Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1906-05-07
dav is hearty work and demands plenty

d,v Is hearty work and demands plenty
of eating.
About the middle of March the hoop
mole man breaks camp and goes to the
market with his goods AS soon as
LOT of poles have been sold, each one
is marked with red chalk a few inches
from the end.
This shows that the poles have been
sold and on man will buy them. In
times past there was a custom. which
is not vet entirely obs olctc. of pinch
ing" polcs-ihat is. Of selling them
once. then hauling them 10 some other
place and dispensing of them again. Of
ten to the same man. The custom of
marking them has done away with this
practice to a great extent.
A near nciehbor of the hooppolc
gathercr is the axe handle man,
though to be sure. he goes to the
woods in the winter only to take ad
vantage of the snow to haul away his
handles. which are cut in the fall.
Wood of Il larger growth than the
| hoopIole Sapling is needed for axe
| handles.
The trees are chopped in the fall. tho
wood is split ard each handle is roughly
! block. d out. There is great danger Of the
| handles splitting iwhile the stock is sea-
| soninE and as fast as they are blocked
out they are buried, that they may sea
son without cracking. AS an additional
prccautinn. the broad ends are daubed
with a kind of paint the principal nGre-
dent of which is grease The handles
| thus blocked out are sent away to the
| factory rs soon as the first snow comes.
OF all the lrospectors in the Maine
woods the man who earns his money by
| the hardest knocks is the one who goes
after ship knees. Ills work is very ,lard.
hut ne gets big money for his wares, Us
| good ship knees are not plentiful and
therefor" bring II big price on the market.
Sine. the Eackmat:Irk trees have been
killed by a borcr. this industry, Xix" the
| budding; of wooden ships, has decreased;
| vet there l.; big demand for good knees
| and many men 80 10 the woods alter
them.
The proSpector gne;; through the forest
aiSles armed with an axe. his eye alert
| to catch Jumper. hackmatack or tdmi-
| rack tree. As soon ~ one II lnunI ne
digs away tho snow from tho h1r" Ut the
tree to see if it has the proper crook.
Then the tree is sounded with the axe
to see if IT is solid inside. II the tree Is
found to Toe AL right the root is dug out
| with the aNe and smoothly hewn out to
the proper shape. This is hard WORK. il:
fact it * thu hardest work that IS done iii
The Maine woods.
Another single purpose man IS the one
who goes to the woods for the h"mlock
bark Ior tn" tann"rieS. The industry for
merry belonged to tn" farmers aud there
WAS time when nearly every farmer IN
the state realized good sum from HIS
crop Of henlock bark. Now al the bark
comes from the forests. I'll" larger part
OF .uhc bark comes from the PenohSCot
and Hancock counties and the tnncrics
have moved that way largely.
Tho Indian who cruises the woods for
basket stock another Of the woods
specialists. The basket stock is easily
got. hut when the Indian starts out for
long trip. unless he is fortunate enough
| IT, ind Il birch that has been overlooked.
A birch tree without knots or limbs and
with bark broad enough for a canoe is
rare. and Tia" *"archer thinks himself
lucky if he does; not have to follow his;
nos for good many DAYS to find on'
Many I"Opl.' have an idea that traI lg
il The Maine woods i; obsolete. hnt This
is Ivy no means the case. Each year
many hunters scout the Moosehcad.
ChcSrncoo5 and Alceash regions in
search Of furs. and their lines of traps eX-
tend along scores of streams in the
Northern Wilderness. Each Year many
thousands Of dollars worth Of furS ar"
sold at Greenvill". Gmlford. kineo and
Fort Kent. and the hunters realize snug
sums of ready money by means of their
traps.
working lot Of men. They travel leisure
ly along their Zinc of traps. frequently
taking a week to make the round. 1hcN
have but one trouble and that is when
they visit a trap and find the snow
stained with blood and the single paw of
a beaver held between thte Jaws indis-
putable evidence that Il friendly bob cat
has passed that way and relieved them of
their game.
The trappcrs are the cranky class of
the many picturesque folks that each
winter get into the Maine woods. 1t is
money for them to get away from every
body and this continued stunning of
they know that any one is within a score
of miles of them. Another trappcr with
in few miles of them is gall and worm
wood to them.