shouldered his Deevie and started for
crew a prey to curiosity. Soon the
camp leaving the diminished rear crew
a prey to curiosity. Day and night
word went about. DAY and night
work" they whispered, though it was
little difficult to see the difference
in ultimate effectiveness between a
half crew working all the time and a
whole crew working half the time.
About this stage DAILY began to
worry He took the train to Grand
Rapids, anxiety written deep in his
brows. When he saw the little made
quate crew packing in futile fashion
at the logs winged out over the shall
lows, he swore fervidly and sought
Jimmy.
Jimmy appeared calm.
"Well get 'em out all right, Mr.
DAILY" said he.
Get 'em out,' growled Daily.
"Sure! But when? We amt got all
summer this season. Those logs have
got to hit our boOms in fourteen days
or they're no good TO us!'
you'll have EN-" answered jim
M.
"Why, it'll take you a week to get
her over those internal shadows he
concluded. you got to get more
men. jimmy"
eve trined," answered the boss.
"They amt no more men to be had
Suffering Moses!' groaned the
woner. ut means the loss Of a $50
600 contract to me. You needn't tell
me. I've been on the river all my
life. I know you can't get them off
inside of a week"
"I'll have e'em off tomorrow morn
ing, but it'll cost Il little something
asserted Jimmy calmly. Daily stared
to see if the man was not crazy. Then
he retired in disgust to the city,
where he began to adjust his ideas to
a loss on his contract
At shutdown the rear crew quit
work, and swarmed to the white en-
campment o. tents on the river bank.
There they hung wet clothes over
big skeleton framework built around
a monster fire and ate a dozen eggs
apiece as a side dish to supper and
smoked pipes of strong Peerless" to-
bacco and snapped yarns and sang
songs and asked questions. To the
latter they received no satisfactory re-
plies. The crew that had been laid
off knew nothing. 1t supposed it was
to work after supper. After supper.
however, Jimmy told it to turn in and
get a little more sleep. 1t did turn in.
and speedily forgot to puzzle.
At midnight Jimmie entered the
big tent quietly with = lanter. touch
ing each of the fresh men on the
shoulder. They arose without COM
ment, and followed him outside.
There they We're given tools. Then
the little band defiled silently down
river under the stars. Jimmie led
them, his hands deep in his pockets.
putting white steam clouds at regular
intervals FRONT his "meerschaum"
pipe. After twenty minutes they
struck the Water Works. then the
board walk of Canal street. The word
passed back for silence. Near the
Oriole Factory their leader suddenly
lodged in behind the piles Of sawed
lumber, potioning them to haste. 4
moment later a fat and dignified Of