The Snowflake herald., 1921-10-14
CHAPTER Iv-continued.

The logs for the new house were
ready two days after the cutting be-
gan. Martin Waddell and Samuel Hill
sent teams to haul them. John Cam
erOn and Peter Lukins had brought
the window sash and some clapbOards
from Beardstown in a small fiatbOat.
Then came the day of the raising-a
clear. warm day early in September.
All the men from the village and the
near farms gathered to help make
home for the newcomers. Samson
and Jack KelsO went out for a hunt
after the cutting and brought in a
fat buck and many grouse for the bee
dinner, to which every woman Of the
neighborhOod made a contribution of
cake or pie or cookies or doughnuts.
"What will be my part?" Samson
had inquired of Kelso.
Nothing but jug of whisky and a
kind word and a house warming"
KelSo had answered.
They notched and bored the logs
and made pins to bind them and cut
hose that were to go around the fire.
place and window spaces. Strong,
willing and well-trained hands hewed
and fitted the logs together. Alexan-
der Ferguson lined the fireplace with
curious mortar made of clay in which
he mixed grass for binder. This NOR
tar he rolled into layers called 'cats,"
each eight inches long and three inches
thick. Then he laid them against the
logs and held them in place with
fire-a slow one-baked the clay into
a rigid stone-like sheath inside the
logs and presently the sticks were
burned away. The women had cooked
the meats by an open fire and spread
the dinner on table of rough boards
resting on poles set in crotches. At
noon one of them sounded a cOnch
shell. Then with shouts Of Joy the
men hurried to the f1reside and for
moment there was a great spluttering
over the wash basins. Before they
ate, every man except Abe and Sam
son "toOk a pull at the jug-lOng or
short"-to quote phrase of the time.
1t was a cheerful company that sat
down upon the grass around the table
with loaded plates. Their food had
its extra seasoning of merry jests and
loud laughter. Sarah was a little
shocked at the fortnight directness
of their eating, no knives or forks or
napkins being needed in that process.
Having eaten, washed and packed
away their dishes the women went
home at two. Before they had gone
Samson's ears caught thunder Of
horses feet in the distance. Looking
I'm it's direction he saw a cloud Of dust
In the road and band of horsemen
riding toward them at full speed. Abe
came to him and said:
81 see the boys from Clary's Grove
are coming. If they get mean, let me
deal with 'em. It's my responsibility
I wouldn't wonder If they had some
of Offut's whisky with them"
The boys arrived in a cloud Of
dust and a chorus of Indian whoops
and dismounted and hobbled their
horses. They came toward the work
erS. led by burly Jack Armstrong, a
stalwart, hard-faced blacksmith Of
about twenty-five with broad, heavy
shoulders, whose name has gone into
history. They had been drinking some
but no one Of them was in the least
degree off his balance. They scuffled
around the jug for moment In per-
feet good nature and then Abe and
Mrs. Waddell provided them with the
best remnants of the dinner. They
were rather noisy. Soon they went
up on the roof to help with the rafters
and the clapboarding. They worked
well few minutes and suddenly they
came scrambling down for another
pull at the jug. They were out for a
spree and Abe knew 1t and knew furth-
er that they had reached the limit
of discretion.
''Boys. there are ladies here and
we've got to be careful" he said.
LES stick to the Job till four o'clock
Then wen knock OF for refresh
ments."
/ The young revelers gathered in a
group and began to whisper together.
Samson writes that 1t became evident
khen they were going to make trouble
and says:
1--WE had left the children at Rut-
5odSS's y the care Of Ann. went to