The Birmingham age-herald. [volume] (Birmingham, Ala.) 1902-1950, 1905-04-09

vice and much wisdom and wickedness.
On the other hand, to be a 'buckwheat-
er" is to be seorned of men, for the term
is applied in the Appalachians to the
novice.
The men who chop down the trees are
the fallers. short, stout pole some
times used to direct the fall of the trees
is call in the North woods "killpig' or
Samson pole"
A tree knocked down by a falling tree
generally turns or twists before 1t breaks
off, and is hence called a "sidewinder."
On the Pacific coast, where timber is
big, the fallers cut a notch In the tree
and insert a Spring board" on which to
do their work.
When the tree is down they leave 1t to
the "buckers,p who "buck up" after them,
that is, saw it into logs. The FUCKERS
are followed by the "huskers,'' or "spud-
ders," or ''peelers,e who strip the bark
from the logs. Then the logs are ''nosed,'
or "sniped," or "champered,' that Is,
beveled at one end so that they will not
catch when they are dragged, or 'snaked'
or "skidded " out.
The men who work ahead of the skid
ding crew and clear out a road over which
the logs are to be taken are the swamp
ers," whose foreman is called in the
ground is so rough that logs must be
pushed by hand over a cliff or steep
grade. the work is called "brutting" (pro-
nounced "brooting'D. If the logs are sent
down a steep log slide 1t is called raw
hiding" When logs are hauled out of a
cove into plateau or fat by means of a
drum cable, they are said to be ''drummed
OUT
Timber hauled to stream to be trans
ported by water is piled in loadings along
J the bank to wait for tide" or high
water. A pile OF mixed logs is sometimes
called Jackpot"
At the landings the logs are nearly al
ways scaled that is, their contents In
board feet are determined. The scalef
uses a rule which, because of the remark
able results which some scalers have
been known to get out of It, is sometimes
referred to as "the rogue's stick
Where logs are f1oated loose In a stream
the operation is called driving. and the
logs themselves constitute 'the drive in. -
Logs are usually RATED nowadays in large
streams.
dead Men, and "Robbers."
In making RATS of hard woods, enough
lightweight logs are pinned in with the
heavy woods, as yellow poplars and bass
wood with oak, to make the whole buoy.
ant. This Is sometimes called 'brailing.'
"Deadheads." or dead men, are logs
that have sunk in the water Robbers
are half submerged logs.
A crew If river drivers always follows
the main drive to pick up and send on the
laggard logs. This is called 'saeking the
rear" Some of the logs have got out Of
the main stream, or "quickwater," ane
are floating in dead water and poke
logans," or bays and pockets in the river
Such logs constitute the floating rear"
The dry rear is made up of logs
which have lodged against the bank ant
must be rolled back into the stream. Ii
case of jams, the crew whose duty 1t Is
to sack the rear sometimes shut off the
water by means of a dam, and dry pick,
or roll the logs loose one by one. Some
times the jam is loosened by removing
the key Log or log which holds the
dam.
"Dehorning" of Logs.
On the Big Sandy river, in Kentucky
and West Virginia, number of men are
engaged in stealing timber which comes
down on the winter or early spring tides
They go out on the water in boats oil
dark nights and catch and tow to shor,
the choicest and finest poplar and walnut
logs they can pick up. Then they saw
off the owners brands from the ends OF
the logs put ON their own marks, max,
the logs into RATS and sell them to mills
at Catlettsburg, Ironton, Ashland, Cincin
natl, Louisville, Paducah or other points
along the Ohio. The operation of saving
off the branded ends of logs is called de.
horning."
A story is told at Catlettsburg of two
w urpr dahornipo ,{,1
on the Big Sandy. They We're pulling q
crosscut saw through particularly choic,
yellow poplar when one of them remarked
that he had never set saw in softer
finer wood. The other replied that he
didn't like the sound the saw made, fol
when he pulled 1t through the cut 1t kept
saying, as plain as anything;
"Mound-ville Mound-ville! Mound
villem
Moundville is where the state peniten.
tiary is located.
Woodsmen call tree with a dry, dead
top "stagheaded." A tree that forks is
for some reason, a school marm," and
a tree with swollen butt is bottle.
butted." A burnt pipe stump is dirk
XII"
An owner of tract of timber land in
the Appalachians refers to 1t as his "boun-
uary. IN the northern WOODS especially
in Maine, an area of forest that can be
logged probably from one set of camps is
chance"
"Slat Wood" and "Fiddle Butts"
Special kinds of wood have special
names "Slat wood" means red cedar
suitable for pencil stock. Fiddle butts''
means red spruce intended for sounding
boards for musical instruments. Figured
woods, such as burls and curly grains,
including curly birch and poplar, are
sought after by agents OF veneering con-
Germs These men are called lockers
or "prowlers."
Such a glossary of terms as the bureau
of forestry is preparing, however interest
ing and useful 1t may prove for special
purposes, can convey little idea of the
racy style Of speech of men who live in
the woods. The lumberman has feeling