Jasper County Democrat, Volume 6, Number 52, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 2 April 1904 — She Blazed Trail [ARTICLE+ILLUSTRATION]

She Blazed Trail

By STEWART EDWARD WHITE

Copyrightt 1902 , Ay •/’Vetrov* £*ea r4 tt*A/*e

SYNOPSIS OF PREVIOUS CHAPTERS. Chapter I—Morrison A Daly, lumbermen on the Saganaw waters of Michigan, drive a hard banraln with Radway, a contractor. II and lll—Harry Thorpe, having left his dependent sister Helen, at service, tries for work at Morrison A Daly’s, fails and takes a job at choring until he can go to Radway’s camp. IV—Thorpe at Radway’s making lumber road. The men attempt hazing. Thorpe puts on the gloves and knocks out the champion. V and VI —Radway running behind owing to slack management. Thorpe a ‘"swamper. ’ Death of his chum, Paul. The men "chip in for the widow.” Radway goes home for Christmas, leaving Dyer, the scaler. in charge. VII and Vlll—Long delay waiting for roads to freeze. Thorpe hurt and sent to Sisters’ hospital. Radway fails Thorpe out of work. IX—Thorpe demands pay of M. A D. for work done by Radway. The contract was illegal, and the firm have profited by the work done. M. AD. settle the account. X—Thorpe provides for Helen’s education aud goes into the north woods to locate valuable tract. Makes a friend of tnjuq Charley and a Chicago boy tourist, Wallace Carpenter. XI and Xll—Wallace has capital and helps Thorpe buy land. Dyer, the old scaler for Radway, is out looking for land for M. A D. Thorpe goes to Detroit to head off his rivals' land purchase. XIII and XlV—Wallace sends telegraph order to Thorpe at the land office just in time to head off M. A D. in a £30,000 purchase. M. A D. offer to buy. Thorpe won’t sell. War declared. XV and XVl—Tim Shearer, former foreman, tor M. A D., hires with Thorpe. Thorpe takes forcible possession of a dock M. A D. have built abutting his new purchase. The rival firms agree to work in harmony. CHAPTER XVI. mHHEE weeks later the steam barge Pole Star sailed down the reach of Saginaw bay. Thorpe bad received letters from Carpenter advising him of a credit to him at a Marquette hank and Inclosing a draft sufficient for current expenses. Tim Shearer had helped make out the list of necessaries. In time everything was lo&ded, the gangplank hauled In, and the little band of argonauts set their faces toward the point where the Big Dipper swings. The weather was beautiful. Each morning the sun rose out of the frosty blue lake water and set in a sea of deep purple. The moon, once again at the full, drew broad paths across the pathless waste. From the southeast blew daily the lake trades, to die at sunset and then to return in the soft still nights from the west. The ten horses in the hold munched their hay and oats as peaceably as though at home In their own stables. Jackson Hines had helped select them from the stock of firms changing locality or going out of business. His judgment In such matters was infallible, but he had resolutely refused to take the position of barn boss which Thorpe offered him. “No,” said he, “she’s too far north. I’m gettin’ old, and the rheumatics ain’t what you might call abandonin’ of me. Up there it’s colder than hades on a stoker’s holiday.” So Shearer had picked out a barn boss of his own. This man was Important, for the horses are the mainstay of logging operations. He had selected also a blacksmith, a cook, four teamsters, half a dozen cant hook men and as many handy with ax or saw. “The blacksmith is also a good wood butcher (carpenter),” explained Shearer. “Four teams is all we ought to keep going at a clip. If we need a few axmen we can pick ’em up at Marquette. I think this gang ’ll stick. . I picked ’em.” There was not a young man in the lot. They were most of them In the prime of middle life, between thirty and forty, rugged In appearance, “cocky” in manner, with the swagger and the oath of so many buccaneers, hard as nails. Altogether Thorpe thought them about as rough a set of customers as he had ever seen. Throughout the day they played cards on deck and spat tobacco Juice abroad and swore incessantly. Toward himself and Shearer their manner was an odd mixture of independent equality and a slight deference. It was as much as to say, “You’re the boss, but I’m as good a man as you any day.” Constituting the elite of the profession, as they did, Thorpe might have wondered at their consenting to work for an obscure little camp belonging to a greenhorn. Loyalty to and pride in the firm for which he works are Strong characteristics of the lumber Jack. For this reason be feels that he owes it to his reputation to ally himself only with firms of creditable else and efficiency. The small camps are for the youngsters. Occasionally you will see two or three of the veterans In such a camp, but It is generally a case of lacking something better. The truth is Shearer had managed to inspire in the minds of bis cronies an idea that were about to participate in a fight He retold Thorpe’s story artistically. The men agreed that the “young fellow bad sand enough for a lake front” After that there needed bnt a little skillful maneuvering to inspire them with the idea that it would be a greet thing to take a hand, to “make a camp” in spite of the big concern up river. Shearer knew that this attitude waa tentative. Everything depended on bow well Thorpe lived np to his reputation at die outset But Tim himself believed in Thorpe blindly. So he had no fears. A little incident at the beginning of the voyage did much to reassure him. . Tborps : had given orders that no whisky was to be brought aboard. Soon after leaving dock he saw one of the teamsters drinking from a pint Bask. Without a word he stepped briskly forward, snatched the bottle fro® thqjpan’s lip* and threw tt over-

board. Then be turned sharp on his heel and walked away without troubling himself as to how the fellow was going to take It. The occurrence pleased the men, for It showed them they had made no mistake. But it meant little else. The chief danger really was lest they become too settled in the protective attitude. As they took ID they were about, good naturedly, to help along a worthy greenhorn. This they considered exceedingly generous on their part, and In their own minds they were Inclined to look on Thorpe much as a grown man would look on a child. Fine weather followed them up the long blue reach of Lake Huron, into the noble breadth of the Detour passage, past the opening through the Thousand islands of the Georgian bay, into the St. Mary’s river. They were locked through after some delay on account of the grain barges from Duluth and at last turned their prow westward in the Big Sea water, beyond which lay Hiawatha’s Fo-ne-mah, the Land of the Hereafter. Next morning by daybreak man was at work. The hatches were

opened, and soon b«tween-decks was cumbered with boxes, packing cases, barrels and crates. In their improvised stalls the patient horses seemed to catch a hint of shore going and whinnied. By 10 o’clock there loomed against the strange coast line of the Pictured rocks a shallow bay and what looked to be a dock distorted by the northern mirage. “That’s her,” said the captain. Two hours later the steamboat slid between the yellow waters of two outlying reefs and with slackened speed moved slowly toward the wharf of log cribs filled with stone. Thorpe knew very well that the structure bad been erected by and belonged to Morrison & Daly, but the young man had had the foresight to purchase the land lying on the deep water side of the bay. He therefore anticipated no trouble in unloading, for, while Morrison & Daly owned the pier itself, the land on which it abutted belonged to him. From the arms of the bay be could make out a dozen figures standing near the end of the wharf. When, with propeller reversed, the Pole Star boro slowly down toward her moorings, Thorpe recognized Dyer at the head of eight or ten woodsmen. It looked suspicious. “Catch this line!” snng out the mate, hurling the coil of a hand line on the wharf. No one moved, and the little rope aft er a moment slid overboard with a splash. « The captain, with a curse, signaled fall speed astern. “Captain Morse,” cried Dyer, stepping forward, “my orders are that you are to land here nothing bat M. & D. merchandise.” “I have a right to land,” answered Thorpe. “The shore belongs to me." “This dock doesn’t,” retorted the other sharply, “and you can’t set foot on her." “You have no legal status. You had no business building in the first place”— began Thorpe, and then stopped with a choke of anger at the futility of arguing legality in such a case. The men had gathered interestedly in the waist of the ship, oocfl, impartial, severely critical. The vessel swung her bow in toward the dock, Thorpe ran swiftly forward and daring the Instant of rubbing contact leaped. He alighted squarely upon his feet. Without an Instant’s hesitation he rushed on Dyer and with one full, clean in-blow stretched him stunned on the dock. For a moment there was a pause of astonishment. Then the woodsmen closed upon him. During that instant Thorpe had become possessed of a weapon. It cams hurling through the air from above to fall fit tils feet. Jlheajer, with the cool

calculation of the pioneer, had seen that it would be impossible to follow hla chief and so bad done the next best thing, thrown him a heavy iron belaying pin. Thorpe hit with all his strength and qplckness. He was conscious once of being on the point of defeat. Then he had cleared a little space for himself. Then the men were on him again more savagely than ever. One fellow even succeeded in hitting him a glancing blow on the shoulder. Then came a sudden crash. Thorpe was nearly thrown from his feet. The next instant a score of yelling men leaped behind and all around him. There ensued a moment’s scuffle, the sound of dull blows, and the dock was clear of all but Dyer and three others who were, like himself, unconscious. The captain, yielding to the excitement 'had run his prow plump against the wharf. Some of the crew received the mooring lines. All was ready for disembarkation. Bryan Moloney, a strapping IrishAmerican of the big boned, red cheeked type, threw some water over the four stunned combatants. Slowly they came to life. They were promptly yanked to their feet by the irate river men, who commenced at once to bestow sundry vigorous kicks and shakings by way of punishment Thorpe interposed. “Quit it,” he commanded. “Let them go.” The men grumbled. One or two were Inclined to be openly rebellious. “If I hear another peep out of you,” said Thorpe to these latter, “you can climb right aboard and take the return trip.” He looked them in the eye until they muttered and then went on: “Now, we’ve got to get unloaded and our goods ashore before those fellows report to camp. Get right moving and hustle!” So Dyer and his men picked themselves out of the trouble sullenly and departed. The ex-scaler had nothing to say as long as he was within reach, but when he had gained the shore he turned. “You won't think this is so funny when you get in the law courts!” he shouted. Thorpe made no reply. With thirty men at the job it does not take a great while to move ,a small cargo thirty or forty feet. By 3 o’clock the Pole Star was ready to continue her journey.’ Thorpe climbed aboard, leaving Shearer in charge. “Keep the men at it, Tim,” said he. “Put up the walls of the warehouse good and strong and move the stuff in. If you get through before I return you might take a scout up the river and fix on a camp site. I’ll bring back the lumber for roofs, floors and trimmings with me and will try to pick up a few axmen for swamping. Those fellows won’t bother us any more for the present, I think. But it pays to be on deck. So long.” When Thorpe returned to the bay he found the warehouse complete. Shearer and Andrews, the surveyor, were scouting up the river. “No trouble from above, boys?” asked Thorpe. “Nary trouble,” they replied. The warehouse was secured by padlocks, the wagon loaded with the tent and the necessaries of life and work. Early in the morning the processionlaughing, Joking, skylarking—took its way up the river trail. Late that evening, tired, but still inclined to mischief, they came to the first dam, where Shearer and Andrews met them. “How do you like it, Tim?” asked Thorpe that evening. “She’s ail right,” replied the river man, with emphasis, which for him was putting it strong. At noon the following day the party arrived at the second dam. Here Shearer had decided to build the permanent camp. Injun Charley was constructing one of his endless series of birch bark canoes. Later he would paddle the whole string to Marquette, where he would sell them to a hardware dealer for $2.50 apiece. Injun Charley looked up and grunted as Thorpe approached. “How are you, Charles?” greeted Thorpe reticently. “You gettum pine? Good!” replied Charley in the same tone.

CHAPTER XVII. mWO months passed away. Winter set in. The camp waa built and inhabited. Routine had established Itself, and allj was going well. The first move of the M. & D. com-j pany bad been one of conciliation.* Thorpe was approached by the walking boss of the camps up river. The man did not pretend any hypocritical friendship for the younger firm. His proposition was entirely one of mutual advantage. The company had gone to considerable expense in constructing the pier of stone cribs. It would be impossible for the steamer to land at any other point. Thorpe had undisputed possession of the shore, but the company could as indisputably remove the dock. Let it stay where It was. Both companies could then use it for their mutual convenience. To this Thorpe agreed. The actual logging was opening up well. Both Shearer and Thorpe agreed! that it would not do to be too ambitious the first year. They set about clearing their banking ground about half a mile below the first dam, and during the six weeks before snowfall cut three short roads of half a mile each. Approximately 2,000,000 feet would be put In from these roads, which could be extended in years to come, while another million could be travoyed directly to the lauding from Its immediate vicinity. “Next year,” said Tim, “we’ll get In 20,000,000. That railroad ’ll get along a ways by then, and men ’ll be more plenty.” Through the lengthening evenings they sat crouched on wooden boxes either side of the stove, conversing rarely, gazing at one spot with a steady persistency which was only an outward Indication of the persistency With which their minds held to the work in hand. Tim, the older at the business, showed this trait more strongly than Thorpe. The old man thought of nothing but logging. Nothing was too small to escape his deliberate scrutiny. Nothing was In so perfect a state that it did not bear one more inspection. He played the logging as a chess player his game. In the men’s camp the crew lounged, smoked, danced or played cards. In those days no one thought of forbidding gambling. One evening Thorpe who had been too busy to remember Phil’s Violin, strolled over and looked through the window. A dance was in progress. The men. were waltzing, whirling solemnly round and round, gripping firmly each other’s loose sleeves just above the elbow. At every third step of the waltz they stamped one foot. Perched on a cracker box sat Phil. His head was thrust forward almost aggressively over his instrument, and his eyes glared at the dancing men with the old wolflike gleam. As he played he drew the bow across with a swift jerk, thrust it back with another, threw his shoulders from one side to the other in abrupt time to the music. And the music! Thorpe unconsciously, shuddered, then sighed in pity. It was atrocious! It was not even in tune. The performer seemed to grind it out with a fierce delight, in which appeared little of the aesthetic pleasure of' the artist Thorpe was at a loss to define it “Poor Phil!” he said to himself. “He has the musical soul without even the musical ear.” (TO BE CONTINUED.)

The men were on him again.