Burlington weekly free press. [volume] (Burlington, Vt.) 1866-1928, 1912-01-11
FRfCKLES
BY
Gene SGr@GG@m-
Porter
COPYRIGHT. 1904. BY DOUBLEDAY. PAGE

| Ice and fire that glittered and burned
on one Of his fingers and the dainty
beautiful, thoroughbred mare he rode
No man Of McLenn's gangs could
honestly say that he had ever been
ovcrdriven or underpaid They all
knew that up In the great timber city
several millions stood to his credit.
He was the only son Of that Nc
Lean who had sent out the finest ships
ever built in Scotland. That his son
should carry on this business after his
death had been the fathers ambition.
He sent the boy through Edinburgh
university and Oxford and allowed
him several years. travel.
Then he was ordered through south
crn Canada and Michigan to purchase
consignment Of tall. straight timber
for masts and down into Indiana for
oak beams. The young man entered
these mighty forests. parts Of which
still lay untouched since the dawn t
the morning of time. The intense j.
lence. like that Of great empty cathn.
dral. fascinated him. He gradually
learned that to the shy wood c. l.
lures that darted across his path or
pceped inqulringly from leafy ambush
he was brother. He found himself
approaching. with feeling of rever-
ence. those majestic trees that had
stood through ages Of sun. wind AID
snow. Soon it became difficult
thing to fell them. When he had fill.
ed his orler and returned home he
was amazed to find that in the swamps
and forests he had lost his heart. and
1t was calling. forever calling him.
When he inherited his fathers prop
erty he promptly disposed Of it and.
with his mother, founded a home in a
splendid T. dence in the outskirts Of
Grand Rapids. With three partnN's
he organized lumber company. His
work was to purchase, fell and ship
the timber to the mills. Marshall
managed the milling process and pass
ed the lumber on to the factory. From
the lumber BarthOl made beautiful
and useful furniture. which Uptegrove
scattered all over the world from a
big wholesale house.
Mclean faced a young man. still un.
der twenty. tall. spare. heavily framed,
thickly freckled and red haired. with
n homely Irish face. but in the steady
gray eyes. straightly meeting his
searching ones Of blue. there were un.
swerving candor and look of long
ing not to be ignored
You. IRE looking for work" Ques-
toned Mclean.
"Yis," answered Freckles.
IL am very sorry" said tho boss,
but there is only one man want at
present-a good. big fellow with a
stout heart and strong body. hoped
that you would do. but | am afraid
you are too young and hardly strong
enough"
"And what was it you thought |
might be doing?" asked Freckles.
The boss could scarcely repress a
start. Somewhere back Of accident
and poverty had been an ancestor who
used cultivated English. even with an
accent. The boy spoke in a mellow
Irish voice. sweet and pure. II was
scarcely definite enough to be called
broguc. yet there was trick in the
turning Of the sentence. the wrong
sound Of letter here and there. thai,
was almost irresistible to Mclean.
He was Of foreign birth, and. despite
years of alienation. in times Of strong
feeling he fell into inherited sins OF
accent and construction.
"vf'c no rbifd'c inh - apcu-ovo1 Mo
Lean. II am the fed manager Of n
lumber company. We have just leased
1000 acres OF The I.!mberlost Many
OF these trees are of great value. We
can't leave our camp, six miles south,
FOR almost year yet. so we have
blazed trail and strung barbed wires
securely about the extent OF this lease
Before we return to our work must
put this Limberlost lease in the hands
OF a reliable. brave, strong mar who
will guard 1t every hour Of the dag
and sleep with one eye open at night
l should require the entire length of
the trail to be walked at least twice
every day. to make sure that orr lines
were up and no one had bean tres.
passing"
But why wouldn't f.:Gt be the finest
Job In tie world for me?" pleaded
Freckles. ii am never sick. could
walk the trail twice. three times every
day, and I'd be watching sharp all the
while"
tits because you are little more tina n
hoy. and this will be a trying Job
for work hardened man." answered
Mclean. "You would be afraid. In
stretching our lines we killed six rat.
tlesnakes almost as long rs your body
and as thick as your arm. You would
always be alone. and the Limberlost
Is alive with sounds and voices. |
don't pretend to say what all of them
come from, but from a few sinking
forms I've seen and hair raising yells
I've heard Id rather not confront
their owners myself. and am neither
weak nor fearful.
Worst of all. any man who will
enter the swamp to mark and steal
timber Is desperate fellow. One Of
my employees ut the south camp, John
Carter. compelled me TO discharge him
for Il number Of serious reasons. He
entered the swamp alone aud marked
number Of valuable trees that he
was endeavo ring to sell to our rival
tOmpany when we secured the lease
He has sworn to have these trees II
he has to die or to kill others to get
them"