The San Francisco call. [volume] (San Francisco [Calif.]) 1895-1913, 1909-06-27
By Clifton E. Brooks

''whst is so rare as day in June?>
Then, If ever, come perfect days.
Heaven tries the earth If 1t be in tune,
And over II softly her warm ear lays"
The flush Of life may well be seen
Thrilling back over hills and valleys.
- he same call of which the poet
Lowell sings is felt by most peo-
pie with red blood in their veins
at least once each year. Last
year had experienced the thrill with
out being able to settle upon an OBJ
5ective. Then as a fash from
clear sky came the letter from Pal"
He proposed that I join him in trip
through the Kings river basin. The
arrangements were completed in record
time and I soon found myself on the
way TO Fresno. Pals home was near
Sanger and it was from that town that
we made our start.
I arrived in Sanger after midnight
but we arose almost with the sun in
order to get an early start. All the
camp equipment had been assembled by
Pal. who had likewise laid in the store
OF provisions. Coming from a distance
It fell TO my lot. very conveniently, to
furnish the guns, ammunition and fish
ing tackle
Before the start was made 1 had the
pleasure OF being introduced to Skoo-
ticks. We had driven over to neigh
bor's to get>a horse. Pal led forth a
species Of bronx that could have been
put TO first class service on a Petaluma
chicken ranch-and nowhere else. [
could not refrain from inquiring where
we would get the horse. Imagine my
surprise when Pal replied: why, the
man that owns this one says that he
is q FIRST rate mountain horse"
During the return trip Skoozicks
pulled almost as hard at the back Of
the buggy as the horse to which the
buggy was hitched. When we arrived
at Pals home we were met by gibes
which did not serve TO increase our
pride in the-beast Of burden. He soon
demonstrated, however, that he could
pull the light buggy when we at
tached TO him. We took turns at rid
Ing and walking. Once or twics he
managed 20 travel almost as fast as the
fellow who walked.
Our Immediate destination was
Trimmer springs, located about %
miles from Sanger on the Kings river
well up in the foothills OF the Sierra
Nevada range. For the entire distance
we followed the line OF the monster
lumber hume. which is operated by the
lumber company OF Sanger. This furne
is the longest in the world, being Sc
miles In length. The fiume is built on
a high trestle varying in height from
10 or IL feet on the level plain to some
hundred or more feet where it crosses
some deep canyon or arroyo in the
hills. Along this fiume and on a level
with IL live the hume herders.
The houses, or rather shacks, in
which the fume herders live resemble
the oyster houses on San Francisco
bay in that they are seldom built on
solid ground owing TO the necessity Of
being on the same level with the fume.
Daylight or darkness. hot or cold, the
fune tender must be ever ready at a
moments notice to start out to prevent
CT remedy a jam in the beat entrusted
to his care. 1t was due TO the gener-
osfty Of one OF these dume herders that
we spent the first night in comparative
comfort
We were permitted the luxury OF
sleeping in his barn. Not a preten-
tious affair, it did nevertheless contain
quantity OF freshly mown hay, which
Ias as much appreciated by US as by
slxoozicks. The next morning we were
I'D early and had covered the distance
renaining between US and Trimmer be-
fore noon
The stay at Trimmer was of the
pIeasantest and nothing less inviting
tFsan the Kings river basin could have
Induced US to leave. The departure
was my initiation into the mysteries of
the pack saddle and the kyax. When
the entire pack had fbeen assembled on
SI<oozicks' back he looked as If he
might fall from the sheer weight Of it