第14章
加入书架 A- A+
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  Orde,aftertherearwaswellstarted,patrolledthelengthofthedriveinhislightbuckboard。Hehadafirst—classteamofyounghorses——high—spirited,somewhatfractious,butcapableonapinchoftheirhundredmilesinaday。Hehandledthemwellovertheroughcorduroysandswamproads。Fromjamtorearandbackagainhetravelled,pausingontheriverbankstoconverseearnestlywithoneoftheforemen,surveyingthesituationwiththebird’s—eyeviewofthegeneral。Attimesheremainedatonecampforseveraldayswatchingthetrendofthework。Theimprovementsmadeduringtheprecedingsummergavehimthegreatestsatisfaction,especiallytheapronatthefalls。

  \"We’dhavehadadozenbadjamsherebeforenowwithalltheselogsintheriver,\"saidhetoTimNolan,whowasinchargeofthatbeat。

  \"Andasitis,\"saidTim,\"we’vehadbuttheonelittlewingjam。\"

  Thepierstodefinethechannelalongcertainshallowsalsosavedtherearcrewmuchlabourinthematterofstrandedlogs。

  Everythingwasverysatisfactory。EvenoldmanReedheldtohischastenedattitude,andmadenotrouble。Infact,heseemedgladtoturnanhonestpennybyboardingthesmallcrewinchargeofsluicingthelogs。

  NotroublewasexperienceduntilHeinzman’srollwayswerereached。

  HereOrdehad,ashehadpromisedhispartner,boomedafreechanneltopreventHeinzmanfromfillinguptheentireriver—bedwithhisrollways。Whenthejamofthedrivehaddescendedtheriverasfarasthis,OrdefoundthatHeinzmanhadnotyetbeguntobreakout。

  HardlyhadOrde’sfirstcrewpassed,however,whenHeinzman’smenbegantobreakdownthelogsintothedrive。Longbeforetherearhadcaughtup,allHeinzman’sdrivewasinthewater,inextricablymingledwiththesixtyoreightymillionfeetOrdehadincharge。

  Thesituationwasplain。AllHeinzmannowhadtodowastoretainasmallcrew,whichshouldfollowaftertherearinordertosackwhatlogsthelattershouldleavestranded。Thisamountedpracticallytonothing。Asitwasimpossibleinsogreatamassoftimbers,andinthehasteofapressinglabour,todistinguishordiscriminateagainstanysinglebrand,Heinzmanwasinafairwaytogethislogssentdownstreamwithpracticallynoexpense。

  \"Vell,myboy,\"remarkedtheGermanquitefranklytoOrdeastheymetontheroadoneday,\"lookslikeIgotyoudistime,eh?\"

  Ordelaughed,alsowithentiregood—humour。

  \"Ifyoumeanyourlogsaregoingdownwithours,whyIguessyouhave。Butyoupastethisinyourhat:you’regoingtokeepawfulbusy,andit’sgoingtocostyousomethingyettoget’emdown。\"

  ToNewmark,ononeofhisoccasionalvisitstothecamps,Ordedetailedthesituation。

  \"Itdoesn’tamounttomuch,\"saidhe,\"exceptthatitcomplicatesmatters。We’llmakehimscratchgravel,ifwehavetositupnightsandworkovertimetodoit。Wecan’tinjurehimorleavehislogs,butwecanannoyhimalot。\"

  Thestateofaffairswasperfectlywellknowntothemen,andtheentireriverenteredintothespiritofthecontest。Thedriverskeptasharplookoutfor\"H\"logs,andwheneverpossiblethrustthemasideintoeddiesandbackwaters。This,ofcourse,merelymadeworkforthesackersHeinzmanhadleftabovetherear。Soontheywereinchargeofaveryfairlittledriveoftheirown。Theirlotwasnotenviable。Indeed,onlythepressureofworkpreventedsomeofthemoreaggressiveofOrde’srear——amongwhomcouldbenumberedtheRoughRed——fromgoingbackand\"cleaningout\"thisimpertinentbandofhangers—on。Onedaytwoofthelatter,conductingthejamoftheminiaturedriveastern,camewithinreachoftheRoughRed。Thelatterhadlingeredinhopesofrescuinghispeavy,whichhadgoneoverboard。Toloseone’speavyis,amongrivermen,themostmortifyingdisgrace。Consequently,theRoughRedwasinafitmoodfortrouble。Heattackedthetwosingle—handed。Adesperatebattleensued,whichlastedupwardofanhour。Thetworivermenpunched,kicked,andbatteredtheRoughRedinamannertotearhisclothes,deprivehimtosomeextentofredwhiskers,bloodyhisface,cuthisshoulder,andknockloosetwoteeth。TheRoughRed,morethantheequalofeithermansingly,hadreciprocatedinkind。Orde,drivingintowardtherearfromadetourtoavoidaswamp,heard,anddescendedfromhisbuckboard。Tyinghishorsestotrees,hemadehiswaythroughthebrushtothesceneofconflict。Sowindedandweariedwerethebelligerentsbynowthathehadnodifficultyinseparatingthem。Hesurveyedtheirwreckswithasardonichalfsmile。

  \"Icallthisadraw,\"saidhefinally。Hisattitudebecamethreateningasthetwoup—rivermen,recoveringsomewhat,showeduglysymptoms。\"Git!\"hecommanded。\"Scat!Iguessyoudon’tknowme。I’mJackOrde。JimmyandItogethercoulddoadozenofyou。\"

  Hemenacedthemuntil,muttering,theyhadturnedaway。

  \"Well,Jimmy,\"saidhehumorously,\"youlookasifyou’dbeenrunthroughathrashingmachine。\"

  \"Thosefellersmakemesick!\"growledtheRoughRed。

  Ordelookedhimoveragain。

  \"Youlooksick,\"saidhe。

  Whenthebuckboarddrewintocamp,OrdesentBourkeawaytorepairdamageswhilehecalledthecookeetohelpunpackseveralheavyboxesofhardware。Theyprovedtocontainaboutthirtysmallhatchets,wellsharpened,andeachwithaleatherguard。Whentherearcrewhadcomeinthatnight,Ordedistributedthehatchets。

  \"Boys,\"saidhe,\"whileyou’reonthework,Iwantyoualltokeepawatch—outforthese\"H\"logs,andwheneveryoustrikeoneIwantyoutoblazeitplainly,sotherewon’tbeanymistakeaboutit。\"

  \"Whatfor?\"askedoneoftheSaginawmenashereceivedhishatchet。

  Buttherivermanwhosquattednextnudgedhimwithhiselbow。

  \"ThelessquestionsyouaskJack,themoreanswersyou’llget。Justdowhatyou’retoldtoonthisriverandyou’llseefunsure。\"

  ThreedayslatertherearcrewranintotheheadofthepondaboveReed’sdam。Toeveryone’ssurprise,Ordecalledahaltontheworkandannouncedaholiday。

  Now,holidaysareunknownondrive。Barelyistimeallowedforeatingandsleeping。Nevertheless,allthatdaythemenlayaboutincompleteidleness,smoking,talking,sleepinginthewarmsun。

  Theriver,silencedbytheclosedsluice—gates,sleptalso。Thepondfilledwithlogs。Fromabove,thecurrent,aidedbyafairwind,wasdrivingdownstillotherlogs——theforerunnersofthelittledriveastern。Atsightofthese,someofthemengrumbled。

  \"We’relosin’whatwemade,\"saidthey。\"Weleftthemlogs,andsorted’emoutoncealready。\"

  Ordesentacoupleofaxe—mentoblazethenewcomers。Alittlebeforesundownheorderedthesluice—gatesofthedamopened。

  \"Nightwork,\"saidthementooneanother。Theyknew,ofcourse,thatinsluicinglogs,thegatemustbeopenacoupleofhoursbeforethesluicingbeginsinordertofilltheriver—bedbelow。

  Logsrunaheadfasterthanthewaterspreads。

  Sureenough,aftersupperOrdesuddenlyappearedamongthem,thewell—knowndevilofmischiefdancinginhiseyesandbroadeninghisgood—naturedface。

  \"Getorganised,boys,\"saidhebriskly。\"We’vegottogetthispondallsluicedbeforemorning,andthere’senoughofusheretohustleitrightalong。\"

  Thementooktheirplaces。Ordemovedhereandthere,givinghisdirections。

  \"Sluicethrougheverythingbutthe\"H\"logs,\"hecommanded。\"Workthemofftotheleftandleavethem。\"

  Twilight,thendark,fell。Afterafewmomentsthemoon,thenjustpastitsfull,rosebehindthenew—buddingtrees。Thesluicing,undertheimpetusofabigcrew,wentrapidly。

  \"Ibetthere’smightynearamillionanhourgoingthroughthere,\"

  speculatedOrde,watchingthesmooth,swift,butburdenedwatersofthechute。

  Andinthisworkthemendistinguishedeasilythenewwhiteblaze—

  marksonHeinzman’slogs;sotheywereablewithouthesitationtoshuntthemonesideintothesmootherwater,asOrdehadcommanded。

  Abouttwoo’clockthelastlogshotthrough。

  \"Now,boys,\"saidOrde,\"tearoutthebooms。\"

  Thechutetothedamwasapproached,ashasbeenearlierexplained,bytworowsofboomsarrangedinaV,orfunnel,theapexofwhichemptiedintothesluice—way,andthewide,projectingarmsofwhichembracedthewidthofthestream。Thelogs,floatingdownthepond,werethusconcentratedtowardthesluice。Also,therivermen,walkingbackandforththelengthofthebooms,wereableeasilytokeepthedrivemoving。

  Now,however,Ordeunchainedtheseboomlogs。Themenpushedthemashore。Thereasmanyascouldfindroomoneithersidetheboom—

  polesclampedintheirpeavies,and,usingtheseimplementsashandles,carriedtheboomssomedistancebackintothewoods。Theneverybodytrampedbackandforth,roundandabout,toconfusethetrail。Ordewaslikeamischievousboyataschoolprank。Whenthelasttimberhadbeenconcealed,helifteduphisdeepvoiceinaroarofjoy,inwhichthecrewjoined。

  Nowlet’sturninforalittlesleep,\"saidbe。

  Thissituation,perhapsalittlecloudyinthereader’smind,wouldhaveclearedcouldhehavelookedoutoverthedampondthefollowingmorning。TheblazedlogsbelongingtoHeinzman,driftingslowly,hadsuckeddownintothecornertowardthepowercanalwhere,caughtagainstthegrating,theyhadjammed。Theselogswouldhavetobefloatedsingly,andpushedonebyoneagainstthecurrentacrossthepondandintotheinfluenceofthesluice—gate。

  Someofthemwouldbehardtocomeat。

  \"Iguessthatwillkeepthembusyforadayortwo,\"commentedOrde,ashefollowedthereardowntowhereitwassackingbelowthedam。

  This,asOrdehadsaid,wouldbesufficientlyannoyingtoHeinzman,butwouldhavelittlerealeffectonthemainissue,whichwasthattheGermanwasgettingdownhislogswithacrewoflessthanadozenmen。Nevertheless,Orde,inavastspiritoffun,tookdelightininventingandexecutingpracticaljokesofthegeneralsortjustdescribed。Forinstance,atonespotwherehehadboomedthedeeperchannelfromtherocksoneitherside,heshuntedasmanyofHeinzman’slogsascamebyhandilythroughanopeninghehadmadeinthebooms。Theretheygroundedontheshallows——moreworkforthemenfollowing。Manyofthelogsinchargeofthelatter,however,catchingthefreecurrent,overtooktherear,sothatthenumberofthe\"H\"logsinthedrivewasnotmateriallydiminished。

  Atfirst,ashasbeenhinted,thesevarioustacticshadlittleeffect。Oneday,however,thechoreboy,whohadbeenovertoSpruceRapidsaftermail,reportedthatanadditionalcrewoftwentyhadbeensentintoHeinzman’sdrive。Thiswasgratifying。

  \"We’remakinghimscratchgravel,boys,anyway,\"saidOrde。

  Themenenteredintothespiritofthething。Infact,theirenthusiasmwasalmosttooexuberant。Ordehadconstantlytonegativenewandingeniousschemes。

  \"No,boys,\"saidhe,\"Iwanttokeepontherightsideofthelaw。

  Wemayneeditlater。\"

  Meanwhiletheentirelengthoftheriverwasbusyandexcited。

  Heinzman’slogswereallblazedinsideaweek。Themenpassedthehatchetsalongtheline,andslimchancedidamarkedloghaveofrescueoncethepoorthingfellintodifficulties。Withthestrangeandinterestingtendencyrivermenandwoodsmenhaveofpersonifyingtheelementsoftheirdailywork,themenaddressedthehelplesstimbersintonesofcontempt。

  \"Thoughtyou’dridethatrock,you————————————,\"saidthey,\"andgotleft,didyou?Well,liethereandbe————toyou!\"

  Andifchanceoffered,andtimewasnotpressing,therivermanwouldgivehishelplessvictimajerkorsointoamoredifficultposition。Timesofrisingwater——whenthesluice—gatesabovehadbeenopened——werethemostprolificofopportunities。Logsrarelyjamonrisingwater,forthesimplereasonthatconstantlythesurfaceareaoftheriverisincreasing,thustendingtoseparatethelogs。Ontheotherhand,fallingwater,tendingtocrowdthedriveclosertogether,isespeciallyprolificoftrouble。

  Therefore,onfloodwaterthewatchersscatteredalongthestretchesoftheriverhadlittletodo——savestrandHeinzman’slogsforhim。

  Andwhenfloodwaterhadpassed,someofthoselogswerecertainlyhighanddry。

  Uptoacertainpointthiswasallverywell。Ordetookpainsnottocountenanceitofficially,andcausedwordtobepassedabout,thatwhilehedidnotexpecthismentohelpdriveHeinzman’slogs,theymustnotgooutoftheirwaytostrandthem。

  \"Ifthingsgettoobad,he’llhavespiesdownheretocollectevidenceonus,\"saidOrde,\"andhe’lljugsomeofusforinterferencewithhisproperty。Wedon’towntheriver。\"

  \"Howaboutthembooms?\"askedtheRoughRed。

  \"Ididownthem,\"explainedOrde,\"andIhadarighttotakethemupwhenIhadfinishedwiththem。\"

  Thishintwasenough。Themendidnotceasefromalabourthattickledthemmightily,buttheyadoptedacodeofsignals。

  Strangerswerenotuncommon。Spectatorscameoutoftenfromthelittletownsandfromthefarmsround—about。Whenoneoftheseappearedtherivermannearestraisedalongfalsettocry。Thiswastakenupbyhisnextneighbourandpassedon。Inafewminutesallthatsectionofthedriveknewthatitwouldbewiseto\"lielow。\"

  AndinsideoftwoweeksOrdehadthegreatsatisfactionoflearningthatHeinzmanwasworking——andworkinghard——acrewoffiftymen。

  \"Aprettyfaircrew,evenifhewastakingouthiswholedrive,\"

  commentedOrde。

  Thegodsofluckseemedtobewiththenewenterprise。AlthoughOrdehad,ofcourse,takentheutmostpainstoforeseeeverycontingencypossibletoguardagainst,nevertheless,asalwayswhendealingwithNature’slargerforces,heanticipatedsomeofthosegiganticobstacleswhichcontinuallyrenderuncertainwildernesswork。Nothingofthekindhappened。Thereformednoneofthetremendouswhite—waterjamsthatpileupseveralmillionfeetoflogs,taxeveryresourceofmen,horses,andexplosives,andrequireaweekorsotobreak。Nomenwerekilled,andonlytwoinjured。

  Nounexpectedfloodssweptawayworksonwhichthedrivedepended。

  Thewaterheldouttocarrythelaststickoftimberovertheshallowestrapids。Weatherconditionswerephenomenal——andperfect。

  Allupanddowntherivertheworkwentwiththatvimanddashthatisinitselfanassuranceofsuccess。TheHeinzmanaffair,whichunderauspicesofevilaugurymighthavebecomeaseriousmenacetothesuccessoftheyoungundertaking,nowservedmerelytoaddaspiceofhumourtothesituation。Amongthemengainedcurrencyahalf—affectionatebeliefin\"Orde’sluck。\"

  Afterthishappyfashionthedrivewent,untilatlastitenteredthebroad,deep,andnavigablestretchesoftheriverfromReddingtothelake。Here,barringtheaccidentofanextraordinaryflood,thetroubleswereover。Onthebroad,placidbosomofthestreamthelogswouldfloat。Acrew,following,woulddotheeasyworkofsackingwhatlogswouldstrandoreddyinthelazycurrent;wouldrollintothefasterwatersthecomponentpartsofwhatwerebycourtesycalledjams,butwhichwereinrealitypile—upsofafewhundredlogsonsandbarsmid—stream;andinthegrowingtepidwarmthofsummerwouldtramppleasantlyalongtherivertrail。Ofcourse,adryyearwouldmakenecessaryalargercrewandmorelabour;ofcourse,abigfloodmightsweepthelogspastalldefencesintothelakeforanirretrievableloss。Butsuchfloodscomeonceinacentury,andeventhedryestofdryyearscouldnotnowhangthedrive。AsOrdesatinhisbuckboard,readytogointotownforafirstglimpseofCarrollinmorethantwomonths,hegazedwithanimmensesatisfactionoverthebroadrivermovingbrownandglacier—likeasthoughthelogsthatcovereditwereviscidandcomposedallitssubstance。Theenterprisewaspracticallyassuredofsuccess。

  ForawhilenowOrdewastohaveabreathingspell。Alargenumberofmenwereherelaidoff。Theremainder,underthedirectionofJimDenning,wouldrequirelittleornoactualsupervision。UntilthejamshouldhavereachedthedistributingboomsaboveMonrovia,theaffairwasverysimple。Beforeheleft,however,hecalledDenningtohim。

  \"Jim,\"saidhe,\"I’llbedowntoseeyouthroughthesluicewaysatRedding,ofcourse。Butnowthatyouhaveagood,stillstretchofriver,Iwantyoutohavetheboysletuponsackingoutthose\"H\"

  logs。AndIwantyoutoincludeinourdrivealltheHeinzmanlogsfromaboveyoupossiblycan。Ifyoucanfixit,lettheirdrivedriftdownintoours。

  \"Thenwe’llhavetodrivetheirlogsforthem,\"objectedDenning。

  \"Sure,\"rejoinedOrde,\"butit’seasydriving;andifthatcrewofhishasn’tmuchtodo,perhapshe’lllaymostofthemoffhereatRedding。\"

  Denninglookedathisprincipalforamoment,thenaslowgrinoverspreadhisface。Withoutcommentheturnedbacktocamp,andOrdetookuphisreins。

  XXV

  Oh,I’msoGLADtogetyouback!\"criedCarrolloverandoveragain,assheclungtohim。\"Idon’tlivewhileyou’reaway。Andeverydropofrainthatpattersontheroofchillsmyheart,becauseI

  thinkofitaschillingyou;andeverycreakofthisoldhouseatnightbringsmeupbroadawake,becauseIhearinitthecrashofthosecruelgreattimbers。Oh,oh,OH!I’msogladtogetyou!

  You’rethelightofmylife;you’remywholelifeitself!\"——shesmiledathimfromherperchonhisknee——\"I’msilly,amInot?\"shesaid。\"Deargheart,don’tleavemeagain。\"

  \"I’vegottosupportanextravagantwife,youknow,\"Orderemindedhergravely。

  \"Iknow,ofcourse,\"shebreathed,bendinglightlytohim。\"Youhaveyourworkintheworldtodo,andIwouldnothaveitotherwise。Itisgreatwork——wonderfulwork——I’vebeenaskingquestions。\"

  Ordelaughed。

  \"It’swork,justlikeanyother。Andit’shardwork,\"saidhe。

  Sheshookherheadathimslowly,amysterioussmileonherlips。

  Withoutexplainingherthought,sheslippedfromhiskneeandglidedacrosstothetallgoldenharp,whichhadbeenbroughtfromMonrovia。Thelightanddiaphanoussilkofherloosepeignoirfloatedabouther,definingthematuringgraceofherfigure。

  Abruptlyshestruckagreatcrashingchord。

  Then,withanabandonofecstasysheplungedintooneofthosewildandsea—blownsaga—likerhapsodiesoftheHungarians,fullofthewindinrigging,thestorminthepines,ofshrieking,vastforceshurtlingunchainedthrougharesoundingandinfinitespace,asthoughdeepdowninprimevalnaturethepowersoftheworldhadbeenloosed。Backandforth,hereandthere,erraticandswiftandsuddenaslightningthethemeplayedbreathless。Itfell。

  \"Whatisthat?\"gaspedOrde,surprisedtofindhimselftense,hisbloodrioting,hissoulstirred。

  Sherantohimtohideherfaceinhisneck。

  \"Oh,it’syou,you,you!\"shecried。

  Heheldhertohimcloselyuntilherexcitementhaddied。

  \"Doyouthinkitisgoodtogetquitesonervous,sweetheart?\"heaskedgently,then。\"Remember——\"

  \"Oh,Ido,Ido!\"shebrokeinearnestly。\"EverymomentofmywakingandsleepinghoursIrememberhim。AlwaysIkeephislittlesoulbeforemeasalightonashrine。Butto—night——oh!to—nightI

  couldlaughandshoutaloudlikethepeopleintheBible,withclappingofhands。\"ShesnuggledherselfclosetoOrdewithalittlemurmurofhappiness。\"Ithinkofallthebeautifulthings,\"

  shewhispered,\"andofthenoblethings,andofthegreatthings。

  Heisgoingtobesturdy,likehisfather;awonderfulboy,aboyalloffire——\"

  \"Likehismother,\"saidOrde。

  Shesmiledupathim。\"Iwanthimjustlikeyou,dear,\"shepleaded。

  XXVI

  ThreedayslaterthejamofthedrivereachedthedamatRedding。

  OrdetookCarrolldowntowninthebuckboard。Thereaseatbythedam—watcher’slittlehousewasgivenher,backofthebrickfactorybuildingsnextthepowercanal,whenceforhoursshewatchedtheslowonwardmovementofthesullenbrowntimbers,thesmooth,polished—steelrushofthewatersthroughthechute,thegracefulcertainmovementsoftherivermen。SomeofthelatterwerebroughtupbyOrdeandintroduced。Theywereveryawkward,andsomewhatembarrassed,buttheyalllookedherstraightintheeye,andCarrollfeltsomehowthatbackoftheirdiffidencetheywerequitedispassionatelyappraisingher。Afterafewgraciousspeechesonherpartandmonosyllabicresponsesontheirs,theyblunderedaway。

  Inspiteofthescantcommunication,theseinterviewsleftsomethingofafriendlyfeelingonbothsides。

  \"IlikeyourJimDenning,\"shetoldOrde;\"he’sanice,clean—cutfellow。AndMr。Bourke,\"shelaughed。\"Isn’thefunnywithhisfierceredbeardandhislittleeyes?Buthesimplyadoresyou。\"

  OrdelaughedattheideaoftheRoughRed’sadoringanybody。

  \"It’sso,\"sheinsisted,\"andIlikehimforit——onlyIwishhewerealittlecleaner。\"

  Shethoughtthefeatsof\"log—riding\"littlelessthanwonderful,andyoumaybesuretheknowledgeofherpresencedidnotdiscouragespectaculardisplay。Finally,JohnnyChallan,utteringaloudwhoop,leapedaboardalogandwentthroughthechutestandingboltupright。Byamarvelofagility,hekepthisbalancethroughthewhite—waterbelow,andemergedfinallyintothelowerwatersstillproudlyupright,anddryabovetheknees。

  Carrollhadarisen,thebettertosee。

  \"Why,\"shecriedaloud,\"it’smarvellous!Circusridingisnothingtoit!\"

  \"No,ma’am,\"repliedagiganticrivermanwhowasworkingnearathand,\"thatain’tnothin’。Ordinary,however,wetravelthatwayontheriver。Atnightwehavethecookeepassusouteachagoose—

  ha’rpiller,andlaydownforthenight。\"

  Carrolllookedathiminreproof。Hegrinnedslowly。

  \"Don’tgitworriedaboutme,ma’am,\"saidhe,\"I’mhopeless。FortwentyyearnowIbeenwearin’crapeonmyhatinmemoryofmydepartedvirtues。\"

  AftertherearhaddroppeddownriverfromRedding,CarrollandOrdereturnedtotheirdesertedlittleboxofahouseatMonrovia。

  Ordebreatheddeepofanewsatisfactioninwalkingagainthestreetsofthislittlesandy,sawdust—paved,shantyfiedtown,withitsyellowhillsanditswideblueriveranditsglimpseofthelakefarintheoffing。Ithadnevermeantanythingtohimbefore。Nowheenjoyedeverybrickandboardofit;hetrodthebroken,aromaticshinglesoftheroadwaywithpleasure;hetrampedupthebroadstairsanddownthedarkhalloftheblockwithanticipation;hebreathedthecompoundedofficeodourofledgers,cocoamatting,andoldcigarsmokeinalong,reminiscentwhiff;hetookhisseatathisroll—topdesk,enchantedtobeagaininthesehomelythoughfamiliarsurroundings。

  \"HangedifIknowwhat’sstruckme,\"hemused。\"Neverexperiencedanyremarkablejoybeforeingettingbacktothissortoftruck。\"

  Then,withawarmglowattheheart,therealisationwasbroughttohim。Thiswashome,andoveryonder,undertheshadowoftheheaven—pointingspire,aslipofagirlwaswaitingforhim。

  Hetriedtotellherthiswhennexthesawher。

  \"IfeltthatIoughttomakeyoualittleshrine,andburncandlestoyou,thewaytheCatholicsdo——\"

  \"TotheMaterDolorosa?\"shemocked。

  Helookedatherdarkeyessofullofthesweetnessofcontent,athersensitivelipswiththequaintlyupturnedcorners,andhethouhtofwhatherhomelifehadbeenandoftherealsorrowthatevenyetmustsmouldersomewheredowninthedeepsofherbeing。

  \"No,\"saidheslowly,\"notthat。IthinkmyshrinewillbededicatedtoOurLadyoftheJoyousSoul。\"

  TherestoftheweekOrdewasabsentuptheriver,superintendinginageneralwaythelatterprogressofthedrive,lookingintotheneedsofthecrews,arrangingforsupplies。Themillswereallworkingnow,busilycuttingintotheresidueoflastseason’slogs。

  Soontheywouldneedmore。

  Attheboomseverythingwasinreadinesstoreceivethejam。Thelongswingarmslantingacrosstheriverchannelwasattachedtoitswinchwhichwouldoperateit。Whenshutitwouldclosethemainchannelandshuntintotheboomsthelogsfloatingintheriver。

  There,pennedatlastbythepilesdriveninarowandheldtogetheratthetopbyboltedtimbers,theywouldliequiet。Menarmedwithpike—poleswouldthentakeuptheworkofdistributionaccordingtothebrandsstampedontheends。Eachbrandhaditsownseparate\"sortingpens,\"thelowerendleadingagainintotheopenriver。

  Fromtheseeachowner’spropertywasraftedandtowedtohisprivateboomsathismillbelow。

  Ordespentthedaybeforethejamappearedinconstructingwhathecalleda\"boomerang。\"

  \"Inventionofmyown,\"heexplainedtoNewmark。Secretinventionjustyet。I’mgoingtoholdupthedriveinthemainriveruntilwehavethingsbunched,thenI’mgoingtothrowabigcrewdownherebytheswing。Heinzmananticipates,ofcourse,thatI’llruntheentiredriveintotheboomsanddoallmysortingthere。Naturally,ifIturnhislogslooseintotheriverasfastasIrunacrossthem,hewillbeabletopickthemuponeatatime,forhe’llonlygetthemoccasionally。IfIkeepthemuntileverythingelseissorted,onlyHeinzman’slogswillremain;andaswehavenorighttoholdlogs,we’llhavetoturnthemloosethroughthelowersortingbooms,wherehecanbereadytoraftthem。Inthatwayhegetsthemallrightwithoutpayingusacent。See?\"

  \"Yes,Isee,\"saidNewmark。

  \"Well,\"saidOrde,withalaugh,\"hereiswhereIfoolhim。I’mgoingtorushthedriveintotheboomsallatonce,butI’mgoingtosortoutHeinzman’slogsattheseopeningsneartheentranceandturnthemintothemainchannel。\"

  \"Whatgoodwillthatdo?\"askedNewmarksceptically。\"Hegetsthemsortedjustthesame,doesn’the?\"

  \"Thecurrent’sfairlystrong,\"Ordepointedout,\"andtheriver’salmightywide。Whenyouspringsevenoreightmillionfeetonaman,allatonceandunexpected,andhewithnocrewtohandlethem,he’sgoingtokeepalmightybusy。Andifhedon’tstopthemthissidehismill,he’llhavetoraftandtowthemback;andifhedon’tstop’emthissidethelake,hemayaswellkissthemallgoodbye——

  exceptthosethatdriftintothebayousandinletsandmarshes,andotherungodlyplaces。\"

  \"Isee,\"saidNewmarkdrily。

  \"Butdon’tsayawordanywhere,\"warnedOrde。\"Secrecyisthewatchwordofsuccesswiththismerrylittlejoke。\"

点击下载App,搜索"The Riverman",免费读到尾