The Idaho Republican. [volume] (Blackfoot, Idaho) 1904-1932, 1914-05-08

asked him where he kept his pigs.
He said that they were down on the
job and for me to take my pick
of the bunch, but when | got on
the job | hadn't seen hog, SO
approached young fellow who was
busy doing nothing" and asked him
whsre the boss kept his pigs. He
saw at once that | was a green hand
and told me that pig" was a short
me hook onto it. This was my first
experience with a tool of that sort
and I never in all my days saw an
animal that could cut more didos
than that same pig. I tried to
jab it into the bank as the other
skinners did and worried along I'M
till noon, at a word from the boss
every man dropped his tools and
rushed pell-mell for the cook tent.
Intent only on getting the first whack
after their cayuses, the SINNERS al
ways came out second best in this
race. When we started to work at
1 o'clock the boss came to me and
said that his pig sticker had quit,
and wanted to know if could stick
pigs. I told him that | had stuck
a pig or two, but by this time I was
suspicious about the pig business.
So went to my friend of the morn
ing and he explained that sticking
pigs was, in plain United States,
holding slips, so | tackled the job,
but couldn't get the blamed pigs
nose into the rocks. Finally the
boss" yelled, ''Why don't you hold
that pig?" I replied, 81 am trying
to hold it, but the darned team keeps
pulling it away from me.
About quitting time the "boss'
stood up on the grade, watch in
hand, and on the stroke of six he
uttered long. drawn, CALL o-v-e-r."
We repeated the manouevers of the
noon hour, each one striving to be
first at the table, then for few
minutes jollying. then all is quiet.
A coyote banks on the hill top, an
answering call from across the can
yon. After the coyotes have visited
for a short time complete silence
reigns. The camp is sound asleep.
1t seemed that tired eyes and weary
limbs had scarce touched the hunks
when the foreman's long CALL
out echoed and re-echoed among
the dark hills.
We were soon at the table boiling
everything in sight. AS I was start
ing to work one of the foreman's
pets asked him for my job of stick
ing pigs. AS a consequence the boss
came to me and said, "You go down
in the pit and lead EN- by the face"
This was a poser" lead 'em by
the face" what he meant by that I
did not know.
I thought of all the jobs I had ever
done, or heard of, but lead 'em
by the face" got my goat. So I
again called on my young friend for
a little light on the subject. He ex-
planned that Lead EN- by the face"
meant leading a cart horse by the
blind bride. So I was soon at work
Leading 'em by the face Each
man must look out for two carts,
while the muckers were loading the
empty cart I would lead the other
horse to the dump, dump the load,
return and repeat the manoueWer.
In this way I trotted back and forth
so many times that I wore my legs
off so short that they would barely
reach down to the ground.
Sunday morning every body Iayed
off, except the cook, Turnkey and
stable dog. 1t was necessary "to boil
up" in order to get rid of the weeks
accumulation of gray backs. This
proceeding consisted of placing all
the clothes in a five gallon coal oil
can, filing it with water and placing
on sage brush fire until Thorough
ly heated, generally two men awaited
on each can, and while waiting for
their clothes to dry the men sit
around in an almost nude condition,
as they generally stood in all they
owned without a second shirt to their
back. Fortunate, indeed, was the
man who owned a change of cloth
ing. BY noon the boiling up pro-
cess was finished and the men gen.
orally lay around in the bunk tents
for the rest of the day relating their
experience in other camps.
The "Bohunks" as all the foreign
ers were called, gathered in little
groups here and there, talking in
their mother tongue, they never as
ISOLATED with the "rough-necks" as
the men were called who spent their
w rlJ In ho,,re Il ovco tot -