Ottumwa tri-weekly courier. [volume] (Ottumwa, Iowa) 1903-1916, 1904-02-23

1Saa anu hllONh 40 ShiV eo67
- NAV waters the great firm of
Morrison & DAILY had for many years
carried on extensive logging operations
in the wilderness.
Now at last, in the early eighties,
they reached the end Of their holdings.
Another winter would finish the cut.
At this juncture Mr.. DAILY called to
him John Railway, man whom he
knew to possess extensive experience,
q little capital and desire for more Of
both.
"Radway." said he when the two
Round themselves alone in the mill Of
flee, 1--WE expect to cut this year some
b0,0O0,000, which will finish our pine
holdings in the Saginaw waters. Most
of this timber lies over in the Crooked
Lake district, and that we expect to
put in ourselves. We own, however,
100000 on the Cass branch which we
would like to log on contract. Would
you care to take the job?"
s"How much thousand do you
give?" asked Railway.
-Four dollars" replied the lumber
man.
"I'li look at it, replied the jobber.
So Railway got the descriptions
and little map divided into townships,
sections and quarter sections and went
out to look at it. He searched until he
found .'blaze" on tree, the marking
on which indicated it as the corner of
a section. From this corner the bound
AIRY lines were blaZed at right angles
I'm either direction. Railway followed
the blazed lines. Thus he was able ac-
lcurately to locate isolated "forties''
forty acres), Eighties" quarter sec
lions and sections in primeval wilder
mess. The feat, however, required con-
siderable woodcraft, an exact sense of
direction and pocket compass.
! These resources were still further
drawn upon for the next task. Rad
way tramped the woods, hills and val
peys to determine the most practical
route over which to build a logging
road from the standing timber to the
shores of Cass branch. He found it
to- be an affair of some puzzlement.
The pines stood on country rolling
with hills, deep with pot holes. 1t
became necessary to dodge I'M and out,
here and there, between the knobs,
around aHd through the swamps, still
Keeping, however in the same general
direction and preserving always the
requisite level or down grade. Rad
way had no vantage point from which
to survey the country. A city man
would promptly have lost himself in
the tangle, but the woodsman emerged
lat last on the banks of stream, leav-
ding behind him a meandering trail of
clipped trees.
"I'll take it." said he to DAILY.
DAILY now proceeded. to drive sharp
bargain with him.
| Gustomarily jobber is paid a GER
tain proportion of the agreed price as
leach stage Of the work is completed.
DAILY objected to this method of pro-
cedure.
you see, Railway" he explained,
t'it's our last season in the country.
when this lot is in we want to pull
|up stakes, SO we can't take any
chances on not getting that timber in.
II you don't finish your job, it keeps
JUS here another season. There can be
mo doubt, therefore, that you finish
your job. In other words, we can't
take any chances. If you start the
thing, you've got to carry it way
Through"
Is II think can, Mr.. DAY." the job
der assured him.
For that reason" went on DAILY,
Eve object to paying you as the work
progresses. We've got to have a guar
lantee that you don't quit on US and
that those logs will be driven down the
Branch as far as the river in time to
catch our drive. Therefore I'm going
TO make you good price per thousand,
but payable only when the logs are
delivered to our river men,
Railway, with his usual mental atti-
tude of one anxious to justify the 9TH
er man, ended by seeing only his en-
plcyer's argument. He did not per-
ceive that the latter's proposition in
PRODUCED into the transaction a gam
bling element. 1t became possible for
Morrison & DAILY to get certain
amount Of work short Of absolute CON-
pletion done for nothing.
| All this was in August Railway,
who was good, practical woodsman,
pet about the job Immediately. He gath
erred crew, established a camp and
began at once to cut roads through
the country he had already blazed on
his former trip.
Railways task was not merely to
level out and ballast the six feet of a
roadbed already constructed, but to
cut way for five miles through the
unbroken wilderness. The way had,
moreover, to be not less than twenty
five feet wide, needed to be absolutely
level and free from any kind Of OBJ
6tructions and required in the swamps
liberal ballasting with poles, called cor.
Huroys. Not only must the growth be
removed, but the roots must be cut out
and the inequalities of the ground lev
eled or filled up. Reflect further that
Radway had but brief time at his
disposal, but few months at most,
and you will then be in position to
gauge the first difficulties of those the
49, 49,. -. -.