Ladysmith news-budget. [volume] (Ladysmith, Rusk County, Wis.) 1907-1927, 1922-01-06
Continued from last week

Continued from last week.
The logs for the new house were
ready two days after the cutting be
ran. Martin Waddell and Samuel Hill
sent teams TO haul them. John cam
eroD and Peter Lukins had brought
the window sash and some clapboardS
from BeardstOwn in q small fiatb0at.
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 a
home for the newcomers. Samson
and Jack Kelso went out for Il 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 contribution OF
cake or pic or cookies or doughnuts.
"What will be my part?'' Samson
had inquired Of Kelso.
Nothing hut jug OF whisky and "a
hind word and house warming"
Kelso had answered.
They nOtched and bored the logs
and made pins 10 bind them and cut
those that We're 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 a 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 q
woven network Of stocks. The first
flre-a slow one-haked 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 a table of rough boards
resting on poles set in crotcheS. At
noon one of them sounded conch
shell. Then with shouts of JOY the
men hurried to the fireside and for Il
moment there was great SplutterinS
over the wash basins. Before they
ate, every man except Abe nnd Sam
son "took q pull at the juggling or
short"-to quote phrase of the time.
1t was cheerful company that sat
down upon the grass around the table
with loaded plates. Their food had
its extra seasoning of merry iests and
loud laughter. Sarah was IL little
81 Irsc Il tTn {
of their eating, no knives or forks or
napkins being needed in that process
Having eaten, washed, and packed
aWey their dishes the women went
home at two. Before they had gone
Samson's ears caught thunder of
horses feet in the distance. Looking
In it's direction he saw cloud of dust
In the road and a band of horsemen
riding toward them at full speed. Abe
came 10 him and said:
II see the boys from Clary's Grove
are coming. If they get mean, let me
deaf with EN-. It's my responsibility,
I wouldn't wonder if they had some
Of O1futS whisky with them"
The boys arrived in cloud Of
dust and a chorus Of Indian Wil5ops
and diSnounted and hobbIed their
horses. They came toward the work
efs, led by burly Jack Armstrong Il
$talwart, hard-faced blacksmith Of
about twenty-five with broad, heavy
shoulders, whose name has gone into
history. They had been drinking some
hut 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. Waddeli provided them with the
best remnants of the dinner. They
were rather noisy. SooR 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
puli at the jug. They were out for a
spree and Abe knew it and knew fnrth-
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 off for refresh
mARts."
Tie young jewellers gathered in a
group and began to whisper together
Samson writes that it became evident
then they were going to make trouble
sna SAYS: z;..----
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