The Ordway new era., 1912-08-23


mining regions. the miners;
and In the timber regions. the
lumber jack. While the work OF the
lumber jack 10 not SO spectacular ~
the round up" and "broncho busting"
Of the cowboy. he 10 an interesting
and picturesque character who 10 rap
idly disappearing with the vanishing
Of. our forests. In the time OF hts
glory he Is the fellow we'll met who
has labored all winter in a lumber
camp. saved q few hundred dollars.
gone to the city in the spring and per
haps In less than 48 hours after land.
ing is minus his roll Of bills and has
nothing to show for It except head
ache and a very indistinct recollection
how he came by that. With the lum-
Der Jack will go the lumber camp. the
camp cook" tho "dunkey." the boss"
and other worthless.
From Michigan to the Pacific coast
are found the lumber camps. employ
ing nt seasons Of the year thousands
Of men. These lumber camps. small
communities In themselves. have their
unwrtten laws and regulations. dif-
fering more or less in the several
states.
A few years ago the writer with .
crew Of men was sent out early one
fall to q lumber camp to cut Eastwood
for . bedding firm. Tho cook with a
few OF the lumber jacks had remained
In camp during the summer to load
logs, but all the formal customs Of the
camp were preserved. We looked up
on this excursion into the woods for
the purpose Of cutting wood as a sort
Of late summer vacation. and were nc.
cordingly in high spirits. When the
horn blew for the first meal We rushed
boisterously into the cooks shanty and
seating ourselves at the table began
to talk and Joke. The lumber Jacks
looked at us with a sort Of awe and
then glanced at the cook.
Cooks Commands obeyed.
NO talking at the table," the cook
flcrcely called out as he glared upon
us. This command. SO sudden and un-
us ial, was strictly obeyed during the
meal. At first We took 1t TO be a re-
bukc for our noisy way Of entering the
cook shanty. but after tho meal was
over we were informed that talking
at the table was n serious breach OF
the regulations and that We had better
abide by the rule.
The privileged character In camp is
the cooI. Within his domain his au-
thority Is supreme. The saying that
the way to reach a mans heart
is through his stomach holds good in
the lumber camp. and cook can
make or mar the efficiency OF a
crew OF men by the quality Of his
cooking.
In Wisconsin and certain parts OF
Minnesota the lumber jacks enter the
cook shanty" at meal times with a
sort OF reverence. Next to the boss
shanty," 1t Is the holy Of holies. When
the door Is reached all conversation
ceases and the men silently file In
and take their places. The head OF
tie table Is always reserved for the
boss. Not word Is spoken at meal
time, except when victuals are asked
for. Meal time. instead of being
social hour as 1t Is In society. Is with
TIE lumber jacks time OF silence. II
rot OF meditation. The origin OF this
r .'e has been variously explained.
The most plausible explanation Is that
TIE lumber Jacks might Inadvertently
drop some remark rejecting upon. the
cooking. and thus insult the dignity
of the cook
In Washington. at least In some OF
the camps. no such rule exists. At
meal time the men indulge in all kinds
OF railleries. not even excepting the
cook.
Where They Sleep.
In all camps the meal hours are an
nounced by blowing a horn. or. more
generally. by striking a large triangle
made especially for this purpose. At
the signal the camp swarms with men
rushing from the bunk houses to the
cook shanty.
Tho lumber Jacks sleep In bunk
houses. During the evening they sit
along their hunks smoking and con.